My first Projector purchase!

[npm325]

Been thinking about buying a projector, but i'm not really clued up on whats good or bad. Maximum budget of £450 ish!

I've seen a few HITACHI PJLC9W Projectors with free 80"screen on Ebay for £300.

Are these any good? Or should i pay a bit extra and get something else.

Any help/recommendations would be appreciated.

Cheers!

[timmillwood]

i am new to this but i would recommend a widescreen and a native widescreen projector

you should be able to get something good for that price, i went for.
Hitachi TX100 (widescreen and HD) £375 av forums for sale thread
Sapphire 180 screen £40 from ebay

[emporer]

I spotted a Panny AE500 with fairly low hours and screen for sale on these forums a while earlier for around 400 quid, a steal for a first pj and an excellent unit.

[w3dal]

This is a great thread.

I have a plasma screen but thinking about getting a Projector aswell for movies and some TV viewing, and would be interested in what peeps come back. Havent got mega money to spend. I guess we just need 16:9 a half decent resolution and a scart and component input.

THanks

Dal

[Anim]

Take a look at the BenQ W100 Projector - Retails for £385. It's not Hi-Def but gets good forum praise and is incredibly cheap for what it delivers. Search the forum for screenshots.

If you want Low-Hi-Def then you need a projector with 1280x720 native panel which moves you into the second hand market. The cheapest brand new Low-Hi-Def projector is the Optoma HD70.

Anim
PS. I Say Low-Hi-Def because there are two types of Hi-Def, there is 1280x720 which is what Sky HD Broadcast in and there is 1920x1080.

[w3dal]

Originally Posted by Anim

Take a look at the BenQ W100 Projector - Retails for £385. It's not Hi-Def but gets good forum praise and is incredibly cheap for what it delivers. Search the forum for screenshots.

If you want Low-Hi-Def then you need a projector with 1280x720 native panel which moves you into the second hand market. The cheapest brand new Low-Hi-Def projector is the Optoma HD70.

Anim
PS. I Say Low-Hi-Def because there are two types of Hi-Def, there is 1280x720 which is what Sky HD Broadcast in and there is 1920x1080.

Thanks for the info pix mania have it for 381 which isnt bad.

I guess i could connect sky HD to this via component? would get a better picture then say a normal sky box via scart??

Need to find some decent pictures and reviews.

Dal

[Anim]

Search the forums for W100 threads, sure there are quite a few.

As to Pixmania, avoid them like the plague. Pay an extra £10 and get it from a real UK retailer not a French one.

Anim
Edit: Sky HD via Component vs Sky SD with Scart would produce a huge difference in quality, yes.

[gmp]

I'm using benqw100 and feeding skyhd via component (about 15m of cable from box) and picture is truly stunning and far beyond expectation. Non HD movies etc look fine, but couldn't go back to watching non hd footie after seeing hd version. Realise it is not hd pj but seems to work some magic when being fed 1080i.

[w3dal]

Originally Posted by gmp

I'm using benqw100 and feeding skyhd via component (about 15m of cable from box) and picture is truly stunning and far beyond expectation. Non HD movies etc look fine, but couldn't go back to watching non hd footie after seeing hd version. Realise it is not hd pj but seems to work some magic when being fed 1080i.

Any chance of some photos?

Dal -

[gmp]

Will try tonight but never uploaded photos to site so may need some tech support!

[w3dal]

The specs for this look pretty good???

The bulb life seems not bad, had my plasma screen 2 years and have only just clocked 1100 hours and thats our main tv so 4,000 hours seems like it would last us a good few years...

Dal

Features Back to Top

* BenQ W100 Home Cinema Projector
* 1300 ANSI lumens
* 16:9 native resolution
* 2500:1 contrast ratio
* 4000 Hours Lamp Life (Eco. mode)
* 2.9 (1.32 Kg) lbs Light Weight
* Functions - Digital keystone, Digital Image Adjustment, Freeze, Progressive Scan, Source Detection, HDTV Compatible, 9 sets of application mode, Deluxe case
* OSD (On-Screen Display) languages: English, France, Germany, Italian, Spanish, Thai, Korean, Russian, Swedish, Dutch, Polish, Czech, T-Chinese, S-Chinese, Japanese, Turkish, Portuguese


Specification Back to Top
Input

Control Panel
Digital keystone, Digital Image Adjustment, Freeze, Progressive Scan, Source Detection, HDTV Compatible, 9 sets of application mode, Deluxe case • User-friendly On Screen Display (OSD) languages
Display

Resolution (Maximum)
1280 x 1024 Pixels

Resolution (Native)
854 x 480 Pixels

Colours
16.77 million

Brightness
1300 Lumens

Picture size
35 to 160 Inches (Diagonal)

Projection Lamp
200W

Lamp Life
Standard: 3000 Hours • Economy: 4000 Hours

Display Type
DLP technology by Texas Instruments

Lens
F=2.6 to 2.77, f=20.4 to 23.5 mm

Scan Frequency
31 to 82 KHz(Horizontal) x 48 to 85 Hz(Vertical)

Lens Type
1:1.5 Manual Zoom

Throw Ratio
53 inches at 2m

Picture format
4:3 (Native) • 16:9 (Compatible)

Contrast Ratio
2500:1

LCD Panel
0.53 inch 480P DDR DMD x 1
Interfaces/Ports

VGA In
1 x DVI-I

DVI Port
1 x DVI-I (with HDCP)

Video Component In
Video1: 3 x RCA • Video2: 3 x RCA

Video Composite In
1 x RCA

S-Video in
1 x 4-pin Mini DIN
System

Supported Video Source
NTSC • PAL • SECAM

Graphics Standards Support
VGA to SXGA
Environmental

Noise Level (full operating mode)
(Normal): 29dB • (Economical): 25 dB
Electrical

Voltage/Frequency
100 to 240 VAC / 50 to 60 Hz

Electrical Power Consumption
285 W(Max) /
Physical

Form Factor
DLP Projector

In The Box
W100 Home Cinema Projector, User's Manual, Remote Control, Battery, Video Cable, S-Video Cable, HDTV Cable and PWR Cord • (Optional) : Spare Lamp Kit, Ceiling Mounting Kit and Remote Control

Dimensions
23.80 cm(W) x 28.30 cm(D) x 9.40 cm(H) - Weight 2.70 kg

[Ken42]

I've had a BenQ W100 for five weeks (after taking the excellent advice on this forum) and I get more and more impressed - as are my realtives! I project onto a matt white wall for a 90 inch picture in 16:9 and have no hesitation in recommending it.

I haven't got High Def, but last night's football looked brilliant compared to the football I've seen before. I guess it's something to do with being shot in HighDef. The picture came via an inexpensive Digihome Freeview box connected to a QED Scart to Component convertor.

My own digital video footage (from a 9 year old Panasonic) is also impressive even though it is not shot in true TV quality.

DVDs are simply wonderful. Even the DVDs I make from TV in LP quality to send to my son in Japan llok good.

A lot has to do with the original picture quality. For example, Shameless is stunning, but some other TV programmes have lower quality.

This must be the best purchase I've ever made. I haven't seen more expensive projectors, but for the money the BenQ is the business.

I'm glad to read the reports of good quality HD TV coming from this projector, but I'm more than satisfied with SD.

I bought mine from eatay.com who have it at £395, plus £5 delivery. I can't say how good they are because I haven't had a problem.

[gmp]

Everthing coming out fuzzy I'm afraid but here goes, doesn't do justice.

[gmp]

more

[npm325]

Thanks everyone for your info. Benq W100 looks like a possibility. Now just need to work out what cables i'll need to hook it to the dvd player, which is this one.......... http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/...059598-4499940
And a good sized screen is required.