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Huge LCD vs. Projector

T

truffle00

2[H]4U
Joined
May 16, 2001
Messages
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I currently have a Dell 2001FP, which is an upgrade from my previous Dell 1900FP. I upgraded because of the greater size, increased resolution, and of course, the much better response time. I say "much better" because the 1900FP drove me nuts with it's greater than 25 ms grayscale ghosting. Anyway, I saw a big advantage in games but the truth of the matter is I'm losing a lot of interest in games. I know some people say that there are no good games out right now, but I've tried several of the better ones and for the life of me just couldn't get in to them. I've tried demos of next-gen games and while they looked cool, I oohed and ahed but didn't even bother finishing the demo.

Right now, I tend to just surf the internet and watch movies and series. While most of the series are full-screen, all of the DVDs I watch are widescreen, and when I sit back on my bed to watch the viewable area gets to be painfully small. The obvious solution, then, would be a widescreen LCD. The Samsung 243T would probably be the one I would go with, at a price of $2400. To make such a purchase feasible, I would have to sell my 20" monitor. I'd also have to hope Samsung has fixed their grayscale ghosting problems. On the upside, I would get deeper black levels, which is important.

On the other hand, I could keep my 2001FP and get a projector. If I went that route I'd probably get something along the lines of the Infocus X1. I should be able to get even deeper black levels and overall better colors. I'd also get a fricken huge screen. I'm limited in terms of resolution, but I also have a monitor if I needed to actual computer work. This option costs several hundred dollars less, but I now have the added inconvenience of trying to place a projector and screen in my room. Keep in mind I am also in college, so whatever option I find for placing the projector this year won't necessarily work next year when I move to a different place.

To sum up, I can either go 24" widescreen LCD or keep the 2001FP and get a projector. 24" costs more but is more convenient, whereas the projector gives a bigger screen but is very inconvenient. I really have no idea which way to go, and the kind of money I would need to get either is hardly chump change so this is a big decision for me. What to do?

EDIT: Another decided disadvantage to the projector is that I could only watch during the night, or I'd have to make some blackout shades to cover the windows (which is even more inconvenience).
 
Heh, is convenience worth $1400? Amazon has the X1 for $999.

You could always get a lcd hdtv. The Samsung LTN226W is a 22" widescreen lcd hdtv that accepts a 1280x720 signal via dvi. 2" less and lower resolution than the 243t but around $800 less at $1599.21 @ onecall.com.

A 16:9 movie on 2001fp is 16" x 9"
A 16:9 movie on 226w is 19.17" x 10.79"
A 16:9 movie on 243t is 20.91" x 11.77"

Is that extra little bit worth $800 to you?

Or you can get a nice regular tv (30"+ or so) and use TV-out or a pc-tv scan converter for less then any of the choices above. But it may be bulkier then you want.

So many choices. But if you're set on the 243t or X1, I say X1. I can't see how the inconveniece of black out shades would be worth $1400.
 
Well, if I got the 243T I would sell my current monitor as well, so it's really more like $700 more. Throw in a screen and a 30' VGA cable and it's $400-500 more, but I do get a huge(r) screen.

I wouldn't go LCD TV because any LCD would be my primary desktop monitor, and 1280 x 768 just doesn't cut it on a 22" screen. I do have a 32" TV in the living room, but I want something for my room that is much smaller. See, although I have an entry-level stereo setup in the living room, I listen to all my music (and therefore get much better sound) in my room. When I want to hear how good a DVD sounds, I play it in my room but the picture size is underwhelming compared to the sound.

Right now, I'm running numbers for possible distances and engineering a stand for the projector to see if I can make it fit. The more I think about it, the more I like the idea of a 50" screen, but I just need to make it work :)

Any other thoughts?
 
dunno but when i get a house im going projector all the way, Get the special paint(liek $300 a gallon) put it on the wall and enjoy your projector. My work uses them alot and i use the paint for the walls thats recomended for them, it really does make a difference and the quality is just as good if not better than crt.
 
Well, I realize I didn't exactly wait very long for people to give me their opinions but I just bit the bullet and went for a projector. I thought about it a bit and realized that even with a 24" widescreen, I still probably won't be happy with 2.35:1 material. What finally pushed me over the edge was that I came up with a couple possible mounting designs that would not only be out of the way but are apartment/dorm friendly.

I ended up getting a BenQ PB6100, which is exactly like the X1 except that is has a 3x color wheel (compared to the 2X of the X1, to further reduce the rainbowing effect) and is brighter (1500 vs 1000 lumens). Apparently the scaler or deinterlacer is better on the X1 but the PB6100 people seem to be pretty darned happy.

As far as a screen, I was happy to find the Draper 60" Roadwarrior. It opens and closes easily and protects itself during transport, and seems to be relatively easy to place in a room as well (or at least as easy as it can be to put a 60 inch screen in there :) ).
 
that is a great decision. nothing beats a larger than life image.
ot_big2.jpg
 
If you go with a projector, get the Epson Powerlite S1, newegg had a very good price for it not too long ago. I just bought one from them at the time, and I love it.
 
good choice, projectors own all. Even during the day, if you draw the shades it's pretty visible with a good projector.
 
Originally posted by truffle00
Well, I realize I didn't exactly wait very long for people to give me their opinions but I just bit the bullet and went for a projector. I thought about it a bit and realized that even with a 24" widescreen, I still probably won't be happy with 2.35:1 material. What finally pushed me over the edge was that I came up with a couple possible mounting designs that would not only be out of the way but are apartment/dorm friendly.

I ended up getting a BenQ PB6100, which is exactly like the X1 except that is has a 3x color wheel (compared to the 2X of the X1, to further reduce the rainbowing effect) and is brighter (1500 vs 1000 lumens). Apparently the scaler or deinterlacer is better on the X1 but the PB6100 people seem to be pretty darned happy.

As far as a screen, I was happy to find the Draper 60" Roadwarrior. It opens and closes easily and protects itself during transport, and seems to be relatively easy to place in a room as well (or at least as easy as it can be to put a 60 inch screen in there :) ).
Click to expand...
how much did you end up spending on that projector?
 
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