Projector vs LED LCD TV > 60 inches

• 

  ESEMCE on 23/09/2016 - 11:59

  +2

  A 4k projector is going to cost much more than a TV.
  But it'll also project a screen size measured better in metres than inches…

  Projectors are awesome. Keep the existing TV to watch TV on and buy a FHD PJ for the cinema experience.

• 

  ItsMeAgro on 23/09/2016 - 16:26

  +5

  If what you like to watch is movies, sport, or cinematic videogames, the extra screen size projectors allow is unbeatable in terms of the immersion and overall viewing experience it allows.

  Projectors do have their drawbacks:

  • Installation: properly installing one can be trickier than a TV
  • 4K: lots of 4K TVs are cheapish now, but 4k projectors are still pricey
  • Daytime watching: Even your super bright projectors lose picture quality with the blinds open in the daytime.

  …but the real reasons most people own TVs and not projectors are:

  • They mostly watch The Block and Dancing With The Chef
  • They only want a big TV to show off, they don't actually care about the viewing experience, and a wall doesn't look as expensive as a massive TV to most people
  • They have no idea good projectors are actually cheaper than their TV

  I'd personally choose a decent quality 1080p projector at 100" (like BenQ W1070 for around $1000) over a 4K 60 inch TV any day. The extra sharpness is great, but nowhere near as compelling as the size difference.

  And this holds true for all TVs, not just cheapo ones (like that crap-quality-but-still-good-value-at-a-measly-$800 4K 65" Aldi TV ). Even a fancy $7000 4K 65" OLED TV can't totally beat a $1000 W1070 for cinematic content, IMHO. The OLED will have amazing black levels, but the colour won't be much better (if at all) and the overall experience will fall short of a proper 100" or larger image.

  Keep in mind that a decent quality surround sound system will do wonders for the experience too.

  • 

    ESEMCE on 23/09/2016 - 16:43

    +1

    Hey you just repeated what I said!
    I just said it more concisely… :-)

    Projectors are awesome

  • 

    Rorschach on 29/09/2016 - 17:11

    This is new knowledge, thanks!
    I always thought that the colours wouldn't properly show up on a wall. I guess this presumption is from the lacklustre presentations at work! And wouldn't the walls have to be stark white, with no cracks, chips, etc?
    Are these generally meant to be ceiling mounted?

    • 

      ItsMeAgro on 29/09/2016 - 18:12

      +1

      The stains and chips and off-white paint currently on my wall can't really be detected when watching. The projector has a mode for compensating for wall colour, but it's meant for really coloured walls, I don't bother on mine. You still get better colour than many cheap TVs.

      Work projectors are often seen in the daytime and on 10+ year old hardware that wasn't built for home theatre. They also don't have the bulbs replaced once the colour is washed out a bit, because who cares about colour accuracy of excel spreadsheets?

      Basic models need to be ceiling or wall mounted, more expensive ones have special lenses that allow you to side mount them and without loss of quality or stick them on a coffee table without loss of screen size.

• 

  toristo on 23/09/2016 - 18:08

  +2

  If you have a dark 'theatre' room, projector could work well. In a normal lounge though, the moment there is lights on or during the day, you lose the contrast a bit. If I had a spare bedroom to dedicate to one, I'd have blackout curtains and go projector 100%.

• 

  Max999 on 23/09/2016 - 18:30

  Thanks for the info!

  It seems now the biggest problem is I don't have a big enough house to dedicate a single room for a dark "theatre' room! lol

  Most likely my big screen will have to stay in the living room at the moment.

  The most sensible thing may be for me to keep my FHD Sony for another few years and save up enough money for a bigger house first :P

  • 

    ItsMeAgro on 24/09/2016 - 10:56

    +1

    You don't actually need a dedicated home theatre room these days, unless most of your movie watching time is in daylight and you have no blinds and refuse to get any. (Myself, I wouldn't watch much during the day even if I was unemployed, honestly).

    To give you an idea:

    My crappy old $400 projector has a brightness rating of 2800 lumens. It's in our playroom, which is our largest room, with 3 main light sources:

    • Large bay window with cheap white wooden blinds 6 metres to the left (faces south)
    • Double-door sized opening to the day-lit living room
    • A north-facing double sliding-glass door, only a metre away, on the right (faces north, so sunny all day)

    The closest doors are imperfectly covered by a simple dark brown curtain from Bunnings; it's the kind that has a bit of lining on the back so it doesn't let much light through, but plenty gets in around the edges.

    It's not 'dark' in there right now. My kids are watching something on it right now (Sat morning 11am) because we don't have a TV. The picture loses some of the subtle highlights in terms of colour and contrast, but is still completely watchable for kids shows. The wall I'm projecting onto is off-white, too, not a screen or perfectly white wall.

    • 

      outlander on 24/09/2016 - 11:13

      +1

      It's in our playroom

      Why does that sound so sinister?

• 

  outlander on 24/09/2016 - 11:22

  My main concern of getting a LED screen of this size would be transportation and moving it around house. I believe the screen is fragile and It's not something that can be easily done by just myself.

  Hardly. They're pretty damn light.

  I really like the idea of projectors, I have one, but they are a lot harder to setup. Basically what you save on a projector you spend on the installation. Sound system is a must too, most projectors have only 1 or 2 hdmi ports. Then you need to mount in on the ceiling. You can have it set up on a table, but then it can get bumped, people walk in front of it, its projected on an angle.. No, better to pony up the dough and get it mounted. That includes running cables, unless you want extension cords running down the side of the wall.

  The image they produce isn't as sharp, but it doesn't need to be. I'm using a sub full hd projector to project 100" screen, and it still looks good, because unlike screens the edges of the pixels blur together, stopping it from looking blocky.

• 

  Floatzel on 26/09/2016 - 13:40

  The thing with projectors is you also need to budget for a screen. And nice screens, especially those that can reflect 4k (or even 1080p for that matter) are not cheap. An inexpensive screen will lead to loss of resolution, as will a high gain screen. The second thing to consider is bulb replacements.. every 2k-3k on average but some up to 5k. In reality that's not a lot of time, especially if it's the primary, or only, viewing medium. Third there's the issue with lighting. Ambient light kills image quality, even with bright projectors. You'll need a light controlled room, be willing to watch in the dark during the day, etc. Not saying you need to be in pitch black (I frequently watch football with a light on in the back corner of the room because games are bright.. no dark scenes), but day time viewing with windows exposed? No way. Tvs are much more convenient, easier and less expensive to get a really high quality picture, are much more versatile. I wouldn't recommend a pj as a primary or main medium.. and certainly not anywhere near 60 or 70".. just get an LCD and call it a day. You get a projector for 90-140+ inches of glory as a secondary screen. In my opinion :)

  • 

    ItsMeAgro on 29/09/2016 - 18:15

    +1

    The thing with projectors is you also need to budget for a screen.

    Not for the last decade or two. Now even the budget models have sufficient brightness that the different between screen and wall is somewhere between subtle and non-existant.

    Same with bulbs - by the time it runs out you want a fancy new projector, and you'd have upgraded your TV twice in the meantime…