Judging from the selection of new home theater projectors I sampled this year at the CEDIA Expo, home theater shoppers are going to have a hard time choosing the perfect projector for their new project. Why? Because so many of them are so good that it’s difficult to decide what features and technology you’re going to want in your home.
The trend over the past few years has been toward making projectors brighter without sacrificing black level. That continues this year. Each model I saw was brighter and sported better contrast ratios than the model it replaces. We’re also seeing more emphasis on flexible installation features and improved image processing.
4K, or Ultra HD, also showed its head, though not in great numbers. Among the more mainstream manufacturers, only Sony and JVC made much noise about 4K. Sony introduced two new true 4K projectors while JVC introduced a full line of e-Shift3 projectors that accept 4K signals and display 4K resolution on screen.
RELATED: Where are the 4K Projectors?
Even though 4K is a buzz word among HDTVs right now, that doesn’t mean it’s the most important feature when selecting a home theater projector. Light output, contrast ratio and color fidelity are at least equally important. The new 1080p projectors shown at CEDIA this year showed important improvements in all those categories, making them worthy of the most impressive home cinema.
Check out the slide show for more details on the most impressive new projectors for 2013/2014.
Also Check Out:
Screen Savers: Home Theater Screens for Any Situation
Front Projection Basics
Great Basement Home Theaters
Planning a Home Theater the THX Way