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.
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