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LG MiniBeam PF1000U Projector Review — Special Features

Posted on August 7, 2016 By Art Feierman

LG PF 1000U Projector Review — Special Features: TV tuner, Apps and Web Browser, Bluetooth Audio

This dual-purpose projector is at home in the den for family movie night, in the classroom for viewing online videos or in the office for projecting large spreadsheets or presentations. Based on LED illumination, it might not be the brightest ultra-short throw projector, but the PF 1000U is a grab bag of technologies and features that its competitors wish they had.

PF 1000U TV Tuner

Like LG’s MiniBeam PH550, the PF 1000U has a built in TV tuner. It works with analog and digital signals, but lacks the ability to tap into cable TV systems. Just connect the coaxial input to an antenna (not included) and the projector scans for available channels in your area. It found only 5 local stations, although the PH550 with the same antenna was able to get nearly 40. Either way, it’s a free alternative to paying for TV.

Online Apps and Browser

Online Apps and Browser

The PF 1000U is one of the first projectors to incorporate both a Web browser for viewing Web pages and apps for online services, like YouTube, Netflix and Hulu.

LG-PF1000U_home_screen
The LG PF1000U’s home screen looks more like today’s Smart TVs than a typical projector, including having streaming services available.

 

While a physical keyboard, like the one that Roku supplies with some of its gear, would have been a help with typing passwords and Web URLs, there’s an effective on-screen keyboard. It all works well and you can just as easily watch the latest movies as scan the news headlines.  That the remote control is exceptionally fast to use, really helps.

Bluetooth Audio

In addition to the PF 1000U’s pair of 3-watt speakers, it has a secret for wireless sound. It can transmit its audio output to a Bluetooth speaker set. The projector sounds good on its own, but can send an audio signal to speakers about 30-feet away, to a superior sound system, if you’ve got one!   If your stereo doesn’t have Bluetooth input, you can buy a bluetooth receiver for less than $40 and plug it in to your AV receiver.

LG MiniBeam PF1000U Projector Review
LG MiniBeam PF1000UProjector Review — Hardware Tour