Rob Day

iTrader: (78)

Hey all.

I am considering putting a flatscreen tv of sort on my little lads wall in his bedroom, but this would cause issues with his decor, and a few other issues which is hard to explain without going into depth. So I thought that a projector with a screen would be the obvious solution, with some form of audio input, ie amp and speakers somewhere

However its been a good few years since I owned a Panasonic projector, and time has moved on since my 800 lumens poor lit cinema kit So I am completly in the dark (as I was then ) about what to purchase.

Firstly it doesnt need to be anything singing and dancing and it will only be used for basic child DVD's such as "Something Special" (some will guess why I am not opting for tv now), and not cinema or gaming, yet I dont want one that will zap electirc, or blow bulbs every 6 months at £200 a time.

For folk that know what to look for when buying, this is what I require (guessing)

Projector to flow 16 feet apx with USB input?
Pull down screen (discreet)
Cables
Audio Equipment of sorts.
DVD player maybe?

Advice would be great please

Rob

GC8

For £220 noy you can get a reasonable 800x600 thatll accept up to 1080 inputs and output 4:3 and 16:9.

2600 lumens and a claimed 6000hrs too, but even if they only manage half that, its still 125 full days.

My 2500 lumen projector is too bright really, if thats possible. Theres so much light that I need dark curtains down both walls to darken the room, as we need to sit wearing sunglesses due to the level of reflected light!

Rob Day

iTrader: (78)

Cheers for the info. I was looking at cheaper (china no doubt) projectors, but was concerned about the "bulb replacement" or general build quality.

We have some Optoma projectors at work, and to be honest they seem ok for what they do, such as power point slide shows and general presentations, but even the cheaper ones of these that are worth buying are £500 which seems a little steep for my requirements.

If I can find one that will offer almost 1080p, usb media input with decent lumens for £200 then Im happy. As for the screen I need to look into this a little more, Ideally one that rolls up to the roof with no cord (ie no cord dangling to prevent risk of harm). The last projector going back 10+ years was projecting onto a immulsioned wall which worked well considering.

I'll jump on AV forum tomorrow and ask the same question. oh and I have been looking on eBay at 2nd hand units

Rob

GC8

Personally I wouldnt ask...

The Acer X110P is pretty good for about £220. Used is a minefield, particularly because you can reset the lamp hours counter. If I had to go down the used route Id buy from a low end IT recycler with an all-in buy it now price. List everything they have and then look up each models specs on a projector comparison site. Pick one with reasonable hours (ie 300 probably is genuine, but 3 probably isnt) and a reasonable price/performance balance and youre away. I bought a reasonable Acer back-up for £38 delivered. Inferior projectors with better names cost twice as much, but an hours looking up puts you in a strong position.


Simon

GC8

Remember that you can usually buy a bare lamp for about £60-£80, although getting the old lamp out of the carrier can be tricky

Rob Day

iTrader: (78)

Cheers Simon, I'll bare it all in mind, I'll start looking more so after the newyear when everything has calmed down a little, you never know there may be some cheeky offers on anyway after xmas

Rob

DJ Dunk

iTrader: (5)

I bought a Casio XJ-A256 LED projector the other day. It was for a work environment, but was very impressed with the LED technology. Not cheap though, but no doubt they'll become more affordable.

Rob Day

iTrader: (78)

Your not kidding £1200 is a little (£1000) over what I had in mind.

Thanks for posting though

Rob

GC8

If you take anything away from this Rob, its dont buy cheap Chinese projectors whos specs seem to good to be true, off eBay - theyre sh*te!

Id recommend the Acer X110P. Very bright, long lamp life and cheaper at under £250.

Rob Day

iTrader: (78)

Cheers

What about screens then, is there anything I need to look out for, or avoid? I deally I would like something remote operated like these:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/New-100-2-...ht_2400wt_1330

But again not knwoing what to buy, I dont know whats good or bad. Like I said previously I once projected onto a purpose Matt finished imullsioned wall which was fine back in the day, but that is not an option this time.

Rob

GC8

Im not sure what to do about a screen myself. My first projector was a beamer, which is a 3 CRT monster which is as big as a welder and weighs around thirty kilos. This needed a retro-reflective screen to work well and the same screen suited my first 800 lumens LCD projector too.

My new projector is so bright that if I used the same type of screen how wed have to sit there wearing welding masks!

Im looking for a matte roll-down screen on eBay and I will probably spend around £40. Very cheap, but the projector is so bright that I dont think that I will need expensive glass beaded material now. I may even go for an electric screen for another £20...

Luan Pra bang

My advice would be an Optoma projector as the warranty service is brilliant and they give a full 3 year warranty. they collected it even fixed the stuff I broke during my hap hazzard repairs and sent it back no problem. Projectors can be fragile so good warranty is important. Other than that how will you manage the audio ? IF you don;t want a receiver and want to plug HDMI straight to the Projector then you will need a Blu ray player with separate audio out plugged into a stereo. I would also suggest using with a picture frame screen or projector paint on the wall, I have a screen mounted in the ceiling and its a complete was of time and effort.

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

I have a spare Sony vw10ht projector in your budget, I have had it a few years and it was a small fortune new. Bulb life is around 800hours mark? I even have the ceiling bracket for it but obviously no screen as I use it with my new projector

Rob Day

iTrader: (78)

Cheers Guys

Just to confirm I need to suspended screen, I cant project on the wall.

Steve, how much are you requiring for the projector? (dont forget you owe me a ride in your car still LOL)

I will happily entertain any suggestions and offers of sale, but I am in no rush to buy something that wont suit my (my lads) requirements

Rob

stevebt

iTrader: (8)

You can have the projector with the ceiling bracket for £200, only downside is it doesn't do HDMI but it does component

Ellie*

I bought a new tv yesterday and no longer need my amp and speakers.
Its a Cambridge Audio topaz am1 amplifier and Eltax speakers, both of which are only 14months old.
I'm also in the north west :-)