Shopping for a projector

Finding the right projector for your room is a very important deal.  I suggest setting aside ¼ of your budget for just the projector alone. The reason the projector takes up so much of the budget is because it is the heart of the theater. Your theater will only be as good as the picture you’re seeing on the screen.

A large deciding factor for anyone shopping for projectors is knowing which projectors have the correct throw ratio for that shoppers needs. For those that don’t know what a throw ratio is, theProjectorPros.com explain how the ratio is calculated.

Since you’ve now decided whether to have 3D capability or not, you have a starting point to shopping for the right projector for you. Another way to help you shop for the right projector is knowing the distance between where the projector will be and the screen (throw distance). A great tool to use is a throw distance calculator provided by most projector companies. I found that Epson made a user-friendly calculator.  Using this calculator helped me determine how large or small of a screen I could have.

Other options to consider while shopping for projectors are:

 Resolution : The higher the resolution, the sharper the image. The modern

                       standard for high definition and 3D is 1080p.

Picture contrast: The higher the contrast, the more colors possible between pure

                              white and pure black.

Brightness (light output):  measured in lumens. The higher the lumens, the

                                             brighter the picture. With more lumens, the picture will

                                             still be visible if there is light in the room.

Lens Shift: After securing the projector, the picture can be moved up/down or

                     left/right. (I recommend not relying on lens shift to center the picture on

                     the screen. Using the lens shift will affect the resolution negatively. Only

         use lens shift if there is no possible way to have the projector mounted

         straight across from the middle of the screen.)

For more information about the basics of projectors, please visit crutchfield.com.

References

Epson image size calculator. Retrieved from http://www.epson.com/alf_upload/landing/distance-calculator/ 

Throw ratios and viewing distances. Retrieved from http://www.theprojectorpros.com/learn-s-learn-p-theater_throw_ratios.htm

Kindig, S. (2013, January 10). Choosing a projector. Retrieved from http://www.crutchfield.com/S-xIHHYkUqZAP/learn/learningcenter/home/front_projection_TVs.html