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Ultraportable projector group test

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Ultraportable projectors are aimed primarily at business users who need something compact for regular travel, and as such they’ll mostly be used for Microsoft PowerPoint presentations. For this reason, we focus on assessing each unit’s ability to show PowerPoint files. However, since presentations can also include photos and videos, we assess the quality of these too, not to mention putting these projectors through our technical, image quality tests.

At the end of each review, we give four star ratings: Image quality, Quietness, Features & Design and an Overall rating. We don’t just pluck these figures out of the air: they’re calculated using a complex array of benchmark results, objective scores and subjective quality ratings.

Image quality
We allow each projector to warm up for 10 minutes and set it to factory defaults. We switch to the presentation mode, as this gives the highest brightness for maximum impact, and we switch off eco mode.

We place each projector on a table two metres from the screen, ensuring it’s square-on. This is because keystone correction distorts the image and makes text blocky. All zooms are set to their widest position. We test in a standard business meeting room, lit with fluorescent lights and with no direct sunlight on the screen.

Our PowerPoint slideshow represents a typical presentation, with large fonts, bar charts and images. We also include an audio track to test the quality and volume of the integrated speakers.

One slide is a montage of photos covering skin tones, and coloured and reflective objects to test colour accuracy. We assess this in presentation and either natural, theatre or sRGB modes to see whether the projector can produce realistic, lifelike colours.

We also use DisplayMate to reveal each projector’s basic technical capabilities. A fine grid image allows us to check focus across the entire screen. Two further images (horizontal and vertical) alternate one-pixel-wide black and white lines to test how well the projector locks to an analogue signal. The penultimate test is a checkerboard of black-and-white 10-pixel squares to check contrast. Lastly, we look at a completely black screen to see how much light is projected. A colour and greyscale gradient test shows colour accuracy and whether shading is smooth or uneven, plus it’s easy to see if projectors can handle subtle colours as they approach pure white.

For video clips, we set the projectors to their movie modes, since these trade brightness for better colour reproduction. We watch a clip from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: a mix of dark scenes, bright desert scenes and fast action. Our second test includes a car chase scene from Ronin, and various other clips. We look for several things: realistic skin tones, well-saturated colours, smooth horizontal and vertical movement, artefacts in solid colours such as skies, and dynamic range. The latter checks that detail is retained in very dark and very light areas of scenes.

The gradient test reveals each projector's colour accuracy.

Quietness
Unlike any other Australian magazine, we send every projector to Intertek Research & Testing Centre to be measured for noise levels and power consumption. Testing is carried out in an acoustically treated listening room using a precision sound-level meter with an “A-weighted” audio filter. Each projector is measured in presentation mode, then economy mode. Noise levels are measured 0.5m from the fan vents — the point at which the noise is loudest. The results can be found in the graphs below.

Features & Design
The Features & Design score is calculated using a number of scores given to each machine based on its capabilities. We examine menus to find out what controls and adjustments are available. We also assess the hardware, such as the interfaces on offer, the cables supplied and the functions available from the remote control. The amount and type of warranty is an important consideration too.

Value for Money
The Value for Money score (not shown in each review) is based on a weighted average of the Image quality, Quietness, and Features & Design scores; we then factor in exactly how much each projector costs (including delivery), and running costs based on lamp life and cost, to give a bang-per-buck result.

Ratings explained
The star ratings you’ll find at the bottom of each review are relative only to the products on test in any particular Labs. A one out of six rating doesn’t mean the product is the worst of its type to be made, just the least impressive that month. Likewise, a six out of six score isn’t necessarily an indication of perfection.

Overall
The Overall rating is a straight average of the Image Quality, Quietness, Features & Design and Value for Money scores.

Products in this Lab

Rating

Dell 3400MP

Epson EMP-1710

BenQ CP120

Hitachi CPX1

Optoma EP7150

Plus V-339

Sharp Notevision XR-1S

Toshiba TDP-P8

ViewSonic PJ256D

Click a product name to see the full review

Winner
A product with no equal at the time.

Recommended
This should be on your shortlist.

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Ultraportable projector group test

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