1080p Home Theater Projector Comparison Report - Image Quality14

Mitsubishi HC6800

Mitsubishi HC7000

It's been a long time, since Mitsubishi did not replace the HC7000 last fall. When reviewed, blacks were, in the general price range at the time, second only to the Epson 6500UB and 7500UB, and definitely better than the still very good, Panasonic PT-AE3000 (and probably still a touch better than the newer PT-AE4000, and defiinitely superior to the Sanyo PLV-Z3000. Of course the JVCs bested even the Epsons (and rather easily).

The end result - the HC7000 may still be the 2nd best at black levels in the class, in fact it probably is. Shadow detail was never a problem.

Optoma HD8200

The black level performance of the HD8200 isn't the issue, it's the iris. I found it to be very annoying occasionally. Now I realize I'm a lot pickier than most, but, the HD8200 iris definitely has some quirks. It's what ruined the projector for me. Turn off the iris and the HD8200 can still do some decent blacks but not so good as to rationalize the price point the HD8200 is at, when you consider some of the competition (such as the BenQ W6000).

Sanyo PLV-Z3000

In last year's report, Sanyo's PLV-Z3000 was the UHC projector with the least impressive blacks (which is still to say, really very good). Well, nothing's changed. I still think of it as where one draws the line. That means, that while blacks could still be a lot better, you've found a projector where you can start weighing improving other aspects of projector quality, a bit heavier than further black level improvement.

Sony VPL-HW15

The Sony makes the cut. Call it an ultra-high contrast projector. Though it still falls short of the Epson, it's probably right there with the Panasonic, or a tad better, which isn't a bad place to be. When it comes to shadow detail I had simply said " the Sony VPL-HW15 does really well".