Sharp XV-Z15000 – Physical Tour

Sharp XV-Z15000 - Physical Tour

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The XV-Z15000 is finished in a shiny black, with a silver lens barrel. Basically its a medium sized boxy projector. Fortunately black is the “color” you want for a plain looking projector. I don’t think there’s any chance that this Sharp projector will win any design awards. But it looks nice, and clean.

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Sharp XV-Z15000 Physical Appearance

Click to enlarge. So close

The XV-Z15000 is finished in a shiny black, with a silver lens barrel. Basically its a medium sized boxy projector. Fortunately black is the “color” you want for a plain looking projector. I don’t think there’s any chance that this Sharp projector will win any design awards. But it looks nice, and clean.

 

Click Image to Enlarge

Ultimately it looks like the cabinet design of this unit is based on a Sharp business projector. It sports a couple of features not normally found on home theater projectors. One such is the recessed handle on the left side (looking from the back). Another feature is the auto keystone correction, and there are some fancy image rotating features as well. You aren’t likely to use any of those, but, they are there.

Looking from the front, the manual 1.15:1 zoom lens is near the right side and recessed. Focus and zoom are done by rotating the appropriate rings on the lens barrel. It’s a bit tight in there for those with big hands, but, hey, if you are ceiling mounting, you only have to set the zoom and focus one time.

There’s a sliding door that will close to cover the lens. The projector cannot be powered up with the door closed. I think the lens door is mostly a waste, for most people who buy the XV-Z15000. I say that because it is manual. I just can’t imagine people stretching or getting out a step ladder everytime you power up or down, though maybe if you are going away on a vacation. So, while the door when closed, will keep dust and spiderwebs away, few will bother, it’s just too inconvenient. Of course, very few projectors have doors to begin with, so no real loss. Although two real competitors, the Sanyo PLV-Z3000 and their Z700, do have motorized doors that close when you power down.

When the lens door is closed (again, which means power is off), the door to replace the lamp is accessible. It is in the front center, covered by the lens door when the lens is exposed. You can see all the small warning type on the door.

There is, of course, a front infra-red sensor for the remote (one in the back, too). The two drop down front feet are controlled by releases on each side of the projector just back from the front.

The XV-Z15000’s control panel is located on the top, and the inputs are on the rear.

XV-Z15000 Projector - Control Panel

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It’s a pretty typical control panel. The usual three indicator lights: Power, Lamp, and Temperature, located toward the left (looking from the rear). Next is the power switch – once for On, twice to power down. Next comes four buttons: Auto/keystone correction (you really don’t want to be using keystone correction if possible), Resize (aspect ratio), Picture mode (ie. Dynamic, Movie 1, etc.), and the Menu button.

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To the right is the usual menu navigation controls, up/down/left/right in a round configuration, with the Enter button in the center. To the lower left of the ring, is the Return button. The Up arrow button doubles as an Input selector, when you are not in the Menu mode.