The w1070 is a great value and a really good price in my opinion. You will want to check for a HIGH QUALITY replacement lamp and buy one right away to ensure you get as much life as possible from the w1070. The BenQ is a better looking projector than the Optoma 146x, so that's a clear win for the BenQ. Especially at that price point.
Be aware that $50 lamps are likely really shit quality. Look for a reputable seller. Something like this...
[https://www.myprojectorlamps.eu/projector-lamps/Benq/W1070.html](https://www.myprojectorlamps.eu/projector-lamps/Benq/W1070.html)
Cheap eBay and Amazon crap is just not worth the headache.
Your big issue with be that most projectors just aren't bright enough to give you much performance prior to complete darkness. That's just a reality of front projection. I have a demo of this using a 5,000 lumen projector on my channel (not much else on it)...
[https://www.youtube.com/@paulvail7926](https://www.youtube.com/@paulvail7926)
You can also see how poor the black levels are in the 30' wide image demo. Similar projector. A Panasonic 3 LCD model with 5,000 rated ANSI lumens.
So, I'd go with DLP. Maybe the XGimi Horizon 20. If you want to save some money, then the 1080p Optoma HD146x is an excellent purchase. It gives you plenty of leftover budget for a streaming device (which you will need), a outdoor screen of some kind (if you need it), and audio (which you absolutely will need).
I would hit up Facebook Marketplace and look for used screens. People move and sell their screens all the time. You can get $300+ screens for $100 or less all the time. Great way to save some cash.
For streaming, the Amazon Fire TV Stick is a decent solution. I like it for the built in Bluetooth audio. It allows connecting a speaker to be easier. Bluetooth isn't the best audio, but it is convenient.
Finally, for audio, you can use any Bluetooth speaker and connect it to the Firestick using Bluetooth. Make sure it is a speaker with enough ooomph to sound good outside. I use one of those 15" tall black box Bluetooth speakers with a battery inside of it that you often see at Costco/Sam's Club for around $100-$150. It works well for my needs. Not high fidelity, but clear and loud enough for the needs I've had for it. If you can provide a plug and don't want/need a battery inside, then there are likely more cost effective options.
This whole setup, will run you under $1,000 with the Optoma projector. The Horizon 20 from XGimi is about $1,500 by itself. If you want something in that 'lifestyle 4k' category for a projector, then the Nexigo Trivision Ultra is well reviewed and is about $1,100 as a refurb, $1,300 new.
[https://www.amazon.com/NexiGo-TriVision-Tri-LED-Laser-Portable-Projector/dp/B0F6MKD9PN/ref=sr\_1\_3](https://www.amazon.com/NexiGo-TriVision-Tri-LED-Laser-Portable-Projector/dp/B0F6MKD9PN/ref=sr_1_3)
I like the Horizon 20 more overall, but the Nexigo is a solid product and saves some cash which can give you some breathing room for other things you may need for your setup.
You need to figure out your screen size. But, after dark, even cheap $100 projectors tend to look good. Those models are horrendously unreliable though so not worth anyone's time of day. But, I'd say anything that advertises 2,000+ lumens would be more than enough for a screen up to about 135" diagonal. At really large sizes, you do want more lumens, and those will cost you $$.
The black levels (real contrast) on DLP projectors is significantly better than that of LCD projectors at similar price points. Business class LCD projectors, like the one I used in my demo above, really can't deliver great contrast no matter what their marketing claims.
I will see if I can add a video of my DLP business projector to my channel so people get a better idea of what they might expect between DLP and LCD on the used market. New is pretty similar.
At your budget though, adding in movie viewing at times, I'd get the Nexigo Trivision Ultra and I'd expect to be very happy with things.
Definitely watch some videos over at [www.youtube.com/thehookup](http://www.youtube.com/thehookup) though. His stuff is very informative.
The BenQ TH575 is in the same category as the Optoma HD146x. Very similar overall. Small, not big differences between them. I do prefer BenQ over Optoma, but I believe the Optoma is a bit less money.
Getting 16' diagonal out of these models will work only after complete darkness. I'm not sure I have any example that would be exactly like them, but my W1070 may be close enough.
The math needs to math though. A 192" diagonal is only 60% more than a 120" diagonal, but it is over twice the square footage. That means a projector which is typically fine, in a dark room, at 120" diagonal, will struggle at that size. This ignores any ambient lighting which may be in play.
That's why I linked a model which should perform well at that size and look perfectly fine. Note that there is nothing about the Vivitek I linked which is really significantly worse than the BenQ or Optoma. It should be able to deliver the same image, but with more light output, and is a very reasonable price.
At a budget, the TH575 is a solid product. It is very similar to the Optoma HD146x.
Keep in mind, it is a 1080p projector and it uses a lamp light source rather than a LED or laser light source.
The DBOX02 Pro is a good recommendation. I think the Nexigo Trivision Ultra (refurb) is a good value as well.
Getting as much brightness as the BenQ can give you is tough on a budget though without it needing a traditional lamp. It is about $700 and rated at 3,800 ANSI (ISO) lumens. In 'best' mode, that's likely to be well under 2,000 lumens, but it is still plenty bright.
JMGO has a number of solid products as well, but you are spending more than that BenQ for sure on them. Their least expensive that makes sense would probably be their N1S 4K ($750), but that's only rated at 1,100 ANSI lumens. So, a lot less than the BenQ. Their N1S Ultra is $1,150 and is rated at 2,800 lumens. That would be a solid overall upgrade on the BenQ. But, it should be at over 50% more money.
I will say that if you are keeping the room completely dark, then the JMGO N1 is a solid product as well. It's not really bright, but has a solid state light source, very low lag time, and at $500 is a very good value. It's what I would call the 'college dorm' projector. Small, convenient, lightweight, not a ton of money, high quality.
That TCL should be about $150 since it is a single panel LCD projector like the HY300 is or the Happrun H1 is. Do NOT overspend on single panel LCD projectors - EVER! You can always add a Chromecast, Google TV, Roku Stick, Fire TV Stick, or a ton of other streaming devices to any projector on the planet.
At a budget though, the TH575 is a great option as is the Optoma HD146x. Both models use a traditional lamp and a 2x color wheel. BenQ tends to be slightly better looking over competing Optoma models, but both would deliver solid performance for a really good price.
Don't get shit quality designer garbage. There are tons of modern projectors out there, but many of the DLP models are 4K and they do carry a more significant price tag.
Compared to the TCL A1s, the JMGO N1 is in a different class. The JMGO is MUCH better overall than the TCL in terms of long term quality and reliability. That's DLP vs. single panel LCD. High end DLP is used in IMAX movie theaters. High End LCD is used in your Samsung phone. They just aren't playing at the same level, and your Samsung phone screen can't endure the light required for front projection. At least not for very long.
Projectors are for after dark use only. You also put a projector where it must go for any given screen size, or you get whatever screen size you get from where you place the projector. That's how lenses work. Pull out your phone, stand where the projector would be, turn on the camera. Does the frame cover exactly the size image you want? No using zoom! Does it? Probably not. You have to physically move the camera to get the exact size you are hoping for.
Projectors typically use the same 16:9 aspect ratio of every TV you see in every store on the planet nowadays. You measure it in the diagonal. Most projectors from major brands, designed for home use can deliver a 110" to 135" diagonal quite comfortably in a dark room. Maybe a bit of ambient light.
The link provided by u/TechNick1-1 was a good one. Optoma makes some good 1080p projectors which are worth owning. They also sell the PH31 in Europe which I think is absolutely worth considering. The 146x he linked to is 3800 lumens. Really bright. Solid for larger screens. Over your budget by a fair bit, but reasonable for what you get. The PH31 is more in line with your budget, but is 1500 lumens. So, a fair bit dimmer, and frankly a very good deal. It will work after dark on a reasonably sized screen. 110" or so.
NOTE: Your iPad is not a 'source' device. You can get a USB-C to HDMI adapter, but certain programming may be blocked on the output of the iPad. You should check this prior to expecting it to work by hooking it up to any television on the planet using a USB-C to HDMI adapter.
If you are streaming content, then a streaming device can be plugged into any projector. Something like the Amazon Fire TV Stick is a good product because it is really inexpensive, supports almost all the streaming apps you may want, and has a internal Bluetooth connection if you want to connect to a Bluetooth speaker easily.
This is not correct. Optoma has a very well deserved poor reputation for their UHD/4K projectors. But, their 1080p models have been solid performers for many years now and really do present a very solid product. Plus, you get the much better black levels that DLP tends to deliver over the cheap Epson LCD models.
There is a fair bit to debate on image quality I'm sure, but in terms of reliability and long term quality, 1080p Optoma projectors are absolutely comparable to what Epson delivers.
I can’t say enough good about the Benq HT2060. I picked it up in June as my third projector in ten years. First I had a Benq WT770 ST (short throw, 720p resolution) followed by a very used Optoma HD146x (1080, standard throw, facebook marketplace).
The short throw Benq still works well to this day and I use it for outdoor movie nights, having replaced the bulb once in its 7 year daily service. Albeit 720p resolution, the color balance and contrast are still really good for a ten+ year old projector which cost a scant $750 at the time of purchase.
The Optoma came with a broken color wheel, which I replaced initially, then it broke again 10 months later. Luckily they are $30 on eBay, so I replaced it again. I’m also on my second bulb on that one, but it’s been sidelined for the time being, pending selling it off cheap to a friend, with full disclosure and a color wheel service warrantee, ha.
No let me rant and rave and postulate and praise the Benq HT2060!
I went with the HT2060 after researching the heck out of a sub $1500 projector. After my time and energy spent on bulbs and color wheels, I was very interested in LED or laser as a “permenant” light source. The added benefit of led running cooler (less hot) and no added warm up/cool down cycle were also perks that I didn’t realize how much I’d appreciate. The resolution is 1080p, downcoded 4k, but it looks somehow better than 1080 and not quite 4k… there’s something going on with this projector. I feel like they got half way, knew they couldn’t claim it as native 4k, and just settled on calling it 1080p. It looks GREAT.
The thing people write about with this model that got me across the “purchase” line, is the depth of contrast/black levels, the 96% color gamut, and HDR functionality. The picture on this bad boy puts the optoma 146x out to pasture. Everything is crispy, life-like, and even dark scenes are well-balanced and defined. The TRex attack in Jurassic Park is alive and well, and you can see every detail.
I picked it up through Amazon, purchased from Adorama. Because they are a verified seller or whatever, I was still able to buy a warranty from Amazon. I paid $1250 plus $200 (war) and tax. Two weeks later the price was adjusted on Amazon down to $949 for a sale, and I was able to get the difference refunded. Great!
My experience so far is summed up in two concrete statements:
1) I know now that contrast and color matter more to me than native 4k. I have a buddy who bought a comparable 4k bulb projector - viewsonic brand. It’s shape and bright as hell! But… my set up looks better, by a combination of factors.
2) I’ll never go back to bulbs. The LED color balance, brightness, lack of heat production, instant (3-5 seconds, comparable to a tv) on/off cycles were something I didn’t know I was getting, and love. The life-cycle being 20k-30k hours instead of 3k-8k… that’s the clincher right there, for me at least.
Edit: native autocorrected to booked in the next to last paragraph.
I hooked the new projector straight into my dedicated sound system and didn’t try the built in speakers for about a month. I tried then one evening out of curiosity and was genuinely blown away by the tone and balance of the audio, as my previous two projectors, an Optoma HD146 and a Benq ST720 had both had characteristically abysmal speakers (as all projectors used to). The HT2060 speakers could stand alone for audio if there is a lack of a better option.
Honestly a used Optoma HD141X or even HD146X would work well since you don’t need a battery. They’re still portable in the sense that you can put them into a backpack for example.
You can solve the audio by using the Bluetooth feature from the HDMI connected device or streaming stick.
or by using the 3.5mm audio output and plug a cable into a speaker.
Portable units aren’t going to be super bright in this price range so I’d recommend a bulb unit instead.
yh I have the hd144x it's really similar and a great 1080p projector. I've had it for about 4 years haven't used it much in the past about year and half due to moving rooms I haven't sent it up properly. but yh no issues. I heard a lot of complaints about the newer Optima projector but I think the ones around the hd14xx line has been great
AV_Integrated
