Home Theater Projector Review: Epson Home Cinema 1080UB LCD Projector: Summary, Pros, Cons

Posted on October 9, 2013 By Art Feierman

Check out how the Epson Home Cinema 1080 UB fared in our comparison report.
View Epson Home Cinema 1080 UB vs. JVC DLA-RS1x projector comparison.
View Epson Home Cinema 1080 UB vs. Panasonic PT-AE2000U projector comparison.
View Epson Home Cinema 1080 UB vs. Sony VPL-VW40 projector comparison.
View annual winners.

The Epson Home Cinema 1080UB receives our Hot Product Award. And, in this case, I think the correct term is: “it’s a no-brainer.” Yes, I know I give out a lot of Hot Product Awards, but that’s because most projectors are very good, and rarely does one surface that is better at just about everything, than any of the competiton. You might find a DLP projector you think is best at picture quality, but because they typically have almost no zoom range, and no lens shift, it might not work for you. if a projector is going to be the best for at least a small but significant group of people, it gets our Hot Product Award.

The Epson Home Cinema 1080UB isn’t one of those, that only is best for a “small” group. This is an exceptional projector for the money. it mostly rivals the best other projectors out there at 1.5 to 3 times the price. That’s not to say it’s perfect. But, it does offer great picture with great black levels and shadow detail, and unlike the DLP’s that dominated in those areas, it offers placement flexibility that should meet just about everyone’s needs.

Guess what? That’s going to make it a lot harder for me to give out Hot Product Awards for the few remaining 1080p projectors I’ll be reviewing of this generation. Even so, the Epson doesn’t do everything, for example, no support for an anamorphic lens for full screen Cinemascope (no letter box).

In early February (’08) look for my 2nd annual 1080p projector comparsion report. In this report I give out my Best in Class, and Runner-up awards. For those of you looking for a reviewer to say “Buy this one”. That’s the closest you’ll get from me. It will be very in-depth, with lots of one on one comparison.

Because the Comparison Report is only about 3-4 weeks off, I’m going to keep my comparison comments short in this section. Still, it should provide you plenty to consider. Keep in mind, many of these other projectors support anamorphic lenses, which will be a reason for some to pass on the Epson Let’s get started.