World's First Projector with a Remote Lamp

Some of the biggest complaints about projectors include the noise the fan makes when it cools down the lamp and accessing a blown lamp that needs to be changed, but what if you could eliminate these little nuisances? Projector manufacturer Projectiondesign has created the FR12 Remote Light Source projector, which removes the lamp from the projector to a rack-mount enclosure that is up to 30m away from the projector head. Light illuminates the projector via a unique, innovative Liquid Light Guide lead.

The projector is compact, almost maintenance-free, quiet, and easy to install due the lack of ventilation or orientation worries, which makes lamp maintenance a lot easier. This will come in handy if you use a projector for 24/7 operation, in any area where access is restricted, or if the noise of the fan or heat management are big issues during operation.

Projectiondesign International Marketing and Communications Manager Anders Lokke had this to say about the projector, "At the forefront of creating some of the most exciting technologies and innovative products, Projectiondesign has made history by producing innovative projectors that are compact, bright and high-resolution. Now we are taking projection technology a step further in simplifying maintenance, eliminating noise and dissipating heat, as well as offering greater integration and installation flexibility. A typical application would be a 24/7 command and control room environment.”

Projectiondesign has always been a leader in innovative projector technology. In 2002, they introduced the world's first single-chip SXGA DLP projector; in 2006 they made the first 1090p DLP projector available; and in 2008, they released the first WUXGA resolution DLP projector, as well as the first portable and high-resolution active 3D stereoscopic projector. Last year, the company introduced the first 3-chip projector and took the plunge into LED illumination.

The FR12 will officially be introduced at Integrated Systems Europe 2010, which takes place February 2-4, 2010. At that time, more information will be available such as specs, pricing and expected availability.

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5 Reasons You Need a Personal Projector Rental

Renting a projector for business needs can be a lifesaver but did you know Personal Projector Rentals can help make life easier, as well? If you're looking to make your wedding, party, or even movie night extra special, a projector rental may be just what you need. Not only does it make planning easier, but it will leave people talking about your event for days! You can rent the projector for as long or as little as you like, for only a fraction of the price you'd pay to purchase one. Below, you'll find a few ideas about how renting a projector can help make your personal event a huge success.

1. Weddings: It's always fun to share photos from the bride and groom's earlier lives or even their lives together since they began dating. Not only does it help out-of-town and distant friends and relatives connect with the couple, but it will make all of your guests laugh and cry. Either a featured slide show during your reception with background music and editorial, or just having photos projected onto the wall all throughout your reception can give your special day a special touch.

2. Movie Night: Every family has movie night! Everyone gathered around the TV, watching new releases or old favorites, can be a great way to spend time together with family members of all ages. Renting a projector can make the night even more fun. You can blow your movie up so the picture is much larger than your television or even pop some popcorn and watch your movie outside on a warm summer evening. Invite the neighbor's over and turn your yard into a drive-in theater! The possibilities are endless.

3. Birthday Parties: Depending on the age of your birthday boy or girl, a projector rental can be tons of fun at a birthday party. If you have a room full of antsy children, watching a movie can get everyone quiet and give you some downtime. But when you have a room of 20-30 kids, gathering around the TV may not be practical. A projector rental can instantly turn your living room into a movie theater. Imagine the delight when the kids see their favorite Disney Princess or Harry Potter movie playing on a large screen. If you are planning a birthday party for an older person, particular one of those "milestone" birthdays such as 50 or even 100, showing a slideshow of that person's life can be a great way for the person to reflect on their life.

4. Family Reunions: With advances in technology and transportation, families seem to be growing further apart. If your parents live in Atlanta, your sister in Miami, your brother and his family in Los Angeles, your in-laws in Chicago, and you in New York, it's hard for everyone to see each other grow-up! It's hard for grandparents, aunts and uncles to miss out on baseball games and gymnastics recitals and you're probably so busy that you don't always have time to upload photos to be emailed. Or maybe the older members of your family don't even use email. Again, a projector rental can put a smile on everyone's face. Have everyone send their favorite family photos to be part of a slideshow for your next family reunion. Together you can laugh and tell stories about the things you all missed throughout the years.

5. Sporting Events: Super Bowl parties can be tons of fun. Good times with friends and family, cheering on your favorite team and eating your favorite snacks. Everyone is gathered around the TV, watching the big game, but unless you have a large screen, you are not reaching your full watching potential. A large display can liven up the party and make you feel like you are closer to the action. Chances are, you can't run out and buy a big screen TV but you probably can afford a projector rental. With a projector rental, you can control the size of your display and make it bigger or smaller, depending on the size of your room and number of guests. This is something to keep in mind any time you have guests over to watch a big game and want to leave a great impression.

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Turn Anything Into a Touchscreen with Light Touch

Touchscreens are all the rage in computers lately and now it looks like the technology will be coming to projectors. Light Blue Optics has announced that its new Light Touch interactive projector will turn any surface into a touchscreen. The company, which develops and supplies miniature projector systems, said its new Light Touch projector uses Holographic Laser Projection (HLP). It uses holographic algorithms to transform images into diffraction patterns which can be shown as a small micro-display. When laser light illuminates the display, the image is formed by diffraction. The technology then helps integrate infrared sensing technology, which then turns the surface into a touchscreen.

For now, the Light Touch projector will only be available to the company's OEM customers and strategic partners.

Light Blue Optics said their goal is to free content from the confines of a small screen while allowing users to interact with the projected content. It runs on Adobe Flash Lite 3.1, which will help developers make new apps for the product. It is also equipped with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity so that users may connect to the internet to run apps such as social networking, multimedia sharing and electronic point of sale. It has a memory size of 2 GB and can support cards up to 32 GB.

According to the company, today's consumer is not a passive viewer of multimedia content. They believe people want to interact and become engaged, and this product will allow them to do so. They also believe the Light Touch projector's potential extends outside consumer electronics and can serve users in retail spaces, work places, and at home.

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DLP Chips for Pico Projectors by Texas Instruments

Pez dispensers. That's what Texas Instruments used to showcase its new digital light processing (DLP) chips at the Consumer Electronics Show. The DLP chips are so tiny they fit right in the little candy dispensers. The actual projectors are a little bit bigger, but still small, and are being fitted into handheld devices ranging from cameras to cellphones. Texas Instruments says they see the pico projector market being a large revenue generator for the DLP chips.

Senior Vice President and General Manager of DLP products at Texas Instruments says that while 2009 was about introduction of the concept, 2010 is going to be about broadening the category. AT&T is already making the LG eXpo, the first phone to use the projector, however, it is not integrated into the phone but instead works as a snap-on device. It allows the phone to beam videos, websites, and other images.

Not all of the projectors will be that small. The company has crated the Brightboxe, which is described by the Dallas Morning News as being "a bit smaller than a lunchbox." The $199 projector is designed to work with video game consoles.

Unfortunately, the chip doesn't have a high-definition resolution (it goes up to 854 x 480) but Novak said he doesn't see much demand for HD in pico projectors. This leaves a lot of room for improvement and competitors are taking notice. Another company, Syndiant (which was coincidentally put together by former Texas Instrument employees) are developing a different type of technology - liquid crystal on silicon - to use in place of DLP. They are concentrating on high definition resolutions. They've recently had their hand in developing a projector with a resolution of 1024 x 600. Another hope for pico projectors is that they will eventually be able to display images in 3-D.

According to analysts, by 2016, hundreds of millions of phones and other handheld devices will have built-in projectors. In addition to Syndiant and Texas Instruments, 3M, Nikon, and Microvision looking to establish their projector products as top-of-the-line technology.

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Favi RIOLED-Q and RIOLED-V Pico Projectors

The market for Pico Projectors appears to still be alive as manufacturer Favi has announced two new LED-based pico projectors for release sometime between late February and early March. The two projectors being released come to us under the names of the RIOLED-Q and the RIOLED-V.

The RIOLED-Q is a more business oriented pico projector. The RIOLED-Q is very bright with an 800x600 native resolution and a 50 lumens brightness, a first in the pico projector market (along with the Optoma PK301) to boast that output. The RIOLED-Q also has 2 built-in 3W speakers and digital keystone connection. As far as connectivity goes the RIOLED-Q has 1 A/V in, 1 VGA in and 1 USB connections. It has built-in memory as well as an SD/MMC card reader. The RIOLED-Q is powered via a battery or power adapter.

The RIOLED-V, counterpart to the RIOLED-Q, is a more consumer-based pico projector. The RIOLED-V has built-in WiFi and uses Linux to run multiple web applications like Video (YouTube), News (Yahoo News), Weather, Internet Radio, Photo (Flickr), e-mail and a web browser. Also included in the RIOLED-V is a built-in calendar and alarm clock. Connectivity wise the RIOLED-V has 1 USB, 1 A/V output and 1 headphone jack. This device is also powered via battery or power adapter and is controlled by either a remote control or by buttons on the unit. Already the RIOLED-V is being described as a hybrid netbook/media player/projector that fits in your pocket.

Favi isn't done there though as they have also announced a versatile portable projector entitled the RIOHD-LED2 which is aimed primarily at educational, business or home theater usage. The RIOHD-LED2 is 7"x6"x3" and weighs around 2.5 lbs. It has a rated 400 lumens output and is pretty bright for a small, portable projector. It has an LED lamp which has an expected life of around 20,000 hours and it ships with a remote control, power adapter and user manual. Input wise it has HDMI, YPbPr, S-Video, Composite A/V, headphone and VGA as well as 2 built-in speakers.

The RIOHD-LED2 is said to ship in early February under a $348 price tag which is early than the late February early march release date of the RIOLED-Q and RIOLED-V whose prices are still unknown.

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Looking for an Affordable LCD Projector Rental then call 800-736-8772 today. Ask about the newest type of projector whose appeal is "all in the mirrors" and see if a DLP Projector Rental is right for you.

Hitachi CP-D10 Projector

Looking for a projector for your small conference rooms or classrooms? The check out the CP-D10 from Hitachi. The CP-D10 is a smaller XGA LCD projector created with small rooms in mind. The CP-D10 is considered a "short throw" projector and for a number of different reasons. It can project an 80" image diagonally from as far away as 3 feet. This projector uses a fixed normal lens that projects through a second convex lens. By doing this the projector only allows digital zooming and it also requires the user to place the projector at a proper distance for you desired screen size.

To get into some specific specs, the CP-D10 has a specified output of 2000 lumens as well as a 400:1 contrast ratio. Portability is also a good thing to have with projectors, especially if you have to lug from conference room to conference room or from classroom to classroom. Well the CP-D10 is highly portable weighing only 7.7 pounds and measuring 13.1 inches wide, 11.9 inches deep and 4.1 inches tall. The device has multiple AV connection options including RGB 2in/1out, Composite Video, S-Video, Component Video and Audio 3in/1out. The 2000 lumen bulb is said to last up to 4,000 hours in Eco Mode as well.

Being made by Hitachi, its no surprise that the CP-D10 has some of the company's proprietary functions. Functions like MyScreen, which allows the user to set up a personal startup or blank screen with a picture or company logo, MyMemory, which allows the user to save up to 4 memories for adjustment data, MyButton, which is two buttons on the remote that can be programmed for one touch adjustment of picture, input, MyMemory settings, resolution, template display, zoom and more, MyText, which allows the user to enter text for display on the startup input information screens and MySource, which allows for easy selection of input source from the remote control, are all included as well as AMX Device Discovery technology which allows all AMX Integrated Central Controllers to automatically recognize the CP-D10 and systematically load the appropriate communications module or driver, initializing the CP-D10 to be used without any user setup.

Line templates can be accessed from the projector's menu or by MyButton. These can be used for organizing writing on a white board and there are four types of line templates as well as two circle templates and two map templates. Another added feature with the CP-D10 is the option of closed captions. Many projectors on the market can not display closed captions however the CP-D10 is capable of this option which makes it invaluable in schools with hearing-impaired students.

Hitachi is one of the leaders in K-12 classroom projectors and the CP-D10 looks to be right up there with all of Hitachi's other great projectors. With its many features and short throw capabilities, the CP-D10 is a perfect tool for any classroom or small conference room. You can pick up the Hitachi CP-D10 projector now for $999.

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RoyalTek RPJ-2000 Pico Projector

RoyalTek out of Taiwan has been working very hard in their pico projector market as they have just announced the first of what seems to be a total of five new pico projectors set to be released during 2010. Introducing RoyalTek's RPJ-2000, a pico projector that packs some pretty good specs.

The RPJ-2000 is the first ever palm-sized pico projector from RoyalTek. The projector is said to use a second generation 3M LCos chipset. The projector is also said to be able to project an image of up to 65-inches with a brightness of 14-lumens and a 640x480 resolution.

The RPJ-2000 comes with VGA and NTSC/PAL TV inputs but does not contain an integrated mediaplayer or onboard storage like many pico projectors already on the market do. The RPJ-2000 does, however, come with 0.5W stereo speakers.

One thing that may bring in a lot of customers is that the RPJ-2000 is Apple certified. This means it will have the ability to connect to your iPhone or iPod if you purchase the adapter kit which will run you about $43. Among other features the RPJ-2000 has LED backlight and is designed with Quanta's cooling technology.

This device will run you around $315 though no word on sale of the projector outside of Taiwan has been released. A few details on the other four projectors have arisen including a hint that one of them will contain a digital TV tuner. This model is expected to hit the market in time for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in June. The RPJ-2000 comes in two colors: black and white.

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Optoma HD20 Projector

Everybody loves their giant flat screen tv's with their beautiful 1080p resolution and high pixel count and whatever else goes along with it. But such tv's can be pricey, especially if you want really good quality. But thanks to increased projector technology you can enjoy 1080p quality from a projector that looks as good if not better than most tv's and that also won't break the bank.

Optoma Technology has just introduced the company's first 1080p DLP projector to cost less than $1,000. The Optoma HD20 comes in with a suggested store price of $999 which, technically, is less but come on, a whole dollar? But putting that aside, the Optoma HD20 is a really good little projector.

In fact, the specs on this projector could rival a few popular flat screen tv's. The Optoma HD comes with 1,700 ANSI lumens of brightness as well as a 4,000:1 contrast ratio. Video inputs come in the form of 2 HDMI, one VGA, one component and one composite video input. The HD20 runs a native 1080p resolution (1920 x 1808) and can scale most objects, other video and computer formats like UXGA, WXGA, SXGA, SXGA+, XGA, SVGA resized, VESA, PC and Macintosh.

The lamp light is very impressive. The light lasts for 4,000 hours in standard mode and it lasts up to 3. To save energy, the HD20 incorporates a rapid shutdown feature. A one year parts and labor warranty comes in the box however the warranty only lasts for 90 days on the lamp.

The projector itself weighs around 6.4.pounds and also comes with its own remote and batteries. The remote has a backlit illumination and a composite video cable as well as other accessories. Many different retail stores and websites have already signed on to the HD20 like Amazon.com, Adorama, Beach Camera, Best Buy, B&H Photo Video, CDW, Fry's Electronics, J&R Micro Center, Nebraska Furniture Mart, PC Richard, ProjectorPeople.com, Staples.com and Visual Apex.

John Grodem, Product Marketing Director for Optoma, said in a statement, "We're very excited to be at the forefront of such a 'significant breakthrough' in HD projectors. This new, low price opens up a whole new audience to the high-definition, large-screen, home theater projection experience." Many users will absolutely love how the HD20 displays an image more than 9 times larger than a 40-inch flat screen. The HD20 projects a picture that is greater than 120 push ups.

Overall it seems that Optoma has taken a lead from Vivitek's H1080FD which is also a 1080p DLP projector as well for the same price. While $999 isn't the smallest number in the world and not one that makes us jump to our wallets and get ready to buy a flat screen tv or projector. What it does do is open up the projectors appeal to younger audiences that much stronger. If you want an all around good projector then look no further than the Optoma HD20 1080 DLP Projector. Plus, Optoma is probably a better known name than Vivitek.

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Looking for an Affordable LCD Projector Rental then call 800-736-8772 today. Ask about the newest type of projector whose appeal is "all in the mirrors" and see if a DLP Projector Rental is right for you.

A Projector in Your Cell Phone?

3M has announced the creation of a "Mobile Interactive Solutions Division." Its focus will be to make little projectors that fit into mobile devices. Even though the company already makes tiny projectors that are about the size of a cell phone, they could possibly be making projectors that will come built into your cell phone in the near future.

"More and more people depend on mobile devices for constant information and communication in today’s technology-dependent world, and 3M can play a big role in improving their experiences," said Mark Collin, the Vice President and General Manager of the new Mobile Interactive Solutions Division.

According to a press release by 3M, they were the first company to hit the market with a mobile projector. "The second generation of the product, the MPro model 120 introduced in October, is one of the brightest and most energy efficient battery-powered projectors on the market," the press release stated.

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Mitsubishi HC3800 Home Theater Projector

New from Mitsubishi is the HC3800, a DLP 1080p which falls somewhere between really good projectors that do not have the best leading edge image quality for around $1,000 and fully featured 1080p projectors for around $2,000 and up. The HC3800 has a bright picture with good contrast to allow for use on a large screen in a darkened theater atmosphere but it is also good enough to be used in your personal living room.

The HC3800 has a high lumen output which makes it good for dark and bright rooms. Many projectors come with image modes but this device does not. It does, however, come with many different color and gamma temperature settings which allow for completely customizable settings. The brightest picture was created by using the "sports" gamma and the "high brightness" color temperature presets. The picture measured 1346 lumens. While in this mode, the contrast is slightly lessened as well as color balance. However, put this thing in a room with ambient light and it will produce a dynamic picture.

"Cinema" mode puts out a bright 621 lumens picture which is very comparable with other projectors and you can also use a screen up to 150" diagonally in a dark room with decent light control. However, 621 lumens is pretty bright for many situations. But by turning on low light mode you can reduce the lumen output by 15%. Low lamp mode has a few benefits to it other than a lower brightness. On one hand it greatly reduces fan noise and it also increases lamp life potentially from 2,000 to 5,000 hours. You can also reduce lumen output by another 22% by turning off BrilliantColor which is enabled by default.

The HC3800 has a contrast ratio of 4000:1. With such a contrast ratio, many people may think that the picture will be bland or dull. However, the HC3800's ANSI contrast exceeds 600:1. This ratio matches and even exceeds some projectors that carry extreme on/off contrast ratings. The HC3800's black levels can not compare with more expensive projectors but the HC3800 does look just as good as any other device.

Fine detail is cleanly displayed, even when it is in motion. The HC3800 had no problems passing the HQV Film Resolution Loss Test. In addition the HC3800 has very little digital noise in comparison to other models. Solid color areas like backgrounds and wallpapers are very clean and have nearly no noise about them.

The lens on the HC3800 has a manual 1:5:1 zoom lens which is very good for a DLP projector like this. Only 18% of maximum light output is lost between the telephoto and wide ends of the zoom lens. This allows the HC3800 to have a better throw range flexibility than some other DLP projectors available for $999 which offer 1.2x zoom.

Considering that the HC3800 is an inexpensive DLP projector, it is not surprising that it does not contain a lens shift. The image offset is 29% of the picture height which means, for example, that on a 100" diagonal screen, the bottom of the screen will appear 14" above the lens' centerline. An aggressive offset like this is useful mounting the projector on your ceiling or placing it on a small, low table. However, because of this you rule out rear shelf usage.

Overall the HC3800 seems to be a solid projector and it seems to be a good competitor in the low priced 1080p home theater projectors market. It comes with a bright video optimized picture that contains excellent contrast coupled with a 1:5:1 zoom lens. The HC3800 is economical with it's 5,000 hour lamp which will greatly reduce maintenance costs down the line. The HC3800 does require some calibration but that has proven to benefit most projectors. In conclusion Mitsubishi's HC3800 is an excellent projector and well worth your cash. You can pick one of these up for $1,499.

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Sony Unveils New Home Theater Line

Have you been thinking about converting a room into a home theater or gaming room? Or maybe you just want widescreen, high definitions movies in your living room or bedroom? Either way, Sony Australia has announced a line-up of new home theater projectors that promise to be great for any room in your house. The range has three new models: the VPLBW7, the Bravia VPLHW15, and the Bravia VPLVW85. The projectors will be available through Sony authorized AV dealers and IT distributors by the end of November 2009.

The VPLBW7 is the entry level model but according to Sony, lower price doesn't mean compromising quality. Its compact size makes it a great projector for any room in the house. It's also great for any lighting conditions. Vincent Bautista, a product manager for Sony, calls it "heaven sent for apartment dwellers who may not have the long throw distances required for a traditional projector. It's low price ($1,795) also makes it attractive to average gaming and entertainment enthusiasts.

The Bravia VPLHW15 is the middle projector in the range and is designed specifically for movie buffs and home entertainers. The projector has SXRD technology which minimizes the the space between pixels and dot-less picture, regardless of the surface your image is being projected onto. It also responds to the light in the room and selects the optimum contrast levels automatically. Priced at $4,299, the VPLHW15 is a great piece of equipment for anyone who is looking for a "fully immersive home theater that doesn't break the bank," says Bautista.

The top model in the line is the Bravia VPLVW85 and it is made specifically for those looking for the ultimate home theater technology. The premium projector has already won the European Imaging and Sound Association Award for Best Product 2009-2001 in the video projector category. "The VPLVW85 gives consumers looking for the very best in home theatre exactly what they’ve been after. This projector delivers on the promise of a true cinematic experience for AV enthusiasts who are looking to give their home and family the best home theatre experience possible," Bautista said of the $8,999 projector.

All three projectors are designed to be flexible and easy for users to setup in their homes.

Blow Up Your iPhone Movies with the New Sparkz Projector

If you're an iPhone user, at some point, you've probably watched a movie or some other type of content on your phone and decided that it's just not the same on that 3.5 inch screen. Well now, there's a solution. Sparkz has released a new projector that allows you to dock your iPhone (or iPod) and allows you to blow up and project any movies stored on your phone. It also works for other devices such as video cameras, gaming systems, DVD players, media players and laptops.

The handheld pico projector is only 4.5 x 3 x 2.5 inches and allows you to watch any media directly from your gadgets. That includes podcasts, camera roll videos, photo slideshows, Youtube, iTunes, etc. It will also charge your iPhone or iPod while you're watching. It has a built-in external stereo speakers with audio out and a high capacity battery that allows for 2.5 hour run time with each charge.

It has a brightness of 15 lumens and the lens is 3M LcoS. LED Life is 50,000 hours, Battery is Lithium-polymer 3500mAh and resolution is 640 x 480 VGA or 1024 x 768 XGA. The projector sells for about $500 and that includes the tripod and all cables needed to hook the projector to various devices.

NECs New Entry-Level Projector: The NP610

Japanese company NEC has released a number impressive projectors to dates, and the new NP610 is the latest. The entry-level projector is designed for people who want quality images and advanced capability without going broke or compromising features. NEC is expected to heavily market the projector to college and university students and staff, but it is also expected to make a splash in the corporate world, as it is the perfect projector for training and conference rooms and lecture halls.

Rich McPherson, the NEC Product Manager for projectors says the NP610 offers a number of desirable features, "The NP610 is an ideal entry-level installation projector that offers all the features our customers need to succeed in connecting with their audience. From increased brightness and color-enhancing technologies to environmentally-favorable specifications, this projector meets the standard criteria required for integration projectors.”

So what exactly are those features? The projector, which has a brightness of 3500 lumens and a native resolution of 1024 x 768, offers a contrast ratio of 500:1, up to 5000 hours of lamp life, and lower power consumption, making it environment-friendly. It features a comprehensive input panel with DVI-I with HDCP, 15-pin, RCA and S-Video, along with a built-in closed captioning, variable audio-out, and AutoSense, which syncs the projector with computer signals. Automatic keystone correction technology makes it so that the NP610 projects a square image, even when it's propped at an angle and a built-in wall color correction preset provides adaptive color tone correction to images displayed on non-white surfaces.

The NEC NP610 is expected to retails for $1,499 and each purchase will come with a two-year parts and labor warranty. The project is expected to ship sometime in November.

A Buyer's Guide to Finding The Perfect Home Theater Projector

So if you were to decide that you wanted to purchase a home theater projector, would you really know what it is that you should be looking for? Well when I was totally honest with myself, I admitted that before I did some serious research I didn’t have a clue! Home theater projectors are becoming increasingly popular, and I feel that it is important to know the facts before you start your shopping.

The first and most important thing to consider about your home theater projector is image quality. Now when considering image you need to account for native resolution, your source material, and the uniformity of brightness.

As of now, the most common home theater resolutions found in projectors are WVGA (854 x 480), ¾ HD (960 x 540), and WXGA-H (1280 x 720). A projector with WXGA-H has two times the number of pixels of a WVGA projector. The more pixels a projector has the sharper the image quality and the better compatibility it has with HD sources.

It is recommended that if you will be using the projector for HDTV purposes, you should look into a product featuring WXGA-H (1280 x 720) resolution or high resolution XGA (1024 x 768). If you will mostly be utilizing your home theater projector with your DVD player (with a resolution of 480p), then it is much more cost effective to look into a WVGA projector.

The uniformity of the brightness of the projector is a big factor to consider too. The uniformity is defined as the percentage of brightness of the image that is carried from corner to corner and edge to edge. The higher the uniformity of your projector means the more consistency that can be found throughout your image. For a consistent image, you should look at projectors that have a consistency rating of 85% or more.

The next thing that you should consider after examining the uniformity of your perspective projector would be the actual brightness of it. The brightness of projectors is measured in ANSI lumens. Typically, the brightness of home theater projectors ranges from 700-2000 lumens or possibly more. The amount of lumens that you will need in your projector will depend on where exactly you’ll be placing your projector within your home. If you have an actual home theater room where there is controlled lighting and the room can be made completely dark, then you will be able to purchase a projector with lower lumens, but if the room features ambient lighting from windows a projector with a higher amount of lumens will be required.

For dedicated home theater rooms, it is recommended to look into projectors with 1000 lumens or more. When using your projector in a room with some ambient light, you should consider projectors with at least 1200 lumens. Any room with a high amount of light should have a projector with about 2000 lumens.

Once you have considered all of these factors, next you should consider what connections will give you the clearest image quality with your home theater projector. You should make sure that the projector you are interested in has at least one component video input and an HDMI or DVI connection. Component video is currently the most common high quality signal available, and the HDMI or the DVI connections will provide you with the best HD connectivity.

After all this you should probably learn about the lamp life of projectors. Most LCD and DLP projectors feature a lamp life ranging from 2000-4000 hours. This estimation actually refers to the “half-life” of the projector which is the point where the lamp is half as bright as it was when you purchased the projector. The longer the lamp life of the projector, the less money that you’ll have to put out to maintain the quality of your home theater. A replacement lamp costs between $200-$400. You should factor this into your decision, depending on if you will be using the projector as a television replacement or just as a movie and special events provider.

There are a few other things to consider when purchasing your home theater projector, but they mainly consist of what you prefer within your home. I hope that now when you go out to shop for your new projector, you have an idea of what you should be looking for. From the resolution to the connections that you need, you now possess the knowledge to make the best possible choice for you and your family’s entertainment needs.

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Looking for an Affordable LCD Projector Rental then call 800-736-8772 today. Ask about the newest type of projector that's "all in the mirrors" and see if a DLP Projector Rental is right for you.