Epson Powerlite 1735W Wireless Portable Projector Review
A detailed review of this Epson lightweight wireless portable projector. Proofing and some more material will be added shortly. Additional commentary to Mike's review, provided by Art
2-8-09 - Mike Rollett
|
|
  |
Epson Powerlite 1735W Projector Overview
The Epson Powerlite 1735W is a lightweight (4 lbs.), micro-portable widescreen WXGA (1280 X 800) LCD projector with a host of features that make it adaptable to the boardroom, conference room or classroom. Thanks to its small size and light weight, though, it is first and foremost, a sophisticated, and bright portable projector for the serious presenter, especially those "road warriors" that need to travel with their own projector. The 1735W can be connected to a PC (or Mac) via the traditional VGA cable (or DVI to VGA for Mac users), USB or wireless 802.11 a/b/g. It has specified output of 3000 lumens and a 1.2 zoom lens, as well as digital zooming.
The 1735W shares many if its features and performance with the previously reviewed, but much larger Powerlite 1815p, but adds native WXGA display.
Epson also offers the Powerlite 1725, which has all the features of the 1735, but with traditional XGA (1024 X 768) resolution.
Also in Epson's 17xx series projectors, are the Powerlite 1730W, essentially the same as the 1735W, but without the wireless networking, and the 1720, a non-wireless version of the 1725. If one looks at the current Epson 17xx series, they will find that all four models offer 3000 lumens of brightness. The older 17xx projectors these replace also consisted of XGA and WXGA projectors, some with wireless, but with lumen ratings from 2200 to 2700 lumens. Another key difference, is that the older ones offered a pr etty much industry standard 2000 hours of operation in with lamp on full power, and 3000 hours on low power. The Powerlite 1735W, and the other new models all claim 3000 hours in full power, and 4000 in low power mode, which definitely reduces the cost of ownership.
The 1735W’s light weight and size (and this is true of the other projectors in the series) makes it extremely portable (11.2" wide, 7.9" front to back, and 2.8" high - and that includes its feet). In terms of footprint that's about the same as a standard sheet of paper. It could easily fit under an airplane seat along with your laptop, but it is also set up for easy fixed installation in a conference room. The image here, shows a pen, and also the USB key sitting on top of the 1735W, to give you size perspective.
Epson Powerlite 1735W Projector Highlights
-
Lightweight – under 4 lbs., and extremely portable - and comes with a soft carry case
-
High Brightness – 3000 lumens
-
Plug 'n Play — USB connection projects video and plays audio from a PC
- Dynamic iris for improved video performance in Theatre and Gaming modes
-
Flexibility - Windows Vista® Network Projector compatible
-
USB Projection Capability – Presentations can be done without a computer from a USB thumb drive
- Excellent wireless networking features
- Lacks a digital video input (either DVI or HDMI)
-
Rapid Power up and nearly instant shut off
- Very good price performance for a projector in this class
Specs for the Epson Powerlite 1735W
MAP: $1649 (Epson no longer offers an MSRP for most business projectors)
Technology: 3LCD
Native Resolution: WXGA (1280x800)
Brightness: 3000 lumens
Contrast: 2000:1
Zoom Lens ratio: 1.2:1
Lens shift: None
Networking: Wireless and Wired, supports monitoring and email notification on a network
Lamp life: 4000 hours low power (eco-mode), 3000 hours at full lamp power
Weight: 3.96 lbs. (1.8 Kg)
Warranty: 2 Years Parts and Labor with 2 year overnight replacement program
Epson EMP-1735W Special Features
EasyMP
Short for Epson Administrative System for Meeting and Presentation, EasyMP allows for flexibility in presentations with such features as follows:
SlideMaker 2 (which allows you to combine PowerPoint, image and movie files into a single presentation, by extracting the necessary parts of files, and arranging them in order without editing the original files)
Multi-Screen Display (which allows connection to up to 4 projectors for a wide spreadsheet or flowchart). This mode also allows for the display of a PowerPoint slide, while the presenter’s monitor is also displaying the PowerPoint tools.
Movie Sending Mode (which allows for smooth playback of video files)
Presentation Mode (which allows for display of PowerPoint or Keynote slide shows)
Distribution Function (which allows for display from a remote computer on the network)
Switching Function (which allows for other computers on the network to take turns projecting their own images)
Email Notification - When using the networking ability of the 1735W, either wired or wireless, it can be set to notify the owner of the projector status, reminders or any problems via email.
PCFree – This feature enables you to display photos, videos, PowerPoint presentations and other files stored on a USB storage device, without the use of a PC. Presentations created with SlideMaker (above), can also be used with PCFree.
Widescreen
While this is now hardly an uncommon feature - consider that many, if not a majority of laptops sold are now widescreen, as are many desktop computers. The projector industry has been slow to adapt with widescreen projectors. Further, in the past not all of the widescreen projectors have used the 16:10 aspect ratio now standard on laptops, but other configurations including 1366x768, and 1280x768, which are also typically referred to as WXGA. This Epson is the industry standard 1280x800 resolution.
Closed Caption Capabilities
Not many projectors are equipped to do closed captions. While not a widely needed feature, there are applications, including use in school environments that call for this ability. Simply stated, this Epson has it, so, if that's a critical feature for you, then this Epson should be considered.
Dynamic Iris
This Epson projector even sports a dynamic iris (called Auto Iris), a feature found almost exclusively on home theater projectors to improve black level performance for viewing videos with dark scenes. This is a real plus if you plan to take this portable projector home and watch some movies or TV. The Auto Iris mode is only available in Game, Theatre, and customized modes. A very nice touch. It definitely improved the overall picture quality when a movie was played through the projector.
