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Well, my heavily discounted projector that I received from Walmart.com arrived a couple of days ago, and so far I really like it a lot. The back of it isn't flat (instead it has some sort of area for a roku and usb charging port for a phone), so I'm probably going to see if I can find a mount that I can use to point the projector straight at the ceiling. If not, then maybe bodge together some setup that will accomplish the same thing. But I did use the projector to watch some shows, and I'm fairly impressed. There does seem to be issues directly casting my Windows 11 desktop to it, but the manual specifically said not to do that (something about Wi-Fi being slow?), so hey, all good. For $50, I'm quite happy as a clam with my new purchase. I might even purchase a cheap walmart .onn google TV box thing so I can hook that up to the back of the projector, and then cast to the .onn instead of directly to the projector instead. Or I might purchase a cheap as hell refurbished mini PC for $60 because all I need it for it to open Firefox and stream youtube videos while I go to sleep. But yeah, overall, I'm liking my $60 1080p projector, and can recommend browsing Walmart.com for one because all of them seem to be on sale right now.
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Aug 28, 2023 02:45
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I also bought a cheap projector on sale recently. It's pretty great being able to set it up in my kitchen while I cook. I can't really see my TV from there because of the sun's glare. I just mirror my PC using chromecast and it works fine, just 1/4 second-ish behind what's playing on my PC screen. Dumb use case, but I kind of love it. Once the sun is down, I've been setting it up in my living room with an (also cheap) projector screen. Playing Zelda and watching 720p movies in all their blurry glory are awesome on a 150' screen that takes up most of my condo. Honestly playing Mario Kart multiplayer on a screen that big has pretty much been a dream of mine since I was a kid. I think I can justify buying a 4k projector with low latency at this point. I'm not a projector expert, so it seems tricky shopping online and not being able to see the tradeoffs between a 800 dollar 4k projector vs a 2000 dollar one in person. I haven't stepped foot in a Best Buy in years, but I think I'll swing by one today and see if have demos. It would be nice to have one in time for the long weekend.
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Aug 29, 2023 14:36
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Who actually makes the best low latency projectors for gaming? I got a BenQ th685 because it had very low latency and wasn't super expensive, but now that this has turned into a whole thing with my sick rear end home theater room I'll eventually be upgrading (though, probably in 2 years) to something much more expensive. So I just went looking around at the latency on more expensive ones. Tons of very expensive projectors have higher latency than my th685, sometimes a lot higher, but then a lot of the projectors from BenQ have as good latency or better (but usually at 240hz), so, is it just BenQ?
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Aug 29, 2023 14:47
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Since posting this morning, I went with a BenQ. I saw Optoma was on a few lists of projectors good for gaming when I was googling around this morning. But they seems to have some quality control issues.
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Aug 29, 2023 22:12
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BrainDance posted:Who actually makes the best low latency projectors for gaming? It looks like Acer has a pair that I don't think have been officially sold in the US that support 1080p120 VRR and that's it. 4K120 is rare to begin with and 4K VRR doesn't seem to exist. Obviously a single-chip DLP with a color wheel will never be able to support VRR and pixel-shifting probably isn't compatible with the idea either (nor low latency in general), but I can't see any reason why a native 4K 3DLP, LCoS/D-ILA, or plain LCD unit would have any harder of a time than a desktop monitor would.
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Aug 30, 2023 15:08
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If you were building a viewing/dailies room in a small post facility - think 8 or so theatrical seats for clients - what projector and sound system would you want? Price isn't NOT an object, but this would be a commercial venture so there's a lot of money that could be spent on it. It's not a finishing facility so while color is important this is more of an "experience" for clients.
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Sep 1, 2023 00:27
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I have had a really good experience with the BenQ TH575. It’s 1080p/60hz and 3800 lumens…and I’ll be damned if doesn’t look better than either of my 4K televisions when using a proper pull-down screen. Granted, I’m using a 100 inch screen and wayyy back, so a lot of that 4K detail wouldn’t matter, anyway. It’s just a more satisfying experience, be watching movies or playing games. As somebody up thread already said, I’m now hooked and now want to get an even better projector. I’m having a surprisingly hard time finding a name brand model that is 1080p/120hz/3000 lumens and have Bluetooth connectivity. The TH575 only has a 3.5mm stereo line out and I’m somewhat butt hurt I had to run aux cord across the living room.
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Sep 10, 2023 16:17
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Can’t you get one of those $20 5.3 transmitter/receiver dongles, then plug it into the USB port onto the projector so it can constantly piggyback power?
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Sep 11, 2023 00:28
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I very much want to live a dongle-free life style.
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Sep 11, 2023 02:19
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I did have one problem I forgot to ask about here. Luckily, the part that needs to get fixed to fix this is under a 5 year warranty for me. But, when I got my original projector, after some months it got a dead pixel. Like one just stuck on white. So I send it back, they replace it, easy no problem (other than it sucked not having it for a week.) All was good, projector works for a good 9 months more, then suddenly one day, dead pixel. Same type of dead pixel (though I dont know how many types there are for a projector.) I threw some random stuff at trying to fix it. Shut it down for a few hours, tried to clean the vents with compressed air, etc but it all made no difference. But warranty so yeah, I send it in, they fix it, (not replace it this time like the first time, which now sucks because the replacement thing was for one part of the warranty where I get one replacement, and that sucks that this didn't need to be replaced and could have been just fixed by replacing some little part) week later it's back good as new. Why am I getting these dead pixels in the first place? Is this a common problem with projectors? I don't think it'd be running too hot, it was summer and I don't live in a very cool place but it's not crammed anywhere, it's just stuck to my ceiling. Does it being very dusty maybe have something to do with it? Since it's China, everything being dusty is just sorta a fact of life. I have an air purifier but I can only do so much. Dust just really does build up faster here. Is there some kind of basic maintenance I should be doing with it to prevent stuff like this? Should I even be blasting the vents with compressed air like it was a computer? Or did I just have a string of bad luck? Though, a thing I've learned doing home theater stuff, all the warranties seem to be completely worth it and I'm really glad I got them for my stuff.
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Sep 11, 2023 02:44
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Total Meatlove posted:Can’t you get one of those $20 5.3 transmitter/receiver dongles, then plug it into the USB port onto the projector so it can constantly piggyback power? You got me back on that dongle tip. I had a little BT transmitter and it does indeed work. Still, it’s only stereo. Daddy needs at least 2.1. Marsupial Ape fucked around with this message at 08:04 on Sep 11, 2023 |
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Sep 11, 2023 06:09
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BrainDance posted:I did have one problem I forgot to ask about here.
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Sep 11, 2023 20:04
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Still waiting on the mythical 4K+HDR+120hz+VRR laser projector that doesn't cost a billion dollars.
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Sep 26, 2023 22:20
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SCheeseman posted:Still waiting on the mythical 4K+HDR+120hz+VRR laser projector that doesn't cost a billion dollars. $7.99 $10.99 $19.99?
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Sep 29, 2023 21:07
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I've been using a BenQ 1080p projector since 2017. It's fine and probably doesn't even need a new bulb yet, but I'm acquiring increasing stacks of 4k content. Is there a decent 4k projector for < $2500 yet? Benq HT4550i comes close and I may end up just doing that at some point in 2024.
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Oct 1, 2023 13:11
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I thought the Formovie UST 4K was on sale for 2499 at one time but I may be misremembering. It’s 2999 right now which is the same price I paid close to a year ago. May be due for a price drop soonish
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Oct 1, 2023 13:20
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bird with big dick posted:I thought the Formovie UST 4K was on sale for 2499 at one time but I may be misremembering. It’s 2999 right now which is the same price I paid close to a year ago. May be due for a price drop soonish I too paid $2999 for it last Black Friday, but there was a bundle deal with the screen I also bought that knocked $350 off.
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Oct 1, 2023 13:47
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In the market for a budget short throw if anyone has a recommendation. 4k would be nice but I would settle with 1080p if there is a huge price difference.
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Oct 1, 2023 17:26
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I’ve had the aforementioned Formovie Theater for about a year now and love it. At $3k it’s obviously more expensive than a traditional projector but at the time definitely seemed like the best UST value proposition. Not sure if anything has changed in the past year or if this Black Friday/Cyber Monday will bring some further price drops with it.
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Oct 1, 2023 21:17
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Cabbages and Kings posted:I've been using a BenQ 1080p projector since 2017. It's fine and probably doesn't even need a new bulb yet, but I'm acquiring increasing stacks of 4k content. I don't know if decent is an appropriate descriptor, but I picked up an Optoma UHD50X a couple years ago for ~$1600 USD. It's been slowly collecting stuck white pixels over time but it's still only handful and most are in the corners.
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Oct 1, 2023 22:30
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Just curious to hear thoughts. I have a massive media space. Currently I have a 60" tv in there and its great but I was going to move that to a seperate room for gaming and try to get something bigger for the space I have. The space I have could accommodate a screen up to 107" diagonally. My question is, if my intent is only to watch content on this (I don't need low latency for gaming) is an ultra short throw projector a good choice to try and get a screen close to 100" in diagonal? I haven't been able to follow projector tech nearly as close as I have with tv tech. It definitely seems like the formovie is the sweet spot. Is a $1k projector screen really worth it? Kwolok fucked around with this message at 19:44 on Oct 3, 2023 |
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Oct 3, 2023 19:40
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Kwolok posted:Just curious to hear thoughts. I have a massive media space. Currently I have a 60" tv in there and its great but I was going to move that to a seperate room for gaming and try to get something bigger for the space I have. The space I have could accommodate a screen up to 107" diagonally. My Formovie is currently running a 120" set up, and I didn't find anything else close to being able to support that size at this price point to replace my 65" traditional TV. My screen ended up being closer to $2k (the manufacturing process was set up for 100" so you needed to basically pay for two screens worth of material to get above that), but unless you plan to run this in a perfectly light controlled room, you are probably going to want to pay the premium for a UST-focused screen. My set up is in a room with windows on three sides and open floor plan to the rest of the house and I can still get a great image with lights on due to the light deflecting properties of the UST ALR screens.
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Oct 3, 2023 19:53
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Klungar posted:My Formovie is currently running a 120" set up, and I didn't find anything else close to being able to support that size at this price point to replace my 65" traditional TV. Any brands of projector screens that are recommended? I just need a simple fixed projector screen, nothing that folds or moves or anything.
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Oct 3, 2023 20:06
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Kwolok posted:Any brands of projector screens that are recommended? I just need a simple fixed projector screen, nothing that folds or moves or anything. I'm no expert, but here is the 100" version of the screen I have. Simple rigid fixed screen, but focused on light rejection: https://www.projectorscreen.com/spectra-projection-vantage-100-ust-alr-clr-projector-screen-for-ultra-short-throw-projectors.html
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Oct 3, 2023 20:43
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I got a 100 inch pull down screen off Amazon for $100 and I have zero complaints. Your needs and expectations may vary from mine, of course. Anything is better than those lovely nylon screens. I need to repaint my living room and may refinish and paint one wall specifically for projecting on.
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Oct 3, 2023 22:07
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Marsupial Ape posted:I got a 100 inch pull down screen off Amazon for $100 and I have zero complaints. Your needs and expectations may vary from mine, of course. For a UST or a regular projector?
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Oct 4, 2023 01:45
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What does a $1-$2k screen actually, uh, do? I have a $250 fixed screen, it seems decent, I’m sure it could have better ambient light rejection or contrast enhancement or color accuracy, but like what percent better experience are you getting for an 800% increase in cost? Regular projector over here.
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Oct 4, 2023 01:55
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Wirecutter's top pick in the "good for most people" catagory is the $200 screen that they say performed just as well as all the expensive ones they tried. https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/best-projector-screen/
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Oct 4, 2023 02:02
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BonoMan posted:Wirecutter's top pick in the "good for most people" catagory is the $200 screen that they say performed just as well as all the expensive ones they tried. That is for traditional long throw projectors. UST projector screens have some kind of weird material that makes htem better reflect light coming in from below while rejecting ambient light coming in from other angles.
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Oct 4, 2023 02:15
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Kwolok posted:That is for traditional long throw projectors. Ah! Sorry I missed that part. Makes sense.
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Oct 4, 2023 13:39
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Yeah, again, not an expert, but my understanding is that while even a blank wall might be fine for a regular long throw projector, because all it has to do is bounce the image straight back out, for USTs you have to pay the screen tax because bouncing the image straight back out displays it on the ceiling. My screen is a fresnel lens like material that can deflect images coming from below outwards to the viewer while reflecting light coming from any other direction straight back out or absorbing it with a dark coating on the backside of the lenses. Apples to oranges.
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Oct 4, 2023 13:56
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Klungar posted:Yeah, again, not an expert, but my understanding is that while even a blank wall might be fine for a regular long throw projector, because all it has to do is bounce the image straight back out, for USTs you have to pay the screen tax because bouncing the image straight back out displays it on the ceiling. My screen is a fresnel lens like material that can deflect images coming from below outwards to the viewer while reflecting light coming from any other direction straight back out or absorbing it with a dark coating on the backside of the lenses. Apples to oranges. While I'm sure a more specialized screen will get you a better result given the angle... I don't think this bolded part is right. It should still display fine on the wall.
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Oct 4, 2023 14:30
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BonoMan posted:While I'm sure a more specialized screen will get you a better result given the angle... I don't think this bolded part is right. It should still display fine on the wall. FWIW, I tried projecting mine on my wall before I installed the screen, and the image was super distorted and there was a duplicate image on the ceiling. I didn't have a regular projector screen to compare it to, but wall was definitely not an option for me.
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Oct 4, 2023 15:55
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Klungar posted:FWIW, I tried projecting mine on my wall before I installed the screen, and the image was super distorted and there was a duplicate image on the ceiling. I didn't have a regular projector screen to compare it to, but wall was definitely not an option for me. Yeah that's odd. Should not bounce off the wall unless there's something weird with the wall. Here's a guy setting one up in daylight on a blank wall and obviously it'd be better with a screen, but it's def not bouncing to the ceiling or anything. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPNep3cDLFU
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Oct 4, 2023 16:30
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BonoMan posted:Yeah that's odd. Should not bounce off the wall unless there's something weird with the wall. Here's a guy setting one up in daylight on a blank wall and obviously it'd be better with a screen, but it's def not bouncing to the ceiling or anything. Besides the fact that it's super light in that video, which would wash out off the reflected light you'd see when it is dark, you can definitely still see instances where the light is bouncing onto the ceiling: e: apparently the attached image isn't going to load. It's at the 5m30s time Klungar fucked around with this message at 16:43 on Oct 4, 2023 |
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Oct 4, 2023 16:38
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Klungar posted:Besides the fact that it's super light in that video, which would wash out off the reflected light you'd see when it is dark, you can definitely still see instances where the light is bouncing onto the ceiling: Yes I can see that, but I think I misunderstood what you were trying to say. There does seem to be some ambient reflection there, but it's not really distorting the image on the wall. I was picturing it being more catastrophic the way you were describing. (but yes a screen would fix that for sure)
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Oct 4, 2023 17:24
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I went deep in the rabbit hole this week and this seems like the absolute best bundle for me: https://www.formovie.com/products/formovie-theater-projector-alr-screen
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Oct 5, 2023 22:35
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Any thoughts on the BenQ X3000i: https://www.benq.com/en-us/projector/gaming/x3000i.html I basically just want something with a relatively short throw and vertical + horizontal keystone adjustment, since my apartment situation is not always projector positioning friendly. I was hoping for in the like $$1k-2k range, and ideally a bit higher resolution than 1080. Not using lamps also a plus. If it could be viewable during the day w brightness that would be ideal. I’m upgrading from a low to mid range very old projector, so a bunch of stuff would feel like an improvement.
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Oct 6, 2023 07:00
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Still struggling a bit with this decision. I think I basically just want a relatively short throw (like 90” at 6’-8’? Ideally on the shorter end of that) projector with vertical and horizontal digital keystone. Vertical lens shift also maybe, but not as needed? Then I’d mostly like it to be a reasonable resolution and pretty bright. Lower input lag would be nice but is not really needed. I’m getting pretty lost going through projector central’s search function trying to think through all these trade offs. I’m hoping to hit somewhere between $1,000-$2,000 for the projector. If anyone has suggestions I am very interested!
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Oct 20, 2023 21:33
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I wish there was a place I could go to view UST projects. I'm interested in one but still so worried about what they actually look like in person Specifically the formovie projector but really any higher end ust.
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Oct 29, 2023 02:32
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