Whatever sport you follow, it’s nice to get up close, and you often get to see more by watching a live broadcast of the event complete with slow-motion replays. One of the best viewing experiences of all at home is watching your favourite sport or movie on a modern, digital projector in super-sharp 1080p Full HD definition and in larger-than-life sized pictures. Nothing else comes close, including the biggest flat screen televisions/ flat panel TVs for the home market today.
Having a home projector means you can invite family and friends over for the big sporting occasions, such as the Open golf tournament, Wimbledon, Formula One, the World Cup, Tour de France or even American Football which has become increasingly popular in Europe. Whatever event it is, it will look great through a home cinema projector. When the grandkids come over to visit, you can also turn your family room into a private cinema and enjoy a movie on the big screen at home.
Of course, you may also consider flat screen TVs – but they are expensive and not easy to be mounted on walls. In contrast, a projector screen is light and easy to attach. You can also choose to skip the screen and project directly onto your wall. Connecting a projector is straightforward and operating it is easy, and going wireless in Full HD is also an option to avoid trailing cables. So what else do you need to consider if you’re thinking of buying a projector for home use?
Colour light or colour brightness
Traditionally, many manufacturers only quoted on white light output (white brightness) which is measured in lumens. Nowadays consumers are encouraged to check for colour light output (colour brightness) which measures the richness of colour produced by a projector. In essence, for the best visual experience, look for a projector that has equally high white light output and colour light output. The specification for these values is expressed in terms of lumen rating, with a minimum of around 1,500 lumens desirable for watching home movies. To find out more on colour brightness, visit this website colorlightoutput.com/uk/. You can also compare projectors there.
Contrast ratio
It is always advisable to opt for a home cinema projector with a high contrast ratio to get that crisp, clear display that delivers the action right into your room in the sharpest definition. Contrast ratios are given in numbers, such as 3000:1, which means the projector will display the white images 3,000 times brighter than black ones. For a home projector you want more contrast than that and it is possible to choose top of the range projectors with a 600,000:1 rating, which will display the clearest images imaginable, in both 2D and 3D.
Aspect ratio
Aspect ratio determines the width-to-height proportions of the image you see. Expressed in numbers, 4:3 for instance, is the typical aspect ratio for computer screens and non-widescreen televisions. Cinema screens and HD televisions use 16:9 aspect ratio. This can seem a bit confusing but the good news is that quality projectors come with automatic settings as well as adjustable ones, so you can forget about the numbers and view on auto settings, or just tweak it until the picture looks right to your eye.
Don’t be dazzled by the technology; projectors are incredibly sophisticated, but at the same time simple to use. You can get good information from the websites of manufacturers, including BenQ, Optoma, Sony and Epson. You may also want to talk to specialist stores like Curry’s and Richer Sounds. Once you buy a home cinema projector, all you may have to worry about is how to fit everyone in the next time there’s something unmissable to watch on the big screen!
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