How to Select a Home Theatre Projector
Home theatre projectors are becoming more and more popular as home theatre products are becoming more advanced. A home theatre projector is often a DLP or digital LCD based projector which displays a image on a distant wall, or other flat surface. Home theatre projectors are useful, since they take up very little room in an entertainment room. For instance, a home theatre projector is typically less than two feet square, yet it may project an image up to thirty feet in size. In addition, a home theatre projector is typically less expensive than a comparable plasma or big screen television. No matter what the motivation, there are several key factors to remember when selecting a home theatre projector.
The first, and foremost factor to remember when selecting a home theatre projector is the output quality and brightness of a given projector. The higher the resolution a home theatre projector has, the better a picture will look once it is displayed. In addition, projectors that can accept bright lamps are important. A lamp on a projector will be rated in lumens typically- and higher is better. A projector with excellent resolution and color quality is useless with an underpowered light source.
Secondly, heat and noise of a particular unit are important considerations as well. No one wants to have a hot, loud projector running in the back of a room. Excess heat can also ruin your lamp life in your projector- forcing you to purchase a new lamp more often. Noise from a fan, while normally a nuisance, can also ruin a surround sound speaker setup, frustrating the home theatre experience.
Last, the price on a projector is an important aspect which should not be overlooked. Expect to pay at least two thousand dollars, if not more, on a home theatre projector. The best way to shop for a bargain is to perform adequate research on particular makes and models of projectors online, and then bring that information into a store. When you are browsing the available models at a home theatre store, you will already have the information which will enable you to make an intelligent decision- and to not spend too much money. In addition, it is also a wise idea to investigate the cost of a replacement lamp for your projector, as some models require more expensive lamps.
Once you have selected your ideal projector, do not forget to look for important features, such as the ability of a projector to display widescreen video properly. In addition, professional installation via a ceiling mount may also be an important option, since we are not all home theatre enthusiasts. By definition, technology is a fast changing industry, so always select a projector which will accept the most common standards in use today, as well as the most common upcoming standards. An ideal projector will not only have enough performance to keep up with the newest standards, but also have expandability options such as support for dual screens, and higher refresh rates. While it is an exhaustive task to search for the right projector, a properly chosen home theatre projector will last for years to come.