ViewSonic X100-4K 4K LED Smart Home Theater Projector Review - Hardware

The chassis dimensions are 16.4 inches wide x 18.2 inches tall x 6.3 inches deep and weighs in at 24.3 pounds. The two air intake fans are located at the rear of the projector. The two air exhaust vents are located on the front of the chassis on either side of the lens. Speaking of the lens, the lens has automated doors that open when powered on and close when powered off to protect it. We will dive deeper into the lens further down in this review. The dual 20-watt Harman/Kardon speakers are located on either side of the sleek chassis.

Since the X100-4K is focused on home theater customers, ViewSonic assumes that the unit will be ceiling mounted which is why all the text, labels, and logos appear upside down when table mounted.

INPUTS AND CONNECTORS

The X100-4K has plenty of inputs and connectors. The projector has an audio signal output socket (3.5mm jack), audio signal input socket (3.5mm jack), 12V DC output terminal (12V trigger), RS-232 control port, VGA signal input port, USB 3.0 Type-A port (USB Reader - FAT32), HDMI ports, RJ45 LAN port, a control port for compatible home automation systems, S/PDIF signal output socket, connection port for IR sensor extender, and a service port for Firmware updates.

The USB 2.0 port for the Wi-Fi dongle is located underneath the projector. The AC in jack is located on the right side of the projector.

THE LENS

As previously stated, the X100-4K has a 1.2x manually adjusted zoom lens, a powered focus, and lens shift. The optical horizontal and vertical lens shift feature allows up and down, as well as left and right adjustments of the X100-4K lens. Lens shift offers flexible projector positioning in those more challenging installations.

THROW DISTANCE FOR A 16:9 SCREEN

Let us talk about projector placement. The ViewSonic X100-4K is intended for tabletop or ceiling mounting. The projector has a throw distance of 3.28-10.43 feet and a throw ratio of 1.2-1.44. The chart below is the X100-4K Quick Start Guide provided by ViewSonic, so you can quickly check to see if this projector will work in the space you have.

The X100-4K offers motorized focus, manual zoom as well as plenty of manual horizontal and vertical lens shift. Horizontal and vertical lens shift further increases the model’s installation flexibility.

Lens Shift Range: +65% Vertical and +/-25% Horizontal

When projecting a 100″ diagonal 16:9 image, 65% of the image height is approximately 31 inches while 65% of its width is about 21 3/4 inches. This means you can shift the top of image up 31 inches. While +/- 33% horizontal shift means you can shift 100” image to the left or right about 28 inches.

Just remember, like most projectors, the more horizontal shift you use, the less vertical adjustment you will have available. Having a large amount of zoom and shift capability make installation a breeze, especially when you are trying to replace an older unit in a home theater that was previously fixed mounted.

CONTROL PANEL

The left side of the chassis has a hidden control panel on it. Simply lift the cover to reveal the Directional Keypad (D-Pad), “OK” button, Source, Home, and Power Key.

REMOTE CONTROL

A single remote is used to control the X100-4K projector and the Wi-Fi dongle for streaming. The remote has your standard features on it, including a button for power, focus, source input, settings, home, back, and volume control. The remote also has a rotating directional pad.

 

 

The Bluetooth button on the remote does not function properly. All you get is a box in the top left corner of the screen with a red circle and a line through the circle when the Bluetooth connect button is pressed on the remote. On page 14 of the User Guide is a product description of the X100-4 K’s remote control. It doesn’t even acknowledge the Bluetooth button that is clearly marked on the remote.

MENUS

The Home menu appears when you turn on the X100-4K. The menu has a large rectangular tab for the previously mentioned Aptoide app. At any time, you could press the Home button, which looks like a house, to brings you to the home screen.

To the right of the Aptoide app are four rectangular buttons. In the top left corner of the screen, the first is the Apps Center, which is home to all downloaded apps. To its right is a button for File Management, which is for managing files via the X100-4 K’s onboard media player. Below the Apps Center button is a Setting button, which brings up the Basic Settings Menu. The last rectangular button is for screen mirroring.

Four rounded square slots are along the bottom of the home menu and are for assigning the most used apps for quick and easy access. I personally didn’t find that I had a need for this quick access. I preferred using my Apple TV over the onboard streaming of the X100-4K. As I typically do for my projector reviews, I connected a 4K Apple TV with a 0.5-meter (20 inches) Bullet Train 18Gbps HDMI cable and a MacBook Pro with a 4-meter (157 inches) Bullet Train 18Gbps HDMI cable to the demo X100-4K loaned to me for this review.

Pressing the Inputs button on the remote control to select an input. The available inputs show up at the bottom of the screen. The inputs that have something plugged into them are clearly represented by a green dot next to the name of the input.

While watching content, you can bring up the Image Setting menu and adjust the eight color modes. You can choose any of the presets which in themselves have additional adjustability, or you can customize your perfect color mode from one of the two User Modes. There is also an Advanced Menu where you can get into more advanced settings, i.e., Harman/Kardon Audio Mode, HDR, and 3D.