Any advise on buying my first projector with a very low budget.

666asher

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Hi,
my rear projection TV and plasma have both packed up so I want to buy a cheap projector, there are a few on ebay new around the 250 mark brand new that look promising.

Any advise on what to buy and what is good, would appreciate feedback on the ebay products, namingly the item 270283616070, 260294852664,
and lastly 260295420676. THANK YOU IN ADVANCE TO ANYONE RESPONDING AS i AM CLUELESS. THANKS
 
Hi,
my rear projection TV and plasma have both packed up so I want to buy a cheap projector, there are a few on ebay new around the 250 mark brand new that look promising.

Any advise on what to buy and what is good, would appreciate feedback on the ebay products, namingly the item 270283616070, 260294852664,
and lastly 260295420676. THANK YOU IN ADVANCE TO ANYONE RESPONDING AS i AM CLUELESS. THANKS
Be wary of cheap projectors on e-bay. they are often low resolution and not intended for home theatre. If you do buy on e-bay, at least buy a branded model.
Better still look on the For Sale section of these forums for a genuine secondhand bargain.
 
If you can stretch a little further I've read very good things about the Optoma HD700X on these very forums! You can get it for £375 here :

Optoma HD700X Projector - cheap Projectors - Dixons.co.uk

Do a search on the pj forum and you'll find lots of information to help with the pro's and con's.

I'm thinking of getting one myself (if it's still available!) next year. :smashin:
 
We are in the US but confident you can estimate the dollar to pound conversion.

Our suggestion is you take some time and get creative and look all around for close-out stores or other retail venues that get demo units from big box type retailers.

We bought our first projector as a broken unit from one of these bargain shops. We paid $50 for it and only bought it as it came bundled with a very spiffy Da-lite fixed wall screen. Subsequently, I decided to take a chance and send the PJ to the factory and to our delight they completely rebuilt the PJ for $500 and we still have the PJ and it works wonderfully BUT it was a "business" format machine with 4:3 native aspect ratio.

So we went back to this same small shop and this time found a big box store floor demo unit - Panasonic 900U 720p with 80 hrs showing on the lamp usage and we paid $600 (around 300 pounds??). It was in the original box with all the accessories still shrink wrapped. This was well over a year ago and after a lot of hard use it still performs perfectly throwing a nice HD 120inch diagonal image.

Neither of the PJs had any sort of warranty but we came out very well ahead financially on both projectors and we are always determined bargain hunters and we seldom buy something that fails to meet our expectations while saving loads of cash.

So, we would stay away from Ebay or any venue that won't allow you to see and touch and test the projector before you purchase. Bargains are out there waiting to be found by a determined and wise shopper.
goodluck
 
Thank you to all who replied, I have to say that I am someone who would pay a little more to get a better deal.

My problem I know face is that I only have ever used scart connexions, and I want to run a sky box, nintendo wii, home cinema for sound and a dvd player.
How is this possible?

Also can anyone else recommend the projector that was advised?

Thank you
 
There is a very large thread on here related to the HD700 which is worth having a search through, but it is a very popular PJ and excellent value for money - the HD65 is also good value and very popular and there is also a lot of info on these forums.

If you want to run everything into the projector you will need to pay attention to how many inputs it has, especially HDMI and component - the more the better, unless you also go the route of getting an AV Receiver that can upconvert/upscale the inputs - ie, plug all the sources into the receiver and send them all to the PJ via one HDMI cable -the DENON 1909 would do this, but is also £450

and then you would need speakers, obviously very few projectors come with speakers and when they do, they are not the highest quality.

Something that is also worth thinking about in relation to the 2 PJs mentioned is hat they are DLP pjs and you need to consider this as well. If you can get a demo do so to check whether you suffer from the rainbow effect. While many consider DLP to produce a more cinematic picture with better blacks, the RBE can also make a minority of people feel nauseous. LCD can also offer more flexibility of placement with greater zoom and lens shift facilities. The sticky threads in the PJ section are worth a quick read through to get a bit more information.

It is a minefield trying to make a decision, but good luck!
 
Thank you to all who replied, I have to say that I am someone who would pay a little more to get a better deal.

My problem I know face is that I only have ever used scart connexions, and I want to run a sky box, nintendo wii, home cinema for sound and a dvd player.
How is this possible?

Also can anyone else recommend the projector that was advised?

Thank you

Honestly...... don't even bother spending less than £300, its a complete waste when you consider the amazing HD700X at £400 with stunning clarity. The difference will be night and day!
 

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