Runco LightStyle LS-5 Home Theater Projector - on Deck for a Review

Naturally, Mike picked up the Runco, for measurements and possible calibration.   Naturally, it did not require a real calibration, though Mike did tweak a couple of things.  As he put it, Runco pretty much starts out calibrated.   So, what have we here? The Runco LS-5 is one of two single chip, 1080p DLP projectors in Runco's LightStyle series (their closest thing to "entry level".  this LS-5 for example, has an MSRP of $6995.    Now considering 1080p DLP home projectors start at something like $800 to $900, what makes this Runco special? Sorry, can't tell you until the full review is published...  (Kidding!) If first impressions are anything, both Mike and I had the same reaction (one similar to that of other Runco projectors we've reviewed. "Geez, this looks really good."  Tell you the truth, MIke brought it back last night, so I've only watched a few hours so far, and all of that HDTV.   I'll be doing a usual First Look Blog after I've got some hours under my belt.  Certainly that will publish by the end of this weekend, if not sooner.  The review should publish the following week,  before I head to Infocomm. What is different about this Runco, is less brightness.  Unlike the LS-10d and LS7 - a pair of 3 chip DLP's we've reviewed in the last year, this Runco is not a light cannon.  It's brightness is more in the range (or a little brighter) than some of the competition, such as the JVC RS50 and X7, the Sony VPL-VW90ES. Without the big lumen advantage, it should be interesting to see if the Runco, comes though as a top contender in the over $5K price range, as only a single chip DLP.  Certainly, over the years, there have been any number of impressive, and in some cases, very refined single chip DLP's in this price range, both volume names like Optoma, and also some "exclusive" brand names as well, including Marantz, (and of course Runco).  It should prove interesting.  I've got my JVC RS20 and an Epson 8700ub here for my side by side look-see.   Stay tuned!  -art