us spec h30 to work in uk

[cosmic]

just got a US spec OPTOMA h30 and want to know what i need to do to power it up in the UK.

[ntslik]

Originally Posted by cosmic

just got a US spec OPTOMA h30 and want to know what i need to do to power it up in the UK.

Not sure what you mean i would have to check the voltage, any reason why you got a US spec machine?

[theritz]

Well as an example, the Optoma H30 is $949.99 from Tiger Direct (Click Here ). That makes it £494....... compared to about £1000 in the UK...... fairly good reason, I'd say.


S.

[inzaman]

Does anybody know what the differences are between the US spec machine and a UK one, also warranty.

I am off to the states in June and 'might' look at the option of getting a US machine, because as the Ritz has pointed out, and after a bit of reasearch myself, the price differences between the US and UK machines are massive, especially when you get higher up the model range.

[theritz]

inzaman,

Projectorcentral.com lists the H30 as being 100 - 240v, so I'm assuming that it doesn't need a stepdown transformer (Click Here for Optoma USA's spec for the H31 - same as regards the voltage.)

The link I listed earlier indicates a 2 year warranty from Optoma USA - you could contact them and see if Optoma do a worldwide warranty scheme. I imagine that Optoma UK wouldn't be anxious to carry out warranty repairs in the normal course of events, seeing as they wouldn't have earned any money on the sale of the projector - I would, of course, be delighted to find myself mistaken in this regard. Essentially the primary issues are warranty and customs, I guess.

Further up the foodchain, the H77 is about £2340, the H79 £3172...... with the latter I'd want to do some research about PAL issues, but the prices are very appealing.


S

[ntslik]

Originally Posted by theritz

Well as an example, the Optoma H30 is $949.99 from Tiger Direct (Click Here ). That makes it £494....... compared to about £1000 in the UK...... fairly good reason, I'd say.


S.

I think your talking about the H30A in the UK (it's the H31 in the US), the H30 is the old machine which i think some old demo models are being sold off cheap in the UK, Optoma UK do have a european warranty not sure how that would effect a US warranty, don't forget though, Themescene projectors are designed for European Widescreen Home Cinema, so you might encounter pal issues

[theritz]

Neil,

The H31 Manual listed on the Optoma US site (Click Here, pdf over 1Mb download says....

�� True WVGA resolution 854 x 480 addressable pixels
�� Single 480p DarkChip2TM chip DLPTM technology
�� HDTV compatible (480i/p, 576i/p, 720p, 1080i)
�� NTSC/NTSC4.43/PAL/PAL-M/PAL-N/SECAM, and
HDTV compatible

If it's PAL compatible, do you know what changes are made to make it

designed for European Widescreen Home Cinema

?

.. not sure what European Widescreen Home Cinema means - is that a new standard I haven't heard of yet or a marketing term?

Readily agree that arranging warranty for an import is the main issue - if it had to be shipped back to the USA for warranty work, one would have to figure that possibility into assessing the cost/benefit of the import in the first place. Any idea what the return for warranty rate (i.e. how many per hundred shipped) is on Optoma/Themescene - even a rough guess based on your own experience would help. If the projector had a very low return rate, then one might take into consideration the reduced liklihood of having to return the projector to the US for warranty work - the converse would also apply, of course.

Regards,

S.

[ntslik]

He didn't buy the H31 he bought the H30

[theritz]

Thank you for your helpful and informative reply.

Regards,

S.

[ntslik]

Originally Posted by theritz

Thank you for your helpful and informative reply.

Regards,

S.

How could i reply to a post about the H31 when the thread is about an old H30 he bought from the US, not sure how that would help Cosmic

[inzaman]

Cheers Ritz, i am going to email Optoma and find out what the situation is in this regard. I said 'might' as i am also looking at a couple of other DLP models, namely the new Sharp, and the fact i will only be on the mainland for a few days before then going over to Hawaii.

[MikeD]

I remember when the H30 was launched Optoma stated in their advertising blurb (I think on their web site) that it was the first projector optimised for european use and PAL.

I wonder if the software and projector default settings differ slightly relative to the country of sale to take into account the broadcasting standard?

Could be worth asking Optoma that question, I've always found their technical support very obliging.

[inzaman]

Right i sent Optoma an email along the lines of;

I am visiting the US and would like to take advantage of the favourable exchange rate, i am therefore thinking of purchasing an Optoma projector whilst i am in the US.
As you are a global company and according to your website very customer focussed i assume that the warranty will therefore be honoured by yourselves when i return the projector to the UK, rather than me having to go through the hassle of dealing with the US side.
Could you please advise that this is the case so i can purchase your product whilst over there.

Thanks etc etc.

The response i got was as follows;

Thank you for your e-mail.

If you buy a projector in the US you will be covered by the US warranty and not the UK warranty (and vice versa).

The technology is completely different and Optoma UK and Optoma US have different projectors.

Kind regards etc etc



This difference must be something to do the European PAL thing then

[theritz]

inzaman,

The technology is completely different .......

*** ?? Newsflash - - - - - - - - Optoma USA enter the LCD market - - - - -



Whatever about PAL compatibility issues (Their own website and User manuals say that they're Pal compatible ),

and Optoma UK and Optoma US have different projectors.

... sounds like a brush-off to me. Some different models, yes, but made by the same manufacturer - spare parts have to come from the same source. Probably more like Optoma US and Optoma UK have exclusive distribution rights and Optoma US can't export into the UK market at cheaper prices. Fairly predictable, really, and a bit like buying from Procejapan - if it goes wrong then it's back to the US to get it fixed. Gotta make a call on whether the savings are worth it, in the absence of any information on what the warranty return rate is like.


Sean.

[Decadence]

I would have thought that with a switchable US/UK power supply on board that it would be fine...you should just need a UK power lead for it to work.