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Category: Audio visual/Projectors

Review: Acer K10

The Acer K10 data projector is referred to by Acer as a ‘Travel’ projector and it’s easy to see why, as this unit can comfortably be held in the palm of one hand.

With an overall weight of 550g, this pico projector makes the perfect device for using on the move.

In order to hit this super-compact size, the K10 doesn’t use a traditional bulb. Instead, light is cast by an LED light source that is controlled by a DLP processing chip.

While it only has an ANSI lumens rating of 100, you’ll find it roughly comparable in brightness to a projector with a 1500 lamp rating. This means you won’t need to exclude light in all but the brightest of rooms.

The controls on the top of unit consist of a decent focus ring, Power, Source and Menu buttons. We found setting up and sourcing the K10 very easy.

Cool runnings

The other real advantage of using LED technology is that less heat is generated. The projector still gets warm, but not as noticeably as other projectors we tested. With less heat, you will also find this a very quiet machine to run.

On the downside, the small size of the K10 does limit the effectiveness of the projector. For instance, you’ll only find D-sub and Video ports for connecting to your laptop. However, in most instances this is more than sufficient.

Another negative aspect is the rather odd native resolution of 858 x 600 pixels, which means most laptop screens will need to be distorted to fit correctly.

When it comes to image quality we were genuinely surprised at how impressive the picture is. Movies were less impressive, but for text and presentations, it is more than usable.

The Acer K10 won’t suit every user’s needs, but if you need to travel light, hooking this projector up to a netbook, for instance, is possibly the best way to make a suitably big impression with a small projector.

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Review: Optoma HD20

A Full HD projector with native 1080p resolution is the ultimate prize for home cinema enthusiasts. And now you can pick one up for less than £900, thanks to the new abundance of Texas Instruments’ precious hi-def DLP chipsets, and some aggressive pricing by manufacturer Optoma with the release of the HD20.

With InFocus and BenQ putting out similarly-priced DLP projectors boasting Full HD resolution, this is an exciting new category and one that will spell trouble for all the affordable LCD projectors out there that can only manage 720p. The next cheapest Full HD LCD projector is nearer £2,000…

A tighter squeeze

It’s hard not to be impressed by a full 1080p image blown up fill a nine foot screen and the HD20 certainly doesn’t disappoint. First I beamed a high-res digital JPEG to appreciate the closely packed pixels on the Dark Chip 2 that this projector is built around.

The DC2 module is a venerable design, albeit one that has stood the test of time well. The device delivers a pleasing level of contrast which belies the budget nature of the PJ.

In use it delivers a fine image, particularly with games consoles (increasingly a significant element of the affordable end of the projection market).

Films fare well, too. Well-produced Blu-rays like Watchmen dazzle with detail. Moving images look well-defined, with crisper delineation and more solid colours than PJs that top out at 720p. The slo-mo opening credits gave me ample time to wow at the texture of the spent bullets on the floor.

The projector can deliver plenty of hi-def detail – and that’s crucial if you’re watching on a really large screen. Watchmen also has its fair share of difficult dark scenes, which the HD20 struggles with at times.

If your room has a fair amount of ambient light, you can use Optoma’s Bright mode, but it’s at the expense of contrast and black levels. Best to block out ambient light as much as possible and switch to Eco.

Even so, some of the gloomiest sequences still remain lost in shadow, whereas a more adroit (and expensive) projector would resolve them a little better.

The colour palette is understated, which makes for realistic skin tones, but at the expense of vividness.

This unit is well made for a budget model, but don’t expect more than the basics. There’s no optical lens shift for example (only vertical keystone correction) and the zoom is limited, which makes this short-throw PJ quite fussy about placement.

Optoma hd20

It couldn’t focus on my screen from the back of the room, which means fixing it to the ceiling directly overhead, or plonking on the coffee table in front. This might suit some, but it does mean you’re closer to the HD20’s cooling fan.

Optoma optimistically calls the HD20’s 29dB operational noise as ‘whisper quiet’. It’s not.

What could be more of an issue is DLP’s rainbow effect, where your eyes perceive a blur of colour in front of the screen. Some people are more sensitive to it than others and I’m about average, but I did find it distracting here. Optoma, however, says its six-segment (RGBRGB) colour wheel system is the best option around for reducing the effect.

Recession buster

Despite these criticisms, I’d have no qualms about recommending the HD20 to someone looking to step up from flatscreen to projection on a tight budget– it represents great value for money.

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