Projectors add immensely to the home cinema experience. To express our excitement, we would love to share some home theatre projector tips to help you get more from your setup.
We are glad to see that you have decided to take a plunge into the world of home theatres with a powerful projector at the core, instead of the conventional TV. Projectors add immensely to the home cinema experience. To express our excitement, we would love to share some home theatre projector tips to help you get more from your setup.
Brightness
When watching something on a projector, the last thing you want is for the image to be too bright or too dim. A lot of that depends on the size of the room where you are using the projector, the distance to the screen or wall, and the lamp’s lumens (brightness).
If the projector has a lower lumens rating of about 1,000 or less, you would want to keep the projector in a smaller space since the distance, or throw will not be as great. If it's a higher rating around 1,500 lumens or greater, there should not be any problem with bringing the projector into a larger room or even a small movie theatre.
Even if you have a high lumens-rated projector, don't be afraid to use it in a smaller area, such as a living room. The image will still look great, even if the projector is 7 to 10 feet away from the wall or screen. One important tip when choosing a projector for home theatre use is to go with a unit that has a lumens rating of at least 1,000. If you move or if your new living room is larger, you may face brightness issues.
Projector Lamps
The average lifespan of a projector is between 2,000 and 4,000 hours. As time goes on, the image will stay nice and bright, however, toward the end of its life it will start to get dimmer. If you use the projector often and at full power, expect it to last around 2,000 hours. However, if you use energy saving modes, it will last up to 4,000 hours.
Projector Screen
While some users may choose a white wall when using their projector, countless others may want to go with a screen. While white projector screens have been a staple for years, some home theatre enthusiasts are opting for grey screens, which are considered high contrast.
As far as screen size goes, there are a variety of sizes to consider, and it all depends on the size of the room you're in. You would not want to buy the largest one available if the room you're in is small, though if that room is dedicated only to being a home theatre, consider getting a larger, permanent screen. There are options to buy a 4 x 3 (squarish) or 16 x 9 (widescreen HD) screen; we recommend going with a 16 x 9, as more TV programming is going high definition widescreen, and movies are pretty much all widescreen now on Blu-ray & DVD. This cuts down on the letterboxing you’d see on a 4 x 3 screen.
There's the option to purchase a permanent screen that will stay in place on the wall, great for a dedicated home theatre room. Or you can opt for a screen that can be pulled down and hung up on the wall, or from the ceiling, it's semi-permanent and semi-portable. You could always go for a portable screen, which is affordable and could be a great option if the projector you are buying is going to travel with you for business presentations. Consider your needs before making a decision, especially if you think you could be moving in the near future.
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