A bargain, not a miracle
Written: Jun 02 '07
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Pros: at $400 it is very affordable, works better than one would think at this price
Cons: It does great, just don't expect miracles with brightness and contrast
The Bottom Line: Works great despite what the price might suggest. If I needed one for business, TV replacement or other use, I would not hesitate to purchase another.
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| rookshark's Full Review: InFocus IN72 DLP Projector |
I picked this projector up at www.woot.com for $405 after a mail-in rebate for $200 (which took several months to receive.) I needed a monitor for occasional use associated with presentations and movies (outdoors and indoors.)
I was worried by the initial specs on this unit, as I had never purchased a projector before, and knew that the general rule I had heard was: "you get what you pay for" in terms of being able to use it in normal lighting conditions, etc. I have used several different projectors over the past few years, and the brightness and contrast of the image projected does seem to vary quite a bit from projector to projector.
But we needed a projector, and one that was affordable. For $400, I could not pass up the opportunity even with the unproven quality.
The specs provided did not look spectacular in terms of what I was always told to focus on...the lumens and contrast. However, I know enough that performance and specs do not always add up.
ANSI lumens: 900, Contrast (full on/off): 2000:1
Having used the projector in my home with the blinds open at 3:00pm, I was not overjoyed at the brightness and contrast, but it was better than I expected, and better than I had seen in many other projectors I have used. The picture was visible; I did not have to squint, but improved quite a bit with just a few blinds drawn or less direct sunlight. I have used some that need all the blinds drawn and still need a little help. With a few blinds drawn (not all), it is good as or better than a regular TV, just a slight issue with very dark pictures and the contrast but I have those issues sometimes with my regular TV as well.
Outside use proved pretty much the same. During the day is not advisable for a big audience to be perfectly happy, although you could do it if necessary, but provide a bit of light protection, wait until dusk or after dark use, and the quality is excellent. Again, there is room for improvement on contrast with dark images/scenes (spy movies where the guy gets killed in a blind alley at night with black clothes on might be a little frustrating), but no one complained or had issues with making out what was happening in dark situations on the screen in the movies we have watched.
Video Compatibility: HDTV 1080p/24, 1080i, 720p, 576p, 576i, 480p.
Data Compatibility: Computer resolutions up to XGA.
I do not get any HD signals where I live, and basically we use this with the cable TV, DVDs, and my laptop computer. Even using walls and sheets rather than the high end screens, I have been very satisfied with the picture displayed, although sure with a huge image and sitting close there is a bit of pixilation some times, but again, this is not meant to be a high end projector. I was not expecting greatness here, but rather was hoping for something good. Again, the projector delivers here.
Connection Panel: One composite video, one S-Video, one set of RCA component inputs, one HDMI input, one M1-DA port, one RS-232 port for an external control.
The number of connection opportunities here for me at least, is more than enough. I use the composite video for use with our DVD player, and the standard monitor connection via the M1-DA port (I bought a cable on eBay that had the regular monitor connection for connecting to my laptop/desktop on one end, and the M1-DA and USB on the other end).
The projector usually recognized automatically the signal once I plug it in, which is nice, but you can also manually scroll through the options to find the input you desire by just pressing a button on the unit itself (you do not have to use the menu, although you can if you want.)
Lens and Throw Distance: 1.20:1 manual zoom/focus lens. Throws a 100" diagonal image from 12.8' to 15.4'.
Lamp Life: 3,000 hours, regardless of lamp setting.
I have used this projector in my bedroom, with about 12' from the projector to the wall, and the image is plenty big. Making the image bigger never seems to be a problem. Sometimes I wish I could make it smaller without having to move it so much closer (sometimes moving it closer is not an option where we set up), but all things considered, better to have that as a complaint than the other way around.
The start up time here to me seems fairly normal, neither quick nor extremely long. The manual says 5-10 seconds, but I don't usually see a strong image until more like 30 seconds, and a full quality image takes even longer.
The swivel base seems a little cheap, I have never been terribly happy with it, but it does hold its position once set, as long as you do not bump it. It does let you tilt up and down and right to left, but a better interface between the base and the unit would have been advisable.
There are not 100 different options included in this package. You do get a remote control (that even illuminates in dark situations, a nice little gizmo), which has the commonly used functions...choose between source, resize, presets, auto image, overscan, and the exact same buttons that are on the unit to access and manipulate the menu options.
The menu in the system provides many different ways to adjust just about everything I could think of, including keystone (important sometimes), contrast, brightness, etc. so if you have a really dark image you need to show, you can boost everything up to try to get things better. The thing I liked was changing the aspect ratio from 16:9 to 4:3, letterbox, natural wide, and native.
The size of the projector is not exactly small, but I have seen bigger units (although, they are usually at least 5 or 10 years old.) The smaller units are definitely easier to transport, but at this price point, I was not exactly expecting something tiny.
And yes, this thing gets hot. Very hot. It does not affect performance, but you won't accidentally touch this twice, especially since you would move the picture (remember the flimsy base?). The fan noise is not noticeable to me unless you are sitting right next to it or there is absolute dead silence in the room.
You also get a registration CD, of top priority for most I am sure. I have yet to use it.
Overall, I am very happy. I have a projector that works adequate to great in every situation I have found myself in so far, something that is not so complicated to use that I have to take 20 steps just to use it, and the price we paid was far below what I found at Best Buy and other stores.
Recommended:
Yes
Purchase Price (if leased, monthly payment): 405
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Epinions.com ID:
rookshark
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Location: Honduras
Reviews written: 54
Trusted by: 3 members
About Me:
missionary living in Honduras
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