The BRAVIA Projector 7 (VPL-XW5100ES) is designed to appeal to home theater and home entertainment enthusiasts and includes Sony’s latest projector technologies. Whether I was viewing HD, 4K or HDR content, the projector’s out-of-the-box picture quality was outstanding.
Compared to the award-winning VPL-XW5000ES ($5999 SRP), the new BRAVIA Projector 7 (XW5100ES) is brighter with 200 lumens and includes the powerful new XR Processor. While the XW5000ES can deliver excellent image quality, the BRAVIA Projector 7 offers a noticeable increase in HDR and SDR picture quality due to its new video processing.
The BRAVIA Projector 7 utilizes three native 4K SXRD panels, which deliver stunning 4K resolution (3,840 x 2,160 pixels). This results in crisp, sharp images with incredible detail, allowing you to see every texture and nuance on the screen. The high-quality manual lens delivered outstanding clarity and excellent edge-to-edge sharpness. The lens assembly offers a good amount of optical zoom and horizontal/vertical lens shift. In addition, the BRAVIA Projector 7 also includes digital keystone correction to further enhance installation flexibility.
Contrast is just as important as resolution when creating a truly cinematic experience. Very few home theater projectors, except for JVC DILA projectors, can match or beat the BRAVIA Projector 7’s native contrast or black level. I have not come across a single-chip DLP home theater projector that can even come close.
In addition, the projector’s XR Deep Black feature dynamically controls the laser dimming, resulting in deep, inky blacks that enhance the overall depth of the image. Depth mapping technology is also employed to create a more immersive viewing experience by adding a sense of depth and dimension to the image. Whether you're watching a thriller with lots of shadows or a space epic with starry skies, the projector can produce black levels that make these scenes feel more immersive.
The projector’s Z-Phosphor laser light source can deliver 2,200 lumens of brightness, which is enough to ensure vibrant colors look on screens up to 130 inches, even in low ambient light. Several less expensive DLP projectors have higher rated brightness, but often, their light output is cut in half when placed in their most accurate picture mode. Once calibrated, the 2200-lumen BRAVIA Projector 7 measured brighter than many 3000-lumen DLP projectors.
What truly sets the BRAVIA Projector 7 apart from many competitors is Sony’s powerful XR Processor for projectors. Adapted from Sony’s BRAVIA TV line, this processor uses advanced image analysis and processing techniques to enhance real-time picture quality.
One of its standout features is XR Dynamic Tone Mapping, which adjusts brightness levels frame by frame, ensuring optimal performance regardless of the displayed HDR content. This means that whether you're watching a dark, moody scene or a brightly lit action sequence, the projector will deliver the best possible contrast and brightness for each frame.
The XR Processor is designed to improve 4K and HDR material and upscale HD content to near 4K quality. Even if you're watching lower-resolution content, the projector intelligently recreates lost detail, delivering sharper and more detailed images. The processor uses Cross-Analyses to evaluate the interplay of different picture elements, such as contrast and color saturation, to refine image parameters in specific areas better. This results in a more realistic and visually pleasing picture.
Sony has over a decade of experience in 4K upscaling, so the BRAVIA Projector 7 does an excellent job, as expected. The new XR Clear Image feature delivers a sharper image without overemphasizing the film grain in classic films like Lawrence of Arabia. XR processor also leverages "Cognitive Intelligence" to identify and track focal points within a scene. Since these are areas where human viewers are most likely to focus their attention, the processor will selectively apply additional image processing techniques to improve sharpness, clarity, and texture detail.
The TRILUMINOS PRO technology ensures the projector can reproduce over a billion colors, capturing natural shades and hues that make the content look lifelike. This is especially important for films and TV shows where color accuracy is critical for conveying mood and atmosphere.
While the BRAVIA Projector 7 is primarily marketed as a home theater projector, its features also make it an excellent option for gaming. The BRAVIA Projector 7 includes a Low Latency Game mode, which switches off most of the projector's video processing when gaming content is detected, dramatically reducing game lag. Sony quotes 21 milliseconds when playing content at 4K at 60 frames per second and just 12 milliseconds when gaming in HD at 120 frames per second. We measured 4K@60 at 23 milliseconds and 1080p@120 at 13 milliseconds, which is responsive enough to satisfy console gamers. Smooth, responsive gameplay makes the BRAVIA Projector 7 a good choice for gamers who want a large-screen experience.
The pricing for the BRAVIA Projector 7 compete with premium projectors under $10,000 such as the JVC DLA-NZ700 /DLA-RS2200 ($9999 SRP) and Epson QB1000 ($7999 SRP).
JVC DLA-NZ700 /DLA-RS2200
The JVC DLA-NZ700 /DLA-RS2200 has the same rated brightness of 2200 lumens, but it includes a motorized lens with position memories and HDR10+ compatibility. Both models include Dynamic HDR Tone Mapping, but the JVC NZ700 offers higher native contrast and better black levels. While the JVC NZ700’s measured native contrast was higher than the BRAVIA Projector 7, it was difficult to see a difference when viewing most SDR and HDR content.
Which unit looks best really comes down to personal preference. I felt that the SDR and HDR images produced by the BRAVIA Projector 7 looked closer to those of a premium flat-panel TV or the SONY BVM-X300 professional mastering display that I was lucky enough to have my desk for years. However if you have a cinemascope screen, you might want opt for the similarly priced JVC due its motorized lens with memories. Regardless, any projector enthusiast would be happy with either one.
Epson QB1000
Many people considering the BRAVIA Projector 7 will also explore the Epson QB1000 ($7999 SRP), which is an excellent projector as well. Like the BRAVIA Projector 7, the Epson QB1000 also has a laser light source, but it is 1100 lumens brighter and has motorized lenses with position memories. While the QB1000 is much brighter and includes Dynamic HDR tone mapping, I think the BRAVIA Projector 7 produced a better HDR picture on my 120” screen. However ff you desire to utilize a screen above 130 inches, the QB1000 is better portion because it is nearly 50% brighter.
The 0.61” native 4K UHD SXRD panels used in the BRAVIA Projector 7 delivered a sharper, clearer image than the 4-way pixel-shifted Full HD 3LCD panels used in the QB1000. Over the years, Epson has made some major improvements to its pixel-shifting technology, but it still can not match the clarity and detail produced by a native 4K imager. One of the reasons why the QB1000 is much brighter than the Sony is the pixels on the Full HD 3LCD panel are larger than one used in similar sized 4K SXRD panels so they more efficient in passing light. Epson believes, that in many situations, higher brightest is more beneficial than more resolution when especially when viewing HDR on a big screen.
Both the JVC NZ700 and Epson QB1000 have motorized lens assemblies with picture positioning memories. These Lens Memories can save different motorized lens settings, like one for HDTV and one for widescreen movies. However, many users have 16X9 screens, so the motorized lens feature would only be utilized during setup. For customers with Cinemascope screens the BRAVIA Projector 7 does include an Aspect Ratio Scaling Mode that allows users to switch between 2.35:1 and 16:9 content on without the need to manually adjust the lens but you will sacrifice some resolution.
Final Thoughts
The Sony BRAVIA Projector 7 delivers nearly everything a home theater enthusiast could want in a premium projector, including 4K resolution, accurate colors, and deep blacks in a fairly compact package. In my media room on my 120" screen, I thought the image quality of BRAVIA Projector 7 was outstanding. While the BRAVIA Projector 7 is excellent, I could see the benefits of additional brightness. I have found that at least 200 nits (cd/m2) is required to deliver an outstanding HDR image, and 2200 lumens isn’t enough to deliver that much brightness on a massive matte screen. The BRAVIA Projector 7 delivers an excellent HDR image, but if you want to utilize a screen above 130 inches, consider stepping up to the brighter BRAVIA Projector 8.
Whether you are watching movies or playing video games, this projector provides a truly immersive experience. With its native 4K SXRD panel, high native contrast, and state-of-the-art video processing, the BRAVIA Projector 7 is a great way to elevate your home entertainment experience. As of the time I wrote this review, the final pricing has not been announced. If the BRAVIA Projector 7 is around $10K, I would rank it as one of my favorite medium-priced premium home theater projectors.
