NEC MC372X CLASSROOM PROJECTOR REVIEW- HARDWARE

NEC NP-MC372X Classroom Projector Review – Hardware: Overview, Control Panel, Inputs and Connectors, Menus, Remote Control

The MC372X is a very compact classroom projector especially considering it can produce nearly 4,000 lumens of brightness. When facing the unit, the projector’s lens is located on the left side of the front panel. Focus is done manually by turning the lens focus ring. The image can be zoomed in and out via the zoom lever next to the lens.

The window for the IR remote receiver is located toward the right side of the front panel and there are Status lights along the top front edge of the right side as well.

On the top of the unit is a simple control panel and lamp access cover. There is an intake vent covered by a cleanable/replaceable air filter on the left side and exhaust vent on the right side.

On the rear of the MC372X, on the right side, is a mono speaker. The left rear of the projector has all the A/V inputs and the AC power connection.

The MC372X has its control pad on the top of the projector. At the right top of the control pad is the power button. The input button (to select the desired signal input) is located on the top left. There is an ECO button to quickly switch between the projector’s lamp power modes (OFF, NORMAL, ECO). Pressing the AUTO ADJ button automatically optimizes the image from a connected computer.

There are 4-way menu navigation buttons with an ENTER button located in the middle. Beside those are the MENU button (to display the on-screen menu) and an EXIT button.

The AC power and signal connectors for the MC372X are located on the rear panel of the projector There are Audio IN/OUT stereo mini jacks, a computer input, two HDMI inputs, and a LAN input. The projector’s USB-A input can be used to display content stored on a USB drive as a connection for the optional wireless LAN module (NP05LM1). There is also a USB Type B service port and a PC control serial port.

The projector’s lens has a manual zoom lever along with a focus ring at the front of the lens barrel which is rotated to focus the projected image. The MC372X has a 1.2:1 zoom ratio with a throw ratio of 1.5 to 1.8:1. For those who need more throw range, NEC offers the ME402X that has a 1.7 zoom ratio (1.3 to 2.2:1 throw ratio) for about $200 more.

The MC372X has a well laid out menu structure. When the menu button is pressed the top-level menu is displayed offering 4 groups of menus across the top (i.e., Source, Adjust, Setup and Info). The images of the menu included in this section represent only a small number of all the sub-menus available. I tried to show the submenus that contain frequently used adjustments (image, setting, and networking, etc.).