HOW TO CHOOSE A VIDEO PROJECTOR

When choosing our projector we will have to consider some important aspects and characteristics, such as the utility that we will give to the projector. Since it is not the same if we are going to transport it constantly in a bag or it will be fixed in a support. It is also necessary to consider, if applicable, the place where it will be used: the size of the room, the light it has, the height of the ceiling, etc. On the other hand, we must know the size of the projected image we want, this depends on the space we have but also the power of the projector. 

With these and other clear aspects, we can see which equipment meets the desired characteristics, and compare them to choose the one that best suits us.

There are some technical characteristics of the projectors that should be clear when deciding. Here we detail the most relevant

Resolution

The resolution is the level of detail with which the image is displayed, in greater detail better visualization. The resolution is calculated by the number of elements of the image (pixels). 

The different resolutions that are currently handled are:

  SVGA, 800 x 600 pixels (600 lines on the screen with 800 pixels per column).

  XGA, of 1024 x 768 pixels.

  WXGA, of 1280 x 768 pixels.

  SXGA, of 1280 x 1024 pixels.

  UXGA, of 1600 x 1200 pixels.

  WUXGA, 1920 x 1200 pixels. 

The important thing to keep in mind is that the higher the resolution, the more it can be projected on the screen and you will get a more defined, clear and clear image, but also the cost of the projector increases.

(if you do not understand any pixels ... visualize the image that will be projected, divide it into a grid as if it were a checkered notebook, each frame represents a pixel, how many squares are there? depends on the resolution, in 800 x 600 we have 800 frames of horizontally and 600 frames vertically, the higher the number of frames the image will look better)

Brightness

The brightness of the projector is called the amount of light projected by it, in other words, the intensity of the brightness of the lamp. This brightness is measured in lumens: the greater the brightness of a projector, the better the projected image will look.

The number of lumens necessary to project correctly will then depend on the space where it will be projected since it will be necessary to take into account the ambient light and the distance between the projector and the screen.

It is important to keep in mind that each manufacturer uses a different method to determine the lumens, so they do not correspond to each other. Each manufacturer provides a table to calculate the optimal projection distances. For home-theaters (home theater) and home cinema will be enough with a luminosity of 1000 lumens. For medium-sized rooms or meeting rooms with low light in general, a 2000 lumens projector is enough, for large auditoriums and rooms or with artificial light, a projector of 3000 lumens or more is necessary.

(As good as the projector is if it gives direct sunlight, the image will be lost a bit, so do not think about using your projector on a sunny field day waiting to be seen like in the cinema.)

Size

The size and weight of the projector are related to the user that will be given to the equipment. There are three defined ranges to be able to differentiate them:

•    -Ultra-light projectors: Up to 2kg in weight, of reduced dimensions, ideal to carry with the laptop. Its cost is high.

•    - Portable projectors: They are the most common, used for small rooms or home theaters. With a weight of up to 3.5kg and a varied range of brightness.

•    -Big projectors: Used in auditoriums and large spaces, of great weight and size. They are usually placed on fixed supports.

(Why among smaller more expensive? Because they are more resistant, support the trip and the small patter of the transport to differences of their larger relatives that at the slightest movement can hurt the lamp, besides that they are easy to transport)

Contrast

The contrast is the relationship with which the comparison between blacks and whites of a projector is measured. The higher the contrast ratio, the better the image that the projector is capable of producing. If we use the projector for presentations and conferences, with a contrast ratio of 500: 1 it will be sufficient, but for videos and home-theater a ratio of 1500: 1 or more will be necessary.

(What is that of 500: 1 and 1500: 1? They are the number of stages of a white turning to black, imaging a gradient from white to black or from black to white, the more stages the image will look better)

Connections

If you plan to use your projector as a PC projector, in addition to DVD, video, television, and consoles, it is worth thinking about the number of connections you can accept. Expensive models will have several connection points, sometimes in a separate unit. The cheaper models can restrict your access or force you to be plugging in and unplugging. Wireless projectors can reduce the number of connections but at the moment there is not much to choose from.

Noise

All the projectors produce heat and have fans to cool them. However, the fans can be noisy and interfere with viewing. Try it before you buy it or check the decibel level in the specifications. As a reference, a normal conversation usually reaches about 60 decibels.

Duration of the lamp

The light source of a projector can last between 750 and 2,000 hours depending on the use. You usually have to change the lamps of the LCD projectors more often than those of other projectors. There are spare bulbs available for all models and tend to wear slowly, work or not.

(The lamp is expensive, it can also be damaged if the projector has just been used and moves abruptly, not to mention the small accidents of blows to the projector, or accidents with liquids ...)

Comparison of technologies

LCD

•    -Brightness and better price compared to other devices.

•    -Good results are not obtained for moving images because the response time of change is low.

•    -The lines of pixels appear on a large screen.

LCOS

•    -The response time of the Hitachi LCOS panels is quite good for moving images.

•    -Various resolutions and panel available at a competitive price due to a large number of manufacturers.

•    -In 3 panels it is less bright than LCD.

•    -In 1 panel is less bright than DLP.

DLP

•    -The overall weight/size is lower.

•    -The contrast ratio is greater.

•    -The brightness is less than LCD (however, the catalog data is superior)

•    - More brightness to the detriment of color

Other features

Modern projectors have features that can be useful:

•    -Lighting duration of the lamp, (by experience the DELL projectors after a certain time of use are self-protected and turn off to let the lamp rest, this is a bit annoying if you are in the middle of a presentation)

•    -Projection depending on the background, we will not always have a screen to project as they are sold separately (although in some promotions are given together with the projector), and what is worse, sometimes our office does not have a white wall either, there are Nowadays projectors that can be adjusted to the color of the wall so as not to distort the colors of the projected image, obviously not all colors and those that handle are almost always pastel colors, so do not expect that if your wall is blood red, the image looks excellent, but if your wall is a green or light yellow it can be adapted.

•    -Distance, some projectors (I've seen it in BENQ projectors) are short-throw, what does this mean? that you can put the projector one meter away from the wall and still give you a wide image compared to the "normal" projectors that have to be far away to see a large projection.

Brands

Some brands that handle projectors:

•      Sony

•      BenQ

•      Panasonic

•      ViewSonic

•      Epson

•      Samsung

•      InFocus

•      NEC

•      Acer

Of these brands, I have seen BenQ, Samsung, Epson, DELL, ViewSonic and Infocus in operation, and sincerely I have worked with the BenQ without any problem (besides being aesthetic), but your choice will depend on the characteristics you need and the budget with which you count.

Recommendations for the proper use of the projector

At the end of each presentation or film, the projector must be left to cool down with the lamp off and the fan on (in most cases the cooling process is automatic). Some projectors no longer require the cooling process. Consult the equipment manual for specific recommendations.

Avoid leaving loose cables in areas of circulation of the audience, because if someone stumbles you can throw the projector and/or melt the lamp.

Firmly connect the power cord to the power outlet and the projector, as a false contact may momentarily turn off the projector and damage the lamp. In addition, you will lose time because the projector will not turn on immediately. Do not use low-quality extensions.

If the power supply is not reliable (low voltage or blackouts) it is advisable to use a regulator, a "no-break" or better yet a "no-break" with an integrated regulator. Consult the equipment manual to see the consumption. A bad regulator can be worse than not having it.

The projectors generate a lot of heat, so it is normal that its surface is very hot. Leave enough space around the equipment for the air to circulate. Avoid cables or equipment coming into contact with the projector. Do not use the projector on fine furniture whose varnish could be damaged by heat.

Avoid looking directly at the light output of the projector because the brightness of some projectors can hurt the view.

See More:

• How to connect your Mac to an external display or projector via HDMI or VGA
• Keys to choose a good projector

 

Keys to choose a good projector

Although the arrival of large-format flat televisions took them away, projectors are a valid alternative in homes and offices. We tell you everything you need to know to choose the most appropriate

Although the arrival of large-format flat televisions took them away, projectors are a valid alternative in homes and offices.

Until recently, those who wanted to enjoy the best viewing experience possible in their home did not hesitate to make the leap to a projector, thus getting rid of the limitations of conventional TV. Reproduction quality, large images and the possibility of connecting different sources were its main attractions. But, the market began to flood with televisions with Full HD resolution and huge diagonals and, suddenly, the projectors were relegated to ostracism.

Interestingly, this movement has caused a significant decrease in their prices, and so they are again a more than recommended alternative for lovers of home theater. However, the viewing of movies in the purest style is not the sole purpose of a projector: we can connect it to a computer and see the content of it on a full screen, or even that of a mobile phone, tablet or video game console. And, of course, to show a pass of photographs or professional presentations are practically unbeatable.

Thus, the projectors are divided into three large blocks: domestic, professional and portable; and before deciding on one or the other type, we will think about the use that we are going to give it and whether we need to transport it easily or not.

When projecting an image from about 12 meters we can get up to 300 inches in most cases, both on a wall and on a screen.

The importance of brightness

The fundamental difference between each segment is usually marked by the luminous power, expressed in brightness lumens. This standard is marked by a method of measuring its average value established by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), much more reliable than other estimates so that manufacturers usually show this value as " ANSI lumens ".

All the projectors emit a very bright light to capture an image and, as a rule, those for domestic use are more muted than those intended for office use. The reason is quite simple: while in a home the most usual thing is that the projection takes place in a dark room, in workplaces the environment varies more and it is possible that you need to project something in an illuminated room. Bearing this in mind, it is preferable to start from a minimum of 1,600 lumens to get a good experience at home in a room with a light on, while if we are always going to watch movies in the dark, we can opt for one less than 1,000

Along with the brightness, the contrast ratio is another important indicator to know the viewing quality, because the higher it is, the better the purity of whites and blacks. If the projector of our choice has many ANSI lumens but low contrast, the image will be discolored, since the amount of light that hits the screen causes the black to lose intensity. Starting from a native level of at least 1,500.1 is recommended, being superior to 2,000: 1 an excellent option. Likewise, we should not confuse the native or real contrast with the dynamic on-off contrast, much higher (but artificially) and that is generally what manufacturers advertise.

See more Buying Tips of this Projector for gaming article

Different technologies

Regardless of the level of light emitted, there is another big difference related to the technology used, being LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) or DLP (Digital Light Processing) currently prevailing, normally those of the first type in domestic environments and the second in the professional field

The liquid crystal display (LCD) is simpler and more affordable and divide the halo of projected light in the three primary colors (red, green and blue) through a chip to reconstruct the image in one, which is formed by points. Thus, its image is very bright and with colors with a good level of saturation, but in return it can produce some pixilation (increasingly smaller, given the advances in resolution) and the life of the lamps is limited (approximately between 2,000 and 4,000 hours of medium), while with high contrast images or in black and white you can perceive some distortions.

For its part, some DLP projectors such as solid state lighting are not limited by the duration of the lamp and, unlike LCDs, do not require the presence of filters that must be cleaned between every 100 and 300 hours of operation, with what its maintenance and useful life finishes being bigger and the additional outlay can be worth it in case of intensive use. In addition, its native contrast is clearly superior, especially with whites and blacks, ideal if we plan to project documents with text.

There is also a third technology that, as with televisions, is already in disuse: CRT. With three cathode ray tubes of high performance and analog image, they are usually installed in a fixed point to be very heavy and bulky.

To all this, we must add the arrival of new features such as 3D viewing, something that far exceeds the experience offered by televisions of this type thanks to its ability to project large images that provide a higher field of vision and has to Consider the peripheral vision of the viewer. Or what is the same: if 3D with a television is like looking through a window, with a projector of this type we will get a more comfortable and comprehensive experience. And there are already projectors that are added to the fashion of Smart TV, integrating all kinds of services and platforms online in their own chassis.

See More:  How to connect your Mac to an external display or projector via HDMI or VGA

How to connect your Mac to an external display or projector via HDMI or VGA

In this post we are going to tell you the different methods we have to connect a Mac computer to an external screen via cable, we will see the different connections that your Mac can have and the options of your monitor, television or projector.

How to connect your Mac to an external display wirelessly

As you know there are two alternative methods to the cable connection, on the one hand, the Apple TV that will allow us to stream video, although we have tested it on a MacBook Pro Retina 15 '' and an iMac of 27 '' and the quality It is not the expected one. Yes, it works well on other computers with lower screen resolution.

The second alternative method to the cable is to use a server like Serviio, a few months ago we made a step-by-step tutorial.

How to connect your Mac to an external display with cables

The cables you may need to connect your Mac computer to an external screen are:

•    HDMI to HDMI, you will have a MacBook Pro Retina and your external screen HDMI connection.  Mini Display Port or Thunderbolt to HDMI, your Mac computer will have the Minidisplay Port or Thunderbolt connection if it is a more modern model and your external screen has an HDMI connection (most of the current televisions have one or more HDMI ports). 

•    Mini Display Port or Thunderbolt to VGA , your Mac computer will have the Minidisplay Port or Thunderbolt connection if it is a more modern model and your external screen has a VGA connection, very common in monitors from a few years ago and the standard of most of the market projectors and they are all available under the Amazon Basics brand with an unbeatable value for money:

In the following video, we show you how you can connect your Mac computer to an external screen, in our case we have used a MacBook Pro Retina 15 '' since it has a Minidisplay Port or Thunderbolt input and an HDMI port. The screen that we used for the connection is a Samsung Smart TV with HDMI connection: +

What connection does my Mac have?

Your Mac computer can have more than one type of connection, the most common is that it has Thunderbolt or Mini Display Port, it is a square port that requires a special cable. This cable will have the Mini Display Port connection on one end while on the other you can have HDMI or VGA, it is also common to see adapters from MiniDisplay Port to VGA or HDMI so we would then have to buy the HDMI-HDMI cable or VGA- VGA, if we already have one of these is a good option although it does not always come out cheaper and we will also be using two cables (adapter and cable) instead of just one.

To identify this connection ... an image is worth a thousand words:

The other connection option that your Mac can carry is the HDMI, it is an easily identifiable entry since it is present in most of the screens and televisions that are currently on the market. It is like this:

What connection does my external screen, monitor, television or projector have?

The external screens have an infinity of input ports, we will highlight those used to connect a screen or projector to your Mac:

•    VGA: it is very well known although, in disuse, it has 15 pins and in the photo, it is identified and it is blue (in our case). This connection will require the cable to have VGA on one end and Mini Display Port on the other. It is difficult to find HDMI-VGA cables so if you have this connection it is better to buy an adapter.

•    DVI: very old connection and that few computers have. You will undoubtedly have to buy a DVI to VGA adapter.

•    HDMI: is the modern standard connection, if your screen has this connector you can use an HDMI-HDMI direct cable to your computer if it is a MacBook Pro Retina or an HDMI-Mini Display Port Cable otherwise.

See More:

Keys to choose a good projector