Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Pros and Cons Posted on December 18, 2013 By Art Feierman 1. Review: Sony VPL-HW55ES Home Theater Projector - Video Summaries - Basic Description and Sample Image Quality - Sony VPL-HW55ES earns Hot Product Award - Sony VPL-HW55ES Highlights2. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector Special Features - REALITY CREATION - Panel Alignment - 3D Performance3. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector Special Features 2 - TWO TYPES OF 3D GLASSES FOR THIS SONY - Sony Dynamic Iris: Cinema Black Pro - SONY Wireless HDMI Option - Sony Motion Enhancer - Creative Frame Interpolation4. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Hardware Tour - VPL-HW55ES Projector: Starting In The Front - Lens Controls - Sony VPL-HW55ES - Control Panel: VPL-HW55ES - Inputs and Connectors: Sony HW55ES Projector5. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Hardware Tour 2 - Sony Remote Control - Sony VPL-HW55ES Menus6. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector: Image Quality - "Out of the Box" Picture Quality - Sony VPL-HW55 ES Black Level Performance - Descriptions of the Images Above7. Sony VPL-HW55 ES Image Quality 2 - Sony VPL-HW55ES Dark Shadow Detail - Dark Shadow Detail Comparison - Hunger Games8. Sony VPL-HW55ES – Image Quality 3 - Overall Picture Quality and Color - VPL-HW55ES Looks Great on a Wide Range of Scenes - It's the Lighting! Looking "Right" Under Different Lighting Scenarios - Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector For HDTV And Sports9. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Performance - VPL-HW55ES Brightness - Color Temp For Best Mode - Pre Calibration - Post Calibration - Brightness and Color Temp: "Best" Mode: - Effect of the Zoom Lens on Brightness10. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Performance 2 - Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector - Sharpness - Comparative Images For Comparing Perceived Sharpness11. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Performance 3 - VPL-HW55ES Lens Throw and Lens Shift - Image Noise - VPL-HW55ES Picture Mode Comparison: Brightness and Color12. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Calibration Page - A Note on Brightness Measurements - Post Calibration Color Temperature - Grayscale Settings: RGB Adjustments - Adjustments Made to VPL-HW55ES General Picture Settings13. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector Review – Advanced Calibration Information - Why no CMS for the VPL-HW55ES? - Mike's Notes - Sony VPL-HW55ES Calibration Charts14. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector: Warranty - Warranty15. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector: Summary - More Sony VPL-HW55ES Image Examples - VPL-HW55ES Summary: General - Sony HW55ES Brightness16. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Summary 2 - Picture Quality - 3D Performance - The Sony VPL-HW55ES In Your Room - Sony VPL-HW55ES: The Bottom Line17. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Pros and Cons - PROs - CONs18. Sony VPL-HW55ES Full Specifications SONY VPL-HW55ES: PROS AND CONS PROs One of the brighter 3D capable projectors under $5000 The best “right out of the box” picture I can think of in terms of color accuracy Almost 1000 lumens in “best” mode, can handle 150″ diagonal screens without difficulty Excellent overall color, and especially skin tones Lots of preset image modes Calibrates beautifully for really good color handling, natural look Good shadow detail, really good black levels Very good placement flexibility HDMI 1.4a inputs (2) allows for support for Blu-ray 3D content Wireless HDMI is an option 3D glasses provided (2 pair) These are IR glasses, same as last year’s Very good CFI (motion smoothing) MotionFlow Reality Creation really raises the bar for dynamic sharpening and detail enhancement Get extra brightness in 3D with glasses control (the brighter, the more crosstalk – it’s your call) Excellent 3 year warranty Fairly quiet, even at full power Really good remote control Near black finish works well in dedicated theaters, or if in the EU, choose white finish for lighter rooms Very good menu layout, very good manual A top contender for this year’s “Best In Class” award Very good price performance proposition Click Image to EnlargeCONs Lacks lens memory for those who would prefer a 2.35:1 screen instead of the standard 16:9 screens Others offer lamps with longer claimed life (although low power is improved to 5000 hours) I don’t like the Reset button where it is on the remote control on around the navigation, but a single press won’t get you into trouble Could use a third HDMI input Could offer wireless HDMI… No! Wait! That was a CON from last year’s HW50ES. This projector has wireless HDMI, as an option! Projector could be brighter – I’m thinking primarily for 3D, but also for non-theater placement – still it is one of the brightest serious projectors Sony needs new, more comfortable, lighter weight 3D glasses – Hold on! That’s what I said last year, but we’ve still got them as the standard, provided glasses. I recommend (but it costs) the new RF emitter. That way you can buy extremely light weight, 3rd party glasses inexpensively. Emitter works with Epson glasses, and some very low cost Samsung glasses White finished version not available in the US. (Most will will want the dark finish) A side by side, or picture in picture mode would be nice (but both are rarely found features) I do not believe you can use the IR glasses and RF glasses at the same time (not able to verify) Not surpassing, no one else switching from IR to RF has offered that ability to my knowledge Everyone, that’s a wrap. The only think left is the specs page. Last thoughts: Will there be videos based on this review? Yes, by 12/20/13 If Sony does a Permission, the the videos will both be public. If not, the full length video will be only for subscribers. It will include video clips of the projector performing! Thanks for visiting us. If you liked this review, we hope you wil LIKE us, and recommend this review to a friend. 1. Review: Sony VPL-HW55ES Home Theater Projector - Video Summaries - Basic Description and Sample Image Quality - Sony VPL-HW55ES earns Hot Product Award - Sony VPL-HW55ES Highlights2. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector Special Features - REALITY CREATION - Panel Alignment - 3D Performance3. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector Special Features 2 - TWO TYPES OF 3D GLASSES FOR THIS SONY - Sony Dynamic Iris: Cinema Black Pro - SONY Wireless HDMI Option - Sony Motion Enhancer - Creative Frame Interpolation4. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Hardware Tour - VPL-HW55ES Projector: Starting In The Front - Lens Controls - Sony VPL-HW55ES - Control Panel: VPL-HW55ES - Inputs and Connectors: Sony HW55ES Projector5. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Hardware Tour 2 - Sony Remote Control - Sony VPL-HW55ES Menus6. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector: Image Quality - "Out of the Box" Picture Quality - Sony VPL-HW55 ES Black Level Performance - Descriptions of the Images Above7. Sony VPL-HW55 ES Image Quality 2 - Sony VPL-HW55ES Dark Shadow Detail - Dark Shadow Detail Comparison - Hunger Games8. Sony VPL-HW55ES – Image Quality 3 - Overall Picture Quality and Color - VPL-HW55ES Looks Great on a Wide Range of Scenes - It's the Lighting! Looking "Right" Under Different Lighting Scenarios - Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector For HDTV And Sports9. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Performance - VPL-HW55ES Brightness - Color Temp For Best Mode - Pre Calibration - Post Calibration - Brightness and Color Temp: "Best" Mode: - Effect of the Zoom Lens on Brightness10. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Performance 2 - Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector - Sharpness - Comparative Images For Comparing Perceived Sharpness11. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Performance 3 - VPL-HW55ES Lens Throw and Lens Shift - Image Noise - VPL-HW55ES Picture Mode Comparison: Brightness and Color12. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Calibration Page - A Note on Brightness Measurements - Post Calibration Color Temperature - Grayscale Settings: RGB Adjustments - Adjustments Made to VPL-HW55ES General Picture Settings13. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector Review – Advanced Calibration Information - Why no CMS for the VPL-HW55ES? - Mike's Notes - Sony VPL-HW55ES Calibration Charts14. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector: Warranty - Warranty15. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector: Summary - More Sony VPL-HW55ES Image Examples - VPL-HW55ES Summary: General - Sony HW55ES Brightness16. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Summary 2 - Picture Quality - 3D Performance - The Sony VPL-HW55ES In Your Room - Sony VPL-HW55ES: The Bottom Line17. Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Pros and Cons - PROs - CONs18. Sony VPL-HW55ES Full Specifications Sony VPL-HW55ES Projector – Summary 2 Sony VPL-HW55ES Full Specifications