Expert opinion needed for new projector

Q

quiksilverx181

2[H]4U
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Nov 21, 2003
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Hey guys, Its time for me to buy my first projector after my first pay check. My budget is less than $800, and while i know i cant get something great, i do want something that will look good, have good brightness with no ghosting, and possibly DLP Smile. I want to get it from costco because i can return/replace it anytime with their outstanding warranty. Currently, im looking at the Optoma EP732H ($599 after rebate, great specs (including 1500 lumens and DLP) but lack of user reviews makes me question the projector, at no fault of the projector itself), Epson Powerlite 76c (reviews have this projector as great image quality but lacking in sharpness and brightness, plus its non-DLP), and the Infocus X2 (good reviews all around about this, but its apparently really noisy and extremely bulky, but has DLP and otherwise looks like the best out of the 3 IMO).

What can you guys tell me about these 3 projectors and these 3 only? I will be using this for watching TV, movies, playing games on both console and computer. Lemme know asap, thanks!
 
at bare minimum get 1500 lumens, xga resolution (1024x768), dlp, and digital focus, zoom and keystone correction. you dont want a cheapo that makes you manually adjust those type of settings. also, many cheap ones dont even have zoom, rather you have to position the whole unit further or closer depending on the size screen you want.

buy a reputable brand. in focus is good. for your budget though, it would be tough to get 2000 lumens at 1024x768 native. also, make sure the projector supports 16:9 aspect ratio.
 
the optoma EP732H that im getting has 1500 lumens, 800x600 SVGA, its got 1.2x manual zoom (i dont mind fixing zoom myself), and it has DLP and HDTV all for $599
 
First, I am no expert.
Second, DLP does not mean what I think you think it means. If you want a DLP projector for home theater and or games those business projectors you are looking at are different than a HD quality DLP projector, they have the lowest speeds and fewest colors. The home theater projectors have faster wheels with more colors. The business projectors have more lumens so they can be viewed in ambient light but they are not intended to be used to view movies or games all the time. They get away with it in bars because most people are not too worried about it.
Third, the screen surface can affect your choice a lot. If you drop $600 on a projector without doing your research you could end up with anything, it is not a cut and dried sector.
I recently went through the process to buy my home theater projector, an HD72. In hindsight I might have done something different but overall I am very happy but I had to spend some time doing it.
Costco may not be doing the forever returns with projectors for long anymore either, I heard some talk about people abusing it and that Costco was going to reduce the return period down to deal with it.
 
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