How to choose an ultra short throw laser projector?

Mialulu

Member
Many people want to buy an ultra-short-throw laser projector to build a home theater in the living room, but they don’t know the principle, pros and cons of an ultra-short-throw laser projector, nor do they know how to choose an ultra-short-throw laser projector. Here is the guide for buying an ultra short throw laser projector!

What is an ultra short throw laser projector?​


As the name suggests, the ultra-short throw laser projector refers to a projector with a short lens focal length and a laser as a light source, that is, a laser TV. Compared with traditional home projectors (telephoto), their main difference is that they project images of the same size and require different distances.

The throw ratio of traditional home projectors is mainly concentrated in the range of 1.2:1-0.4:1, and a distance of more than 2.5 meters is required to project a 100-inch screen. The ultra-short-throw laser projector uses an ultra-wide-angle lens with a throw ratio of <0.4, generally 0.5 meters can project a 100-inch picture, which means that it can be very close to the screen.
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What are the pros of ultra-short throw laser projectors?​


1. High brightness, wide color gamut, low attenuation

Ultra-short-focus laser projectors use lasers as the light source, which has obvious advantages over traditional ultra-high pressure pump lamps and LED light sources. For example, the life of the laser light source can reach more than 20000h. If calculated by 8 hours per day, it can be used for 8.5 years. Secondly, the cost of the laser light source is high, and it can be replaced for a long time without a one-time investment, and the bulb machine needs to be maintained at least 4-5 times during the lifetime of the use process.

The most important thing is that due to the low attenuation characteristics of the laser light source, it can output high-brightness, color saturation and high-contrast images, some of which are even close to the TV image quality, and can be used in a living room with lights on. Because of this, many manufacturers also refer to ultra-short throw laser projectors as "laser TVs."

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2. Not restricted by the environment, suitable for small apartment

This is the most intuitive advantage of ultra-short throw laser projectors. The general telephoto projector is placed in the living room, and it takes more than 3 meters to achieve the best visual effect. The ultra-short throw laser projector can be placed on the TV cabinet, and a small room can project a large screen, which is very friendly to a small apartment.

3. Applicable and easy to place

Due to the short projection distance, the ultra-short throw laser projector can be placed a few inches away from the wall or the screen, without wiring and hoisting, saving a lot of decoration costs. In addition, when using and watching, even if someone is walking in front of the screen, it will not produce shadows to obscure the picture, and it can also avoid direct light to human eyes.

What are the cons of ultra-short throw laser projectors?

However, ultra-short throw and "picture distortion" can be said to be a bunch of enemies. Therefore, ultra-short throw projectors usually need to be used with a special anti-light curtain to ensure that the screen is flat, otherwise the corners of the screen are prone to poor focus and image distortion. In addition, the price of ultra-short throw laser projector is more expensive, the price is close to3200$ or even higher.

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How to choose an ultra-short throw laser projector?​


1.Choose short-throw or ultra-short-throw projector according to space and budget

Is it really necessary to buy an ultra-short throw laser projector for your living room? Generally, short-throw projectors can project 80 feet of the screen when the distance from the screen is 80cm~100cm, and ultra-short-throw projectors can project the same size at a distance of only 30cm.

The smaller the focal distance, the more expensive the price, and the market price of some ultra-short throw projectors even exceed 5,000 yuan. So if the home is 1m away from the wall, choosing a short-throw projector is enough. If this distance cannot be ensured, then consider ultra-short throw models.

2. Choose the ultra-short throw laser projector according to the projection purpose

Used for chasing drama at home? Or is it to show PPT in the office? Regarding the brightness, screen, and contrast of the projector, it is recommended to choose it according to your own projection purpose.

(1) Light source brightness: recommended above 2500lm, high contrast ratio is better

The key to choosing a short-throw projector is brightness. Lumen is a unit that represents the brightness of the projector's light source, and ANSI lumens represents the actual brightness of the light source after attenuation. The higher the lumens and ANSI lumens, the better. Generally speaking, a projector with a light source of 1000 to 2000lm is sufficient for use in a dark place, but if you want to use the projector during the daytime, 2500lm or more is ideal.

(2) Image contrast: It is usually expressed as a number such as "3000:1". The higher the value, the more fully reflect the difference between light and dark, and the clearer the picture. However, too strong a contrast between light and dark can make people feel dizzy, not the higher the better.

(3) LCD chip for a still picture, DLP, COS chip for video

In addition to brightness and image contrast, the choice of projector chip also needs attention. If the projection content is mainly still images such as PPT and photos, LCD, 3LCD and other liquid crystal chips are good choices. Not only the color rendering is full, the price is also relatively close to the people, and it is convenient to control the budget.

If you want to watch movies and play games at home with a projector, DLP or LCOS chips are the most suitable. These two technologies will not cause the afterimage of the dynamic video, and the smoothness of the picture can be guaranteed even when playing large-scale games. Compared with DLP chips, LCOS has higher picture quality, but it is larger and more expensive.

(4) Private cinema: focus on resolution and aspect ratio, 4K projector

If you want to equip your own private theater with a short-throw projector, a model with a resolution of at least 1280×800 and an aspect ratio of 16:10 is recommended.

We often refer to the pixel value and aspect ratio as a set of data. We will not do a long explanation here. If you don’t know how to choose, then recommend WXGA (resolution 1280×800, aspect ratio 16:10), or WUXGA ( a projector with a resolution of 1920×1200 and an aspect ratio of 16:10).

Among them, WUXGA is equivalent to full HD resolution, which is especially suitable for watching movies. Many short-throw projectors also support 4K ultra-high-definition picture quality and even 3D viewing.

3. The correction function of ultra-short throw laser projector

In addition to the points mentioned above, the correction function of the projector is also very important. Because the focal distance of the short-throw projector is very short, it is easy to form a trapezoidal projection picture, and the projector with the correction function can effectively correct the distorted picture.

In addition, if you need to carry the projector out for use, models that support calibration can quickly adjust the screen size with simple settings, which is very time-saving and convenient.

4. Must have HDMI interface, the more input interface, the more convenient

The final point of choosing an ultra-short throw laser projector is to choose a projector with more input ports as much as possible. The more input ports, the more types of machines, mobile phones, ipads, and computers can be cast, which is more convenient. Basically all projectors have HDMI ports, and some models also come with USB ports and LAN ports, which are more versatile.

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If you are an Apple MAC user, please pay attention to the Thunderbolt3 interface. In addition, if you need to connect to an old-fashioned machine and receive analog signal images, you need to pay attention to the VGA (RGB) interface or the AV interface.
 

Felia

Member
Ultra-short throw laser projector is really expensive than an average projector. I can't offer it now but I really want to get one in the future!
 
The UST projector is the most worthwhile product I have ever invested in. It is really great when paired with a VIVIDSTORM 120-inch screen.
 

EvanVeum

New member
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