Digital Video Projectors
Welcome to our site! Here we will provide you with information, reviews and resources on digital video projectors. These days, a good home theater system is something that every family wants and designing your system can be fun and exciting. You want to do as much research as you can though before deciding on what type of set-up you want to utilize. If you are serious about your home theater then you will definitely want a digital video projector to watch all of your favorite movies and events.
What Is a Digital Video Projector?
With a traditional television, the viewer is forced to watch the video image from “outside” the environment. What I mean is that everything is generated from inside the television and we simply watch the screen to view the images. With a digital video projector, you are actually viewing the image from “inside” the environment. The images are generated from behind and projected on to the screen so that we are getting a much better experience. This works basically the same as if you were in an actual movie theater and is far superior to watching a television screen.
The goal here is to simulate or recreate an actual movie theater experience as much as possible. Digital video projectors have been around for a while now but they were impractical for the average consumer as they were too bulky, used way too much power, and most importantly were very expensive. However, in the past several years, technology has evolved to the point that these projectors are actually affordable and practical for the average consumer.
DLP Video Projectors
DLP stands for “digital light processing” and DLP is quickly becoming the popular choice in video projectors for the average viewer. In fact, these projectors are not only for the home theater as there are actually movie theaters that utilize DLP for feature film projection! DLP technology provides outstanding color accuracy, is extremely compact, does not use much power, and has great contrast and brightness with a smoother look than LCD.
The one limitation of DLP that often gets talked about is what is referred to as the rainbow effect. What happens is that a very brief flash of colors is exhibited when viewing the screen and rapidly looking from side to side on the screen or the room. This does not happen all the time though and some people do not even experience this. As with LCD, the DLP light source has to be changed at roughly 1,500 hours. Even though it is not perfect DLP projectors are my choice for the average home theater enthusiast.
LCD Video Projectors
An LCD projector functions by passing a extremely strong light source through a chip that is composed of pixels and then projecting that image on to the screen through a lens. LCD projectors are capable of extremely high contrast and brightness. They are also very small which makes them great for portability and are fairly inexpensive.
The LCD projector does have a few limitations though. Many people complain about what us called the “screen door” effect. This happens when the individual pixels are seen on the screen which makes it look as though you are looking through a screen door. Another drawback is that if one of the pixels goes bad, you will have to replace the entire chip because individual pixels cannot be fixed. As with DLP, the LCD light source must also be replaced approximately every 1,500 hours. This will cost roughly a few hundred dollars. In my opinion, LCD projectors are better suited at this time for business presentations and not for home theater use. Although, with a few modifications, they can be excellent for a home theater.
