- TVs are in a really good place right now.
I can get a really good
one for under $1,000
and I can get an amazing
one for under $2,000.
So, why on Earth am I
going to spend $2,000
instead on a 4K projector?
I mean, projectors tend
to either be really
expensive, or they tend to havey
dim lighting and a crummy
picture for the price.
But, in the last couple
of years, projectors
have actually gotten better.
I can now get a really solid
4K projector for under $2,000.
Now we've got five projectors h.
All are under $2,000
and all do 4K and HDR.
They're the BenQ HT3550,
the Optoma UHD60,
the ViewSonic PX727-4K,
the Vivitek HK2288,
and the Epson Home Cinema 4010.
What 4K projector on the market
for under $2,000 is
actually worth my money?
Let's find out.
(booming)
(upbeat music)
Getting the projector set
up and the image focused
on the screen so that
it looks just like a TV,
is really half the battle,
so for my first battle,
I'm going to test every
single one of these
projectors and see how
hard they are to set up.
A projector isn't like a TV,
you can't just plug and go.
First, you have to settle
on where it's going
to sit in the home, then you
have to get a good screen,
and then you have to
point it at the screen
and make a lot of adjustments
so the images take
up the entire screen, stays in ,
and doesn't have weird distorti.
The BenQ, ViewSonic, and
Vivitek are really bare bones.
You have to hover over
the projector itself,
making micro-adjustments.
Then, to fix distortion, you haa
keystone setting in the project.
The BenQ is a little
nicer than the other two.
That's owing to it just
being easier to use
and having better labeled
adjustment features.
The Optoma was easier to
set up, but really only
if you like to pretend
you're a cinematographer.
That's because instead of
using a knob somewhere,
focusing requires
physically manipulating the
lens like a cinematographer wou.
But the Epson Home Cinema 4010,
is in a league all on its own.
It was the only projector
that lets you make all
the adjustments using the remot,
which means I can sit on the co,
where I plan to watch, and
get the picture perfect
without touching a single focus,
and it allows me to do program .
So if I regularly move it
between rooms in a home,
and use different
screens, depending on the
lighting situation,
all I have to do is hit
a single button to get ready fo.
So the winner, Epson Home Cinem.
Okay, so the Epson Home Cinema s
the easiest to set up, but whatf
the picture quality is garbage?
Then it doesn't really matter, ?
So for the next test, we're goie
which has the best image qualit,
which means I get to watch
a whole lot of movies.
Testing image quality on a projr
requires two different things:
first, you need to use
equipment and software
to test just how bright
these projectors get
and how accurate their colors a.
Finally, we watched a whole lots
looking for things like shadow
detail and color accuracy.
We'll also be on the
hunt for weird hiccups
like funky skin tones
and gross color shifting.
So the screen we're using for ot
is the EC Cinema 2 from Elite S.
Really nice for a really dark r,
but remember, always choose thet
screen for your environment.
The wrong screen and the wrong g
can mean a real crummy picture.
The cheapest projectors we test,
the Vivitek and ViewSonic,
really struggled
to reproduce the brightest whits
and deep blacks and colors thaty
look the way they're supposed t.
And, because of how the color filters on them work,
these projectors can
have a really annoying
thing called the rainbow effect.
It might sound pretty,
but it causes you to see
different colors flashing in das
and it can be bad enough
to make a person nauseous.
The Optoma and Epson
are both a little better
but there's still a distinct co.
Everything is simply too blue o.
When it comes to a 4K projectors
comparable to a 4K HDR TV, the s
the only one that really comes .
It's factory calibrated,
it's got really solid
accurate colors, nice bright li,
and an HDR mode that
doesn't completely suck.
In fact, it's really pretty.
The BenQ HT3550 is our
clear image quality winner.
It is very obvious they are not
as easy to set up as a TV, and e
quality is not quite
as good for the price,
and yes, if you have $2,000 and,
you should just get a
TV, but there is still
definitely one projector that s.
So let's sum up the rest.
The ViewSonic and the Vivitek ae
cheapest projectors, but they ad
to impress in every single way.
The Optoma was a step up in pri,
but only a slight step up in qu,
ease of set up, or picture.
And the Epson has a great pictue
and is an absolute breeze to se,
but it's also kind of expensive.
So for me, the stand
out is the BenQ HT3550.
Yes, it's a little more difficut
to set up than the Epson, but te
picture quality is also way bet.
The settings are easier, it's s,
it looks nicer, I think, and it.
If you have to buy a 4K projectr
under $2,000, the BenQ
HT3550 is the one for you.
So the overall winner of this bo
is the BenQ HT3550.