Inexpensive Home Projectors - Indicators of quality
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Image size scalability
For anything that will not leave you a sadder but a wiser consumer, you need to have the ability to scale your image size wisely. The projector should work in small spaces, say a 12-inch rectangle, and equally as well when the image is five to six times that scale.
Compatibility
In order to be truly useful, the projector should be able to work with your TV, your DVD or Blu-ray player, your video game system and maybe even your computer. That way, you can use it to watch TV, play games and torture your in-laws with vacation slide shows so that they will never want to drop in for a surprise visit again. (Just don't tell your significant other that you got the idea from me).
Resolution quality
We all know that as an image's resolution worsens as it gets bigger and bigger, but when you scale the image up to its maximum size, details in the foreground (the front) of the image should remain distinguishably clear to the viewers who are more than four feet away from the screen.
Durability
Sure, it should be able to stand up to day-to-day operations, but we live in the real world, and anything that you are going to spend that much on should be able to withstand low impact droppings, sticky child hands and random acts of investigation by curious canine and feline house companions. If it can't, then it just isn't for us.
Sound quality
Most projectors have some kind of a speaker. This should be in an easily cleanable location and not on the bottom of the unit.
Portability
If the unit has to be hard wired to your walls, it's probably meant for stationary, board room use and isn't for us. Anything that we use needs to have a portable power source, either a battery you can charge or a power cord that plugs into your outlets. That way you can use it in the living room for family night, or loan it to your kids for a sleepover in their bedroom, or take it outside for a neighborhood movie night.
Just don't charge for admission or you will run afoul of your local government's copyright laws, as well as Interpol's.
Now that we have a good idea of what we, are looking for in "budget" projectors, we can move on to getting a good look at the models that will make your visual life a little bit more interesting.
Next: Models >>
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