Anyone seen a good deal on a projector?

I know nothing about projectors, but we have a room that measures roughly 3m wide by 5m long that I would like to try out a projector in. The wall is a deep red, but I've seen some people project onto similar coloured walls without any problems (I don't care if the result is not 100%).

I'd like to be able to watch movies through it without a huge amount of quality loss, preferably having the projector about 4.9m from the picture.

I don't particularly want to spend a great deal, but I don't want something rubbish either. Basically mid range quality if possible.

I've read a few sites, and I'm way more confused than when I started. Any recommendations of where I could start doing research would be great too.

Comments

  • Deep red?
    It will be virtually unwatchable! You need a reflective surface… a pale pink you'd get away with, but any dark colour is going to be terrible to project onto.
    The result is going to be closer to 0% than 50% and certainly nowhere near 100% quality.

    If you have money to burn and want to try anyway, you'll want the brightest possible unit (to "brute force" some reflectance) which means DLP and something like the now discontinued BenQ W6000
    If you don't have money to burn, but the cheapest, crappiest projector you can find, cause no matter how good it is, the picture will look like crap until you buy a screen or paint the wall a much lighter colour.

    • Well, the plan is to see if we like the setup of the projector, if it works out, get a screen (or might paint it white now that you have mentioned that).

      • +1

        What's not to like? Projectors are awesome!
        I only have an XGA unit but it works a treat projecting a 3m diagonal.

        1080p DLP units can be bought for $1000 Benq W1070 http://www.justprojectors.com.au/benq.htm just as an example. Provided you don't suffer from the rainbow effect, it's a no brainer.

        Definitely go see one in real life though. I do see rainbows and I'm unsure if I could live with it.
        If DLP is not for you then, Epson LCD projectors are the alternative, cost a few extra hundred for their base model 1080p.

        • Thanks for that.

          I was looking at something similar for $1110(incl delivery)
          http://evatech.com.au/on-sale/2297-benq-w1080st-1080p-3d-pro…

          My biggest concern was that I'd be too far away from the wall I want to project onto. Do you know if there will be any issues projecting from 4.8ish meters away? I can't really hang the projector in the middle of the room, as there is a "fancy" light there.

        • Check out the calculator at projector central, can see the estimated size of the screen based on distance and vice versa for each projector, here is the link for that model:

          http://www.projectorcentral.com/BenQ-W1080ST-projection-calc…

          Looks like at 4.8m, you will get a screen that won't fit on your 3m wall

        • Ahh, you're projecting off a bookcase or something at the back of the room?

          Shouldn't be a problem (although is for the BenQ), that's about the distance I have mine (albeit ceiling mounted)
          Have a look at the Epsons, which means increasing your budget a bit.

        • Precisely :)

          Any recommendations for particular models (and where I might get the best price)

        • The Cable Connection used to run some good specials on Projectors..
          Probably best to head to dtv forums, they run group buys every now and again.
          http://www.dtvforum.info/index.php?s=cdba8c8ef50b10e527d5fe6…

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