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Dinohampus
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Re: Time for a new projector

Fri Jun 10, 2016 9:02 am

Thanks a million for the quick responses. Glad I joined the forum.

the wrote:
I'd actually recommend you stick with a full HD projector as there are plenty of good models that are affordable for consumers.


CScottG wrote:
Basically 4k is currently a bad idea with respect to a SINGLE projector and gaming.

CScottG wrote:
The current value leader in quality 1080P projectors appears to be the Benq HT2050.


Yeah, that might be the only route to follow for now. A little easier when living alone where you could just buy whatever suited you, as long as you could afford it, haha.
The question now would be, should we buy from the top shelf when it comes to 1080p projectors, or get a slighly better than average one and save the rest of the money for a 4K device in the future?
Now with E3 just around the corner and possibly new console version upgrade announcements, I'm curious to see how long I am able to refrain from not buying a 4K device. I'm sure the girlfriend is happy with a 1080p projector.

If any of you do not already possess a 4K device (besides PC monitor), how long are you holding out for and for which features to be included?

Again, thanks for the recommendations. I feel better already.
 
CScottG
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Re: Time for a new projector

Fri Jun 10, 2016 7:50 pm

I don't think 4k projectors for more moderate prices will be available any time soon. :oops:
 
the
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Re: Time for a new projector

Fri Jun 10, 2016 11:16 pm

Dinohampus wrote:
Yeah, that might be the only route to follow for now. A little easier when living alone where you could just buy whatever suited you, as long as you could afford it, haha.
The question now would be, should we buy from the top shelf when it comes to 1080p projectors, or get a slighly better than average one and save the rest of the money for a 4K device in the future?


The thing with the 'top shelf' is that there is overlap with features like resolution. The company I work for recently purchased a full HD projector that costs more than what an entry level 4K resolution projector costs. The reason? Things like having five times the brightness and an integrated HDBaseT input (think video over a Cat6 cable).

Full HD projectors didn't drop in price until 4K was on the market. I wouldn't expect 4K projectors to really drop in price until there is a higher resolution to push that segment down in price. Then again, projectors are theater equipment and I see cinemas trying to always 1-up 'consumer' gear.

Dinohampus wrote:
Now with E3 just around the corner and possibly new console version upgrade announcements, I'm curious to see how long I am able to refrain from not buying a 4K device. I'm sure the girlfriend is happy with a 1080p projector.

If any of you do not already possess a 4K device (besides PC monitor), how long are you holding out for and for which features to be included?


4K resolution has been in the PC space for a few years now but only really reaching maturity over 2015. Issues that plagued the launch like finding DP 1.2 supporting video cards and dealing with MST image processors inside of the monitor. Those have been sorted out but 5K decided to pop up and I'm keeping an eye on that now that DP 1.3 is here this year. DP 1.4 also arrived at the same time as DP1.3 but since the main difference is that DP 1.4 incorporates some form of compression, I'm taking a wait and see attitude toward picture quality even if an 8K appears later this year.

Something newer and better is always going to be on the horizon but don't get too caught up in the waiting game. This year would be a great year for a 4K monitor. For a projector though, it'll likely be a couple of years that the upgrade cycles there are longer and the thing that pushed technology in that market are theaters who technology trickles down to corporate venues and then home theater.
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Dinohampus
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Re: Time for a new projector

Mon Jun 13, 2016 5:41 am

CScottG wrote:
I don't think 4k projectors for more moderate prices will be available any time soon. :oops:


Thanks for the feedback. After another discussion with the girlfriend, we have concluded with buying a 1080p projector for now. Will definitely keep an eye on the price development for 4K projectors.
Do you perhaps know of any consumer projectors that are feasible for timing sensitive games as well as decent enough for movie watching? A projector with 3000 lumins would be great, especially for watching sports with friends and family (NFL etc).

the wrote:
Something newer and better is always going to be on the horizon but don't get too caught up in the waiting game. This year would be a great year for a 4K monitor. For a projector though, it'll likely be a couple of years that the upgrade cycles there are longer and the thing that pushed technology in that market are theaters who technology trickles down to corporate venues and then home theater.


Are you saying that this year is a great year for 4K monitors (computer) but not directly for 4K TVs? Or do you mean that 2016 may also be a great year to invest in large 4K TV displays as well?
 
CScottG
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Re: Time for a new projector

Mon Jun 13, 2016 5:12 pm

Dinohampus wrote:
Do you perhaps know of any consumer projectors that are feasible for timing sensitive games as well as decent enough for movie watching? A projector with 3000 lumins would be great, especially for watching sports with friends and family (NFL etc).



I believe Projector Central has the info. you need:

http://www.projectorcentral.com/projector-input-lag.htm

http://www.projectorcentral.com/benq-HT ... review.htm

-note that the HT2050 is 33.1ms - which is about as low as is practical (in price). It also has much better color and faster color wheel (DLP) to avoid "rainbow" viewing effects. (..and as a modern DLP it has better contrast/blacks than various liquid crystal solutions anywhere near the price.)

IF you need more light then the best suggestion is to "double-up" on your projector*s* and potentially having a higher gain screen OR a black screen (depending on the environment conditions of your viewing room).

See this video at about 4 minutes-in:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XxHP8lVuSE
 
Dinohampus
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Re: Time for a new projector

Thu Jun 16, 2016 8:56 am

Thanks again CScottG,

I spent some time looking at the links you sent me and and realized that, the Panasonic PT-AR100U projector that is mentioned as being among the fastest, is the one I currently have.
If I decide to buy the same one then I will make sure to pay extra for longer warranty.
My girlfriend is biased towards Panasonic products because she used to live for quite a while in the same city (****, Japan) where Panasonic is located. I am not that brand attached as she is but I have to admit that I have been satisfied with Japanese electronic brands for quite some time.

I found this site called displaylag.com and noticed that none of the Panasonic Full HD TV sets that are testet managed to rank in the "Excellent" category (Range: 0-20ms). They fall under "Great", which makes them good for gaming in general but not for tournament players. That's where category "Excellent" comes into play. However, I am aware that no projector can be expected to place within this field as of now.

The following page explains the site's grading scale.
http://www.displaylag.com/testing-method/

I became intrigued with the affordable BenQ HT2050 projector you mentioned. It has 2200 lumins compared to the Panasonic's 2800 but is vastly cheaper. Our bedroom becomes pitch dark when we use the automatic blinds and curtains, so 2200 lumins for movie watching should be fine. It's when we would bring the projector into the living room for sports viewing we get to see the benefits of the Panasonic projector and also its horizontal lens shifting functionality that the HT2050 lacks.

Anyway, I will be on the lookout for special deals and warranty extensions from retailers for these two projectors.

Thanks again for the massive help everyone. Will keep you posted for updates.
 
Dinohampus
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Re: Time for a new projector

Tue Jun 21, 2016 4:02 am

So here's a status update:

After all the advice given, I decided to buy the same projector again (PT-AR100U) with an extended warranty. If the projector suffers the same issue as the previous one, the warranty should cover it for a good while now. Should be delivered already tomorrow.

Had a good discussion with a friend of mine about the different choices, and showed him the links that "CScottG" provided earlier. He says he is going to buy the BenQ HT2050 model next month, which is great because then we can compare both perhaps side by side at one point.

So this means that I'll be curiously looking forward to future price changes of 4K consumer projectors for the next two years. Until then I'll stay happy enjoying gaming and sports in 1080p :) Have yet to play Uncharted 4 so I'm in for a treat, hehe.

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