Epson BrightLink 450wi Projector - Image Quality
3-12-2010 -Anthony Arrigo
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Epson BrightLink 450wi Color & Picture Quality
Being that the Epson BrightLink 450wi is a 3 LCD projector, color reproduction is not as much of an issue as it is with DLP projectors. I should mention that DLP’s are coming a long way but still require some tweaking in order to get the most accurate color. The Epson 450wi performed well in its default Presentation Color Mode. The image was vibrant and reds, yellows, greens and blues all appeared very accurate. I did not feel adjustment was necessary to achieve a solid image. Having run through the different color modes, the one other color mode you would probably use most often would be the Dynamic Mode. The differences are obvious when you switch. The image definitely will "pop" a lot more than Presentation Mode. Basically the image just gets a lot brighter which is sometimes desirable, but some colors will have too much punch. For general use I found Presentation Mode to be best.
The sharpness of the image was very satisfactory. Even working up close next to the screen was not hard on the eyes. As is common with LCD’s, the pixels are a bit visible, but to the audience, it will be completely unnoticeable. Keep in mind that anyone standing a few feet from the screen would see pixels regardless of the projector make or model.
The Epson 450wi is a native WXGA(1280x800) projector and in its native mode type is very readable even at some of the smallest type settings like 10pt. I am basing my opinion from a distance of 10 feet. When feeding the interactive projector higher resolutions like 1440x900 I found that it handled 12pt and larger text very well and still produced a very sharp readable image. However type any smaller would strain the audiences eyes far too much.
1440x900 Resolution
1440x900 Resolution
With a contrast ratio of 2000:1 and a native wide screen aspect ratio, the Epson 450wi proved to be able to perform well for users that plan to project and annotate over photographs, designs, and scientific information. Although ultra high resolution projectors with higher contrast ratios than 2000:1 would be ideal, the price tag for such an interactive projection system is often prohibitive for the average k-12, vocational school, or university where multiple projectors might be required. With that said, the Epson BrightLink 450wi is a great value considering how well it performs.