Looking at Projectors

Hey everybody,

I am currently looking at projects and would love some input. I seem to be in a predicament as I would like to get a unit that is portable yet feature packed. It will mainly used in a dim classroom setting as well as the occasional outdoor movie setup. While I am uncertain as to the exact screen sizes, I would presume a max of 100 inches is likely. I have been looking at the newer LED technology to save money on purchasing replacement bulbs, but I have found there is a limited offering.

Currently, the Casio XJS 32 Super Slim DLP projector is on sale at Costco for $600. It is about $200 below retail, but the a replacement bulb will run about $400/2000 hours. BenQ seems to have a great portable LED projector that is similar. My only problem is that both of these projectors are limited in resolution/inputs. Does anyone have any ideas as to a decently portable LED project that will look great in the classroom and outside with higher quality input options? Is this going to be one of the better deals or is an LED really the way to go? By the way, I am budgeting up to $1500 if there is an LED model that works out. I appreciate your help!

 

What resolutions will you be running? Even on a 100" screen the people in the back of the classroom may run into problems reading the text on the programs you are using. Its easily fixed by changing the font size and all. In the classrooms that ive set up (12 to date) we run everything 1280X1024. That includes the desktop monitor to the projector to the 32" lcd in the rear of the room so the instructors have a place marker without having to turn around.

We tried higher resolutions but the older people didnt like it because they couldnt read it, due to forgetting their glasses or just not going out and getting glasses.

So unless you plan on doing HD movie playback on your projector 1280X1024 would be plenty

 

LED technology still isn't there yet for brightness... the amount of heat they generate is still a lot too... (think last i checked in december last year, the brightest single LED was the SSC P7 QuadDie... 1000 lumens... after filtering through the LCD, you'll get about 100 lumens...) there was a $200 3500 lumen LED, but the heat produced was a lot

i would suggest getting at least ANSI 2000.... i have a 1000 lumen Sharp PG C20XU, not good enough even in a semi dark room projecting to a 32" size

if you want to try, look at lumenlab.com and their forum... you can build your own projector for under $500 with a 30,000 ANSI bulb(after going through the LCD and fresnel, you will get about 5-10%... 1500-3000 lumen output) for $40(per bulb) that lasts 20,000 hours... i was planning to do it, but living in an apartment means no place to put a band saw or place to work

 

Thank you all for the input. I just took a look at the LumenLab guides and that was AWESOME! If this was exclusively for me I would definitely go it, but it will be used by my mother primarily. Thank you for the information regarding LED's and lumens. I have done some shopping around, and it seems that while the bulb is pricier than most, the projector has some great features. I am going to do some more looking and if I get it, I will do a quick review. Thanks again!

 

Thats crazy build your own projector?? Sounds like fun but if your getting out the door with $500+ cost + time/labor and its going to be big/ugly chances are you will spend more and maybe mess up.

I think I would buy a pre-built.

Meet the Optoma HD65 - http://www.ibuydigital.com/product/?49089&camp_id=209

Its probably the most consistently high rated projector I have seen, and it looks just beautifull in every way. A friend of mine has one and did a great user review of it on WSGF.

http://www.widescreengamingforum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=13766

 

well, the point of DIY is so that you can control the parts that go in(eg 720p or 1080p?), and you can replace the bulb without screaming "bloody ripoffs"...

if i had the tools and did the basic projector(close to 720p), it'll cost me around $200-$300 ($60 15" HP 1520 from ebay, $70 fresnels, $100 for bulb+ballast, $30 for basic wiring/fans, $40 for wood/screw drivers/blah)

my only (and biggest) suggestion is to get at least ANSI 2000 lumens...

 

You have to fit an actual 15" (or 17" in my case) monitor panel inside a box?? thats gonna be a big monitor. I wonder how it works, just shine the light through the monitor panel into a lens basically? Is the quality anything even close to that beautiful Optoma HD 65?

I dont really have the tools/work area to DIY and prefer the small package. I wouldnt use it often enough to burn the bulb out too fast.

Im gonna look at that forum more though when I find time as DIY stuff is fun, I built my own arcade

 

DIY projector != portable. Plus you really dont want to move it around too much. Companies can miniaturize much better than the average Joe can. Other than that it is a worthy endeavor.

 

Would be interesting to DIY with a 30" Dell since it has a resolution that no pre built projector has that I know of.

 

the best is to use a <17" monitor... bigger than that, it's too big to carry and the distance you need to project a bigger image is more..

http://www.lumenlab.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=15796

i mean it's not as portable as your $1000 projector, but still.... move-able