WELCOME TO OUR ANNUAL LASER TV BUYER'S GUIDE
More and more manufacturers are introducing ultra-short-throw smart projectors commonly referred to as “Laser TVs”. These types of projectors are designed to be an alternative to a traditional LCD or OLED TV. A laser TV combines the immersive big screen “WOW” factor of a home theater projector with the everyday convenience features and installation simplicity of a flat panel TV.
In this report, we review all the Laser TVs and Ultra-Short-Throw projectors we reviewed over the past year. 2025 was another great year for home theater enthusiasts, and several notable new projectors arrived in 2026.
When we review units and choose award winners for this guide, we consider several projectors from different manufacturers and how they perform in different situations. More than ever, people want great entertainment experiences at home. A big-screen setup can make movies, sports, TV shows, and more feel more immersive.
Combining a bright Laser TV like the Hisense L9Q with a good screen can deliver a massive vibrant image
You will not find the full reviews for any of the projectors featured here. However, there are links to all their reviews if you want to learn more. The purpose of this comprehensive guide is to assist you with insight and information as you enter your Home Theater projector-buying journey and ensure you find the best suited to your unique needs.
This guide includes all the Laser TV and Ultra-Short Throw projectors currently on the market that we have reviewed over the past few years. If you need a condensed list of the best projectors, explore our article on Best Laser TVs and Best Ultra Short Throw Projectors
We wish to thank Hisense for sponsoring the 2026 Laser TV Buyer's Guide
WHAT'S INSIDE OUR LASER TV PROJECTOR BUYER'S GUIDE
Projector Categories
Whether you are looking for a value projector to use for backyard movie nights or a premium unit for your dedicated home theater, you should be able to find an option that fits your budget and application. In this year's report, we have broken the projectors down into these categories:
The most popular TV screen sizes have steadily grown over the last decade or so. Screens measuring 65 inches diagonally have become the most popular size in North America, and 75-inches models will soon replace them if recent pricing trends continue. Meanwhile, 50-inch sets—once considered huge—are now being stuck in guest rooms so your mom can watch NCIS repeats when she visits.
But flat panel TVs can only get so big. LCD TVs currently top out at around 116 inches, while the largest OLED measures 97 inches. However, these monster TVs carry matching monster price tags – well into five figures. While it is possible to make even larger glass panels, currently they are prohibitively expensive and difficult to transport and install. There’s also the new micro-LED technology that promises wall-sized displays of almost any size, but now we’re talking prices in the six figures!
We may dream of a 100-inch flat-screen TV, but the heavy cost can be a record-scratch, show-stopper for models larger than 85 inches. So, for most of us, when we think of the ultimate big screen experience at home, we don’t think of flat panel TVs, we think of a bulky black box parked in the back of a very dark theater room or mounted on a ceiling, projecting across the room to a great big old screen mounted on the wall. This type of traditional projector might need a specialist to install in the ceiling and probably lack speakers or built-in streaming apps.
The good news is projector manufacturers continue to innovate – and ultra-short throw projectors are a big game changer for those who want a big screen experience without a hefty price tag or a dedicated theater or cave. A short throw projector can produce large images even when it is placed only a few feet from a screen or even a wall. As mentioned previously, these types of projectors are called Laser TVs because they are designed to be viable replacements for flat panel televisions.
Laser TVs are becoming increasingly popular because you get the benefits of a projector without some of the hassles of a traditional projector. Since laser TVs offer a big screen experience while overcoming so many projector headaches, they can appeal to the same audience that enjoys a flat panel TV – for a fraction of the big screen flat panel cost
FEATURES TO CONSIDER WHEN CHOOSING A LASER TV
BRIGHTNESS
A good Laser TV is bright enough to be used day or night
Laser TVs are easy to install and offer an unbelievable picture in a much larger image than a traditional flat-panel TV. They can produce a really big image in your living room, family room, and other “common” areas of your house while sitting only inches from the screen. These projectors are intended to be TV replacements, so they include all the smart features and apps found in a modern TV along with an upgraded, built-in sound system.
If a projector is going to be able to replace a flat panel TV, you have to be able to use it day or night like a regular TV. It also needs to be able to deliver vibrant color regardless of ambient room light. Most laser TVs are sufficiently bright enough to deliver a vibrant, TV-like viewing experience. In addition to a long, maintenance-free life, a laser has a lot of other advantages over a traditional projector – they turn on faster, lasts longer, runs quieter, and generates less heat.
SMART FEATURES
Laser TVs like the Hisense L9Q include tons of smart features
A lot of traditional projectors are real dum-dums and the rest of us are used to the convenience of a smart TV. Laser TVs are the projector industry’s easy solution to enjoying the really big-screen viewing experience at home, without out needing a dedicated room – the classic “home theater” or man cave, and instead enjoy it in common rooms like your living room or family room. That tends to make them family purchases, something enjoyed by the whole family, rather than just the hobbyist/enthusiast in the house. And the family wants the familiar convenience of a smart TV and ESPECIALLY streaming apps like Netflix. The kids need to be able to quickly browse to Octonauts or Ninjago.
To be a true flat panel TV replacement, a Laser TV has to be smart and include built-in streaming apps for services like Netflix, Amazon, YouTube, and others. In addition, the manufacturer should provide an extensive app store that lets you download other available apps. Many smart Laser TVs offer the same Android operating system found in the best-selling flat panel TVs – it’s familiar, seamless and easy to navigate. Voice control capabilities are another welcome smart addition. The unit should also provide the ability to display content that is “cast” from smartphones and other mobile devices via Wi-Fi.
SOUND
A thin flat panel TV can mean thin sound – a Laser TV has a bigger box = bigger sound!
Then there’s onboard audio. Of course, all TVs provide built-in speakers—without them, the display is technically a monitor. But as you probably know, the speakers in the vast majority of TVs sound terrible, mostly because they must be very small to fit inside today’s modern super-skinny cabinets.
Most Laser TVs include built-in audio. The good news here is that an ultra-short throw projector cabinet can accommodate larger, deeper speakers, so they have the potential to sound much better than most TVs. In fact, the built-in sound system on a Laser TV typically resembles a soundbar—the speakers are mounted on the back panel of the projector, firing directly toward the viewers while the projector shoots its light up onto the screen. For real audiophiles, a Laser TV like the Hisense PX4-Pro offers HDMI with eARC support for full pass-through of high-bitrate audio to a surround sound system.
INSTALLATION FLEXIBILITY
A Laser TV is simpler to install than a massive flat-panel TV
A traditional projector needs a big room because it must be placed far from the screen. Ultra-short throw projectors bring the dream of a big screen experience to smaller homes and apartments. You don’t have to hang it in the back of the room, and no one will walk in front of the picture. The convenience of Laser TVs makes projection practical in living rooms, dens, and other non-home theaters. Far more people want 100-inch images than folks willing to dedicate an entire room to a home theater.
A Laser TV still isn’t as simple as plonking an LCD TV on a tabletop or credenza. However, wall-mounting a projection screen is much simpler than a large flat-panel TV (75-inch and up). Wall-mounting a TV means not only mounting the display, but also getting power and sources to it. You can let the wires hang, or do the install properly by running them through the wall to a nearby table with other equipment, such as a Blu-ray Disc player, AV receiver, and larger speakers, or a cable box. Since the projector sits on the same table as the other gear, connecting everything is much easier.
A large flat-panel TV remains a focal point of the room even when it is off. The challenge, especially in modern homes, is that large windows, artwork, fireplaces, and open floor plans often make it impractical or undesirable to mount a large fixed-screen or flat-panel TV. This is where a retractable screen paired with a UST projector becomes an attractive option: you can enjoy an immersive image that disappears when you're not using it.
Several companies offer specially designed cabinets that hide a Laser TV making unit, keeping it completely invisible when off. This setup costs more than a fixed screen but is well worth it for domestic tranquility if you have the budget.
SUMMARY
Since Hisense launched the first Laser TV in 2014, we’re excited that projector manufacturers keep innovating in this space. Laser TVs offer features that give you significant advantages over a large flat-panel TV. A big advantage is portability. While you probably wouldn't take your Laser TV on a camping trip, it’s MUCH easier to schlep up an apartment building's stairs, or even move it from home to another, than a fragile monster TV.
And you’re going to get most of the features you love from your flat panel TV – long lifespan, zero maintenance, smart apps, built-in audio, as well as the ability to upgrade your screen size and performance without having to replace your video display.
A Laser TV makes movies and games feel more immersive
As you can see, Laser TVs offer some significant advantages over flat-panel TVs. Perhaps most importantly, they offer larger images for less money – in other words, you pay fewer dollars per inch of image size. Another big advantage is portability; a Laser TV is much easier to move from one home to another than a monster TV. And you get most of the other features of a flat-panel TV—long lifespan, zero maintenance, smart apps, built-in audio—as well as the ability to upgrade the screen size and performance without having to replace the entire TV.
A Laser TV makes it easy for the average consumer to replace a flat-panel TV without having to step out of their comfort zone with the complexity of a traditional projector. Most come with Smart TV functionality, and there’s no need to hire a professional to install it, and you’ll never have to yell “DOWN IN FRONT” during a climactic movie scene. Why settle for a measly 65 or 85 inches when you can get an image more than twice as big from a compact unit?
We would, once again, like to thank Hisense for sponsoring this guide, and you will see several Hisense models throughout, including some of the best projectors available on the market today. Be sure to check out their full lineup, along with all the projectors we reviewed in 2026.
