PLANAR 7060 or OPTOMA HD80?

confused88

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I am between the PLANAR 7060 and the OPTOMA THEMESCENE HD80 as a first projector. Although the HD80 is a Full HD model and on paper it has much higher contrast reviews such as Planar 7060 Home Theater Projector Review - Overview and Planar PD7060 Projector Review - TV Reviews - TrustedReviews suggest that the planar is perhaps a better projector with a sharper image. Although no direct comparison is made the same reviewers argue that the optoma does not have a very sharp image. Still it is a Full HD model with a 10,000 Contrast ratio and a 6x wheel which indicates that fewer viewers will be subjected to the rainbow effect. The PLANAR is a Darkchip3 model while I don't know about the Optoma.
Has anyone any direct experience with any of these models? Which one should I go for?
One last thing. There is also the cheaper planar 7010. How would this one measure against the optoma?
 
hi,

I have a hd80. I have compared it to the full HD DC2 Planar 8130. The optoma is equivalent in sharpness, and I would expect be sharper if perhaps only marginally so than the 720p planar you mention. But the planar may have better rendering of colours. The hd80 is dc2. I would recommend you demo both, as you may feel the planar is a better pj.

The hd80 was and is my first pj.
 
Hi Tausifs

I have a Planar 7010 and am wondering how much better 1080p would be.

Would you fancy either me coming to you or you coming to me and bringing either pj and doing a bit of a shootout.

Would be interested to see the outcome as I have not seen an A/B test of 720p/1080p.:)
 
Thanks.

I think It would be hard to find a demo for the planar and If I go for the 7060 I would have to buy it from abroad for a little more than a 1000 euros while the HD80 goes for a £1000 on EBAY right now (new) and it is a good offer. The 7010 costs £580.

kbfern are you happy with the 7010?
 
I have had the 7010 for around 10 months now and use it at least 3 evenings a week.

I have clocked up around 450hrs which is nearly what I clocked up with my previous Sanyo Z1 480p projector in 4+ yrs.

The step up in quality from 480p to 720p has been staggering and due to the extra quality it has given me a new apetite for large screen viewing.

I think the Planar when it was available last year for £499 was an incredible bargain,and i have not regretted buying one bit.It is a very well built pj unlike some of the cheaper Optoma models HD65/HD700 that I have seen in action.

Picture quality is superb and it is a much quieter pj than the Optoma's.If you are able to get one for £580 go for it as I doubt there is anything else to touch it at that sort of money.
 
Thanks,

I think I will go for the 7010 and use the extra cash to get a blu-ray player and a sound system. I have a 32 Sony LCD which is great overall , but pales in comparison to my local cinema which I tend to visit 2-3 times a week. Every time I try to watch a movie at home I give up half-way.

Since you prefer the Planar over your you 50 inc Plasma then it must be good.
At this price range I could also get the HD65(£500) but better models tend to go for about a £1000 or more. I have only seen in action the panasonic PTAX200 which I didn't like, motion didn't look smooth, and that model goes for £800+.
 
Amazon has the ACER X1160 for only £250. Is that any good for movies?
Has anyone tried it?
 
You must be confused if you are thinking of considering an Acer X1160 when originally asking about the Planar/Optoma pj's.

The acer is not worth considering IMO as it is only 800 x 600 has no hdmi and is really a projector for using in a classroom for hooking up to a computer rather than a home cinema style pj.

Why are you even considering this pj as its not even on the same planet as the Planar/Optoma.
 
I was tempted by the price (£250) and the good reviews on amazon.co.uk about a similar Acer model * However it seems that none of the reviewers ever had a PJ before*.
The PLANAR 7010 goes for £580 and the Optoma was for <1k on Ebay but it's no longer available.
Thanks for being so against it. I think I will finally go for the planar.
 
Are there still any Planar's to be had,if so it's as good a pj as you will get without going 1080p and spending £900-£1300.

I am not trying to be too negative regarding cheap £250 projectors but you really cannot expect to get anything worth looking at till you hit around £500.

£500 is incredibly cheap for what will give you an awful lot of pleasure for many many hours.A couple of years ago bottom end 720p pj's would have cost £1000+ and mid range machines £1500+ so you are getting into pj's on the cheap these days which is fantastic.:)

The cheap £200-£300 pj's will be usually the type used for presentation work and are not hd ready so cannot do widescreen natively.They have no hdmi connections which are essential if you wish to hook up a bluray player or sky hd box.

If no Planar's are about and you want to keep your budget down around £500 consider the Optoma 700x or HD65 or Infocus X9 all for under £600.

Failing that the LG AF115 looks a stunning bargain for a 1080p model for around £1200.

Hope you get sorted soon and start enjoying big screen entertainment in your own home:thumbsup:
 
Finally, I got my hands on a 7060. I have so far been impressed by the vivid picture and brightness, perfectly viewable even during the day. Fairly quiet too and no signs of rainbow effect, at least for me.
 
Good to hear you took the plunge and splashed out on a Planar.Where did you get if from and how much if you don't mind me asking.:thumbsup:
 
Finally, I got my hands on a 7060. I have so far been impressed by the vivid picture and brightness, perfectly viewable even during the day. Fairly quiet too and no signs of rainbow effect, at least for me.

Good choice. It is one of the best 720p DLP under a grand.
 
hi, 7060 is very good indeed, i was selling one but now going to keep it... as i wont be able to live without bigscreen. To get a better picture you will have to spend much more...

It would be interesting to compare 7060 with infocus in80, Anibap what do you think about 7060 vs in80?
 
Hi. I got from Creative Audio for 549. It comes with 1 year warranty. They still have the 7010 for 449. I thought that Dark Chip 3 is worth the extra 100 as it is somewhat of a rare commodity among "budget" projectors.

I still need a home cinema-amp to match with the projector. Any suggestions on that for a budget<500 ?
 

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