Budget Projector Buying Guide
When it comes to buying a projector, budget isn't always the best guideline. You want to buy the best quality projector you can afford, but that's not always possible. For instance, there are plenty of people who would love to take the artlii experience into the cinema but simply cannot afford the price tag. In this article we look at some great affordable projectors available right now in the market - and also discuss what makes them the best budget projectors around.
Let's start with the most important feature - the brightness. The term "brightness" is used broadly to describe the perceived brightness of the image on the screen. It's not just the contrast and average color temperature - more importantly, it's the measured level of perceived brightness. What does this mean for us? If you're planning to take your movie viewing to the cinema, and have set your budget to include a premium LCD or plasma screen, then you will need to check the key specs resolution, brightness, contrast ratio and display ratios.
Next up on our list of criteria for choosing a budget projector is the sound quality. When you're talking about cinema viewing, you expect the sounds to be clear and powerful. When you're talking about mobile projectors, you're probably going to have good sound quality, depending on what source you use. Generally speaking, a portable projector has a small nozzle that shoots the image onto a celluloid surface. There are many different sources of sound, including electronic music tracks, or voice-overs, recorded CDs or DVDs. This means that your budget projector needs to be capable of playing all forms of audio, at a quality acceptable to you.
Finally, you need to consider the image quality of your projection system. Are you looking for clearer images, with a lower level of gradation, or a greater level of definition? The best budget projectors should offer a wider gamut, so that all the components of your video are visible, even at different distances. In other words, check the specs of the camera, compare it to your reference guide, and see how far the larger image can be displayed. The wider the viewing angle, the better the quality of the image.
A final consideration is the price point. Projectors can range in price from several hundred dollars, to several thousand. Price is obviously a big factor, but it should only be one of three or four major considerations when shopping. If your projectors aren't as bright as you want them to be, or they are too expensive for what you need, you should keep looking. That said, keep these price points in mind:
Lense Shifting - Many budget projectors have a problem with lens shift. This happens when the projection surface moves slightly while the projector is picking up an image. The projector will often display a big white wall (and may be picking up other images as well), but then you will see the white wall shift to a darker shade of green, or even black. This can make watching your source material quite difficult, and is definitely an annoyance.
This problem can be fixed with some refocusing methods, such as using image 2 or image 3 techniques. Another thing you can do to fix it is to hold the projector's power button down while focusing, so as to avoid the image shifting. If neither of these techniques help, then the only other option is to exchange your lens. Unfortunately, there's no easy way to tell which lens will be best for you.
Keep in mind that the amount of light the projector throws out, measured in lumens, will have a significant effect on the quality of the image you can display. The lower the lumen, the brighter your screen will be. The higher the lumen, the darker the screen will be. Budget projectors with high lumen values are often very expensive, but are usually the best projectors to buy if you want to view high-end material.