Mitsubishi HC5000BL Projector Review

Posted on October 25, 2006 by Art Feierman

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Mitsubishi HC5000BL Specs
Price	4495
Technology	DLP
Native Resolution	1920x1080
Brightness (Manufacturer Claim)	1000
Contrast	10,000:1
Zoom Lens Ratio	1.60:1
Lens Shift	No
Lamp Life	2000 hours full power, 5000 lumens low power mode
Weight	12.3
Warranty	2 years

Mitsubishi HC5000BL Projector Review - Overview

Of the half dozen newly announced "affordable" 1080p projectors (under $10,000 list price), this is the least expensive, and the first one in to us for review. As a result, we can't reasonably compare the HC5000BL (link to specs) against our experiences with other competing 1080p projectors. Still, the performance for overall image quality, out of the box color accuracy, black levels, shadow detail, features, etc., are well known from lower resolution 720p projectors. The higher resolution of the HC5000BL is a given. We therefore expect this $4495 projector to perform competitively with lower cost, lower resolution home theater projectors, in the areas mentioned above. Like all the other affordable 1080p projectors announced at CEDIA, the Mitsubishi HC5000BL is not exceptionally bright, but would be rather average compared to most 720p projectors, and no match in brightness for "light cannons", like the new 720p Panasonic PT-AX100U or Epson Cinema series projectors. This Mitsubishi, like the 720p projectors just mentioned, are all LCD driven, not DLP.

The HC5000BL, being “powered” by 3LCD technology, has one huge advantage over the lower resolution LCD home theater projectors, and that is in terms of pixel visibility. With 1080p (1920×1080) resolution, there are 2.25 times as many pixels in use to deliver the image. This means significantly smaller pixels, and more importantly, means you can sit significantly closer (by about 1/3), than with an LCD 720p (1280×720) resolution projector, and have the same level of pixel visibility. Note, the exception is the Panasonic PT-AX100U that we recently reviewed. Panasonic uses their Smooth Screen technology to make pixels far less visible than with competing 720p LCD projectors (or DLP models for that matter). The Panasonic, however, pays a small price in sharpness, to pull that off. Add to that, the inherently sharper image you can expect from an 1080p projector, and the difference in sharpness while viewing is significant. - See more at: https://www.projectorreviews.com/mitsubishi/mitsubishi-hc5000bl-projector-review/#sthash.xb78PXGf.dpuf