Here’s My
Projection
When
today’s large-screen TVs go headto-head with new projectors, there can be only
one clear winner
THIS IS A classic war, as
old as the Coke vs Pepsi and Nike vs Reebok ones, only with a much better
payoff. Because we’re not looking at slightly better-tasting sugared water or
cushioned soles but trying to play a projector against the large TV. The
results can up the entertainment level for your entire family by a factor of a
hundred. The problem? This debate is murky territory. There were no easy
answers. But rapid changes in technology have made things clearer. We’ve met
the contenders.
Here are the parameters:
PRICE
This is a silly debate.
The price per inch of what a projector can give you totally dwarfs what you’ll
pay for a TV. Especially once you hit the 60-inch-plus territory. You can
easily get a completely immersive, bright, 150-inch projection that throws you
right in the middle of all the action for just over` 1 lakh. To get all that in
a TV in that size you might need to sell your house, car and a few family
members.
EASE OF USE
I’ll break this into two
sections since there are so many myths to address. Projectors have long been
considered difficult to maintain. There have been huge problems with dust, the
bulbs would blow out quickly and were super expensive to replace. All of these
issues are now gone. Projectors are now dustproof, have ‘install-and-forget’
maintenance and those bulbs last for years (and cost very little to replace).
The only factor on which they totally lose out to TVs is the set-up. Anyone can
set up a TV. But a really good projector with a perfect screen and an awesome
picture needs some work. It is much easier than before (most come with a
do-ityourself set-up mode built-in), but for the most part, they are still not
idiot-proof.
EXPERIENCE
This is a no-brainer.
Nothing comes close to how a well-setup projector can make you feel. It
actually beats the pants off any movie hall, by a long shot! And it doesn’t
need a dark room anymore. The lumen (brightness) capacity on projectors has
gone through the roof and you can have yours play even with windows open and
lights on. Plus you don’t need to have a special room for it anymore.
Ultra-short throw projectors can be set up anywhere, even as close as 12 inches
from a wall. Imagine a 150-inch projection system right in the middle of your
living room with no permanent set-up needed. So for those keeping score, we’re
now TVs: 1, projectors: 1.
EASY WINNER?
Current projection
technology makes it an easy winner. If you’re looking for a large-screen
experience, an immersive gaming set-up or a movie theatre at home, you’ll be
silly to buy a huge, heavy TV that costs an arm and a leg and some other
organs. A projector will do far more for you. The tough question is, which one?
Well, you’ve come to the right place for an answer.
BENQ W3000
This is the absolute king
of the hill right now. It brings in Rec 709 technology, which means that it
will give you true cinematic, life-like colours right out of the box, with no
set up required. Earlier, this was only available on projectors that cost above
of ` 20 lakh. The BenQ model, from 2.5 metres, can give you a 120-inch picture
(and easily go up to 200 inches). Plus, it has its own 10W audio built in,
works wirelessly, gives a razor-sharp picture, can work in a bright room and
pretty much sets itself up on its own. At about ` 1,40,000, this projector has
almost no competition.
PANASONIC PT-AE8000
This one builds on its very
successful predecessor, the PT-AE7000, as it is much brighter and can do way
better 3D (which shouldn’t be the reason to buy a projector, considering you
won’t use it much). It does very well with dark scenes and gives rich, deep
colours and can also deliver a 200-inch-plus largescreen experience with ease.
While the 8000 is a super projector, it needs to be set up right and must have
a dedicated space for installation. It’ll cost you a shade upwards of `
2,00,000
EPSON EH-TW8200
The battle between BenQ,
Panasonic and Epson became even fiercer with the coming of the 8200. With super
bright colours, a very deep black, great contrast ratio, excellent picture even
in a well lit up room, easy set-up, portability and the fact that it can easily
handle a 200-inch screen – this is quite a package for ` 1,80,000.
There are other
projectors that you can think of, but make sure you’re not buying an office or
school projector for your house. Those may be much cheaper but aren’t really
built for home cinema requirements, can’t handle fast moving scenes, fade-ins
or bright contrast requirements and will need a dark room. If you’re in the
market for a good big-screen TV, it is time for you to think seriously about a
home projector – they are all set to shine bright and large!
RajivMakhni
HTBR7FEB16
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