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Optoma HD8000 Home Theater Projector: Physical Tour

Posted on October 6, 2007 By Art Feierman

The HD80 projector shares the same shaped case as the other current Optoma 1080p projectors. It is reasonably small, with the lens placed on the far left (looking at the projector from the front. It offers a 1.2:1 zoom ratio, allowing some (but limited) placement flexibility. There is also a front infra-red sensor for the remote control just below the lens and closer to the center. With a 100″ diagonal 16:9 screen, the front of the projector can be placed as close as 13.4 feet, and as far back as 16.1 feet. If your screen will be larger or smaller, you can figure out the distances from these numbers.

The Optoma HD80 has its control panel laid out in a straight line, on the top, along the back edge. This means that the menu keys are not laid out in the traditional diamond shape, which is unfortunate. That said, of course, you would normally be using the remote control regardless, so it’s not a big deal.

Looking from the back of the HD80, the power switch is on the far left (once for on, twice for off). Next is the Menu button, followed by the up and down arrows, then the left and right, and finally, the Enter key. The left arrow doubles as the Source select button when the menus aren’t in use, and the right arrow, doubles as the re-sync button, primarily for locking on to a PC analog source.

Moving to the back, the input panel is especially well endowed. I say this because the HD80 has three digital inputs; two HDMI inputs and a DVI. The DVI, can be used for a digital input, or as either a second component video, or as the analog input for a computer. The dedicated component video input has the usual three RCA jacks. To round things out, there’s the traditional composite, and S-video inputs, an RS-232 for “command and control” by a room control system or computer, and a 12 volt “trigger” for controlling a properly equipped motorized screen.

As a typical DLP projector, the HD80 has a sealed light path, and no filters to change out

 

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