Classroom Projector Report 2013: Casio XJ-H2650

Posted on May 11, 2013 by Art Feierman

The 2013 Classroom Projector Report is sponsored by:

Casio XJ-H2650 Laser Light Source Projector

Casio pioneered Laser-LED lightsource projectors. I the earliest Casio with a digital light source that we reviewed was almost four years ago. True, today there are many companies with various laser, led, or hybrid combinations available, but Casio definitely has by far the largest line-up available.

This year I chose the XJ-H2650 projector for Mike to review. In the early days all Casio had were super thin projectors, not really great install projectors, but they performed well despite that, for the long life light sources.

One chronic problem is that Casio projectors have never measured near what they claim. Their laser-led light source projectors typically come in at least 25% below claim, as did this XJ-H2650, which claims 3500 but measured just shy of 2500 at its brightest. It's nice to see a Casio with a solid state light source that measures as bright as most of the lamp based competitors.

We're used to some projectors measuring closer to claim than others, therefore we don't worry too much what these manufacturers claim, only what each projector is capable of, and 2500 lumens is plenty for most classrooms even with a fair amount of ambient light. I wanted this one reviewed, because with it's brightness, finally Casio has a projector as bright as most of the other projectors used in classrooms.

This Casio has a very respectable feature set. The trade-off is the price, which, as you would expect with a solid state light engine, is more than lamp driven equivalent projectors. Don't forget, that while a light engine like this will lose brightness over years, it's a much smaller issue than with conventional lamps. Consider carefully the advantages in labor (changing out lamps), against the extra up front cost. It doesn't help Casio's Mitsubishi's and others with laser/led type designs, that many manufacturers have significantly dropped the cost of replacement lamps, while at the same time significantly increasing lamp life.

Mike was not impressed with the Casio's color in brightest mode, and even the second brightest mode, rather, like most DLP projectors doesn't produce really good color until you get into much less bright modes. This is a solid, small, fixed install projector with respectable brightness with no lamps to replace - ever.