We’ve said before that 3D in the home should be as big an experience as you can make it. With that in mind, we were excited to check out Sharp’s new single-chip 3D DLP projector at the company’s CES booth this week.

The XV-Z17000 is Sharp’s first 3D projector. It uses the active shutter glasses method of resolving 3D. Control of the glasses is done via IR Link in which an IR signal is sent from the projector to the screen, and then bounced back to the viewer’s glasses. The XV-Z17000 will ship with two 3D glasses.

Aside from 3D, the XV-Z17000 sports a 1080p resolution, 40,000:1 contrast ratio, 1,600 lumens light output (in high brightness mode) two HDMI 1.4d inputs, vertical lens shift and an RS-232 port.

At Sharp’s demonstration theater, the XV-Z17000 was one of the best 3D demos in the convention hall. On the large projection screen, the image was incredibly bright, and showed no crosstalk or flickering artifacts. The 3D effect was much more pronounced than on 3D TVs due to the size of the screen (about 100 inches). I was able to move around the room to view the image from different angles as well as tilt my head from side to side, and still I didn’t pick up any noticeable shift in the 3D image. The rainbow image effect that some people notice in DLP projectors also wasn’t a problem.

At an MSRP of $4,999 (available in February), it’s one of the more affordable ways to get an immersive 3D experience. We hope to check it out in more detail when it becomes available. 

Grant Clauser - Technology and Web Editor, Electronic House

Grant Clauser has been covering home electronics for more than 10 years with editorial roles in several consumer and trade magazines. He's done ISF-level damage to hundreds of reviewed products and has had audio training from Home Acoustics Alliance and Sencore. He's also the author of the book The Trouble with Rivers. Follow him on Twitter @geclauser.