Projector Reviews

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

Plus
Sharp 4K resolution
Impressive color gamut
Brightness in ambient light
Easy setup and integration
Powerful built-in sound
Tizen smart features
Minus
Limited native contrast
Best in dim lighting (like all projectors)
Not for hardcore gaming
High price point

THE VERDICT
With just a few minutes setup and when viewed under controlled lighting, The Premiere 9's image is roughly equivalent in appearance to a 120-inch or larger TV.

Samsung's The Premiere 9 arrives at an interesting juncture. The ultra-short throw (UST) projector category, once a scrappy upstart, has matured, along with consumers' understanding of how these devices fit into the AV lifestyle.

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Wide color gamut
Superb lens with state-of-the-art autofocus
Auto keystone correction
Comprehensive suite of non-global calibration controls
Stylish, conversation-starting design
Minus
Physical placement determines image size
Input lag is tolerable only for casual gaming
Lacks codecs like VVC likely to be used with future 8K content
No carrying handle

THE VERDICT
A quality 300" image from a grab-n-go projector? You’ll have fun, fun, fun until daddy takes the C1 away! (Humblest apologies to Brian Wilson and Mike Love).

Always up for a projector review, I quickly responded, “Send it my way!” when asked about the Hisense C1, though admittedly, at the time, I was unfamiliar with this new model. Having previously reviewed the UST Hisense PX1-Pro and been impressed by its triple-laser light engine—giving it an S&V Top Pick—I was keen to explore any advances made by the self-proclaimed pioneer in Laser TV in the dynamically evolving projector technology category.

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Vertical and horizontal lens shift
Very good pre and post calibration
4LED means no laser speckle
Rich with features

Minus
Disappointing contrast performance
Lackluster sharpness and focus uniformity
Fan noise is loud at full brightness
WCG filter cuts light and disables dynamic contrast

THE VERDICT
The BenQ HT4550i takes a valiant swing at making a home theater but is held back by its limited contrast. Outstanding pre and post calibration performance, 2D lens shift, and an included Android TV streamer make it one of the easiest projectors to set up and use. While not a true home theater projector the BenQ HT4550i makes a strong case for a media room environment.

The home theater projector market is undergoing a major transformation. Lamp-based projectors are being replaced by solid-state projectors. BenQ is a unique company in this market, as it primarily uses 4LED technology instead of the single or multi-laser setups that are becoming more common.

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Bright image with proper screen pairing
Low gaming lag
Portability
Quiet Operation

Minus
Placement woes with short-throw lens
Throw-away audio
Manual Focus
HDMI 2.0 only
Ineffective CMS

THE VERDICT
It may be difficult to wrestle it away from the kids when they are gaming, however, for serious movie watching, that may not bother you. Big and bright for gaming, there are better options from Optoma for cinema-centric viewers.

Optoma boasts of being both the top 4K UHD projector brand globally and the number one Digital Light Processing (DLP) brand in the United States for 2022, citing the PMA Research Worldwide Projector Census, making the company no stranger to the world of projected light.

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Sits close to wall
Very bright
Low input lag
No rainbow effect
Accurate colors
Minus
Limited color gamut
Can't be calibrated
No HDMI 2.1
2-way pixel shift
No 3D

THE VERDICT
Serving up to 150 inches of viewing, Epson's new triple-LCD UST blows away the UST competition with its category-leading high brightness and easy placement. It's a do-it-all display equally happy to serve up TV, streaming shows, live sports, video games, and 4K movies.

The ultra-short-throw projector category is where all the action is these days when it comes to home entertainment projection. You'll find both name-brand TV makers and brands you've never heard of battling it out for a spot in your living room. But here's the thing: A UST can do both TV and home theater projector-like things. And in some ways, it's a whole new animal.

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Deep blacks
Exceptional resolution
Dynamic tone mapping
Minus
So-so remote control
Dense owner's manual

THE VERDICT
With its exceptional overall performance, JVC's DLA-RS1100 projector defines the law of diminishing returns where increasingly subtle improvements command dramatically higher prices.

True native 4K projectors have only been widely available — and reasonably affordable — for the past few years. Prior to that, most home projectors used a process called "pixel shifting" to produce 4K images: A 2K imaging device first presents half of the pixels in each 4K frame, shifts the image by less than the distance of a single pixel, and then displays the other half of the pixels. All of the pixels in the 4K source appear on screen — just not at the same time. The shift takes place so rapidly that it is undetectable to the human eye.

Performance
Features
Ergonomics
Value

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Impressive contrast
Flexible zoom and lens shift range
Built-in streaming platform with HDMI eARC
Minus
Limited brightness necessitates dark room viewing
Smart interface not for everyone

THE VERDICT
LG’s 4K laser DLP projector delivers impressive picture quality and value, but its limited brightness requires a dark room for best performance.

LG has been at the vanguard in manufacturing "smart" projectors—models that, like more traditional offerings, sit at the back of the room and beam images to a separate screen, but also provide the streaming and voice control features you'd find in any smart OLED or LCD flat-panel TV. In 2021 we reviewed the company's HU810PW ($2,999), a single-chip (0.47-inch) DLP projector that delivered 4K images via pixel-shifting. Now, we have that model's sibling, the HU710PW, a similarly featured projector that arrives with a lower 2,000 ANSI lumens brightness spec, but also a lower price ($2,499 MSRP).