Projector vs tv

[KCL992]

I'm planning on getting a sub $200 projector and I want to know with HDMI 1080p support will it look as good as a 1080p screen? I also want it to be displayed at 120".

Thanks

 

[budwich]

highly unlikely.... a sub $200 projector native resolution will be something in the range of STANDARD definition.... blown up to 120 in will look like someone is "drawing" your video with a crayon. In addition, the brightness will be very poor at that size screen. All that "hdmi 1080p support" means is that the projector can "scale down" that resolution to something the projector can display.

 

[Solandri]

I use a 1080p Epson Home Cinema 8350 projector (3 LCD, about $1300 new several years ago) to throw an image about 13 feet (155 inches) diagonal.

• 
  ■ I could enlarge it to about 180 inches (at which point the image is 88 inches high - my walls are 96 inches). But already at 155 inches I can easily see the pixels while sitting 15 feet away. I'm not bothering with a real screen and a larger image until I can replace it with a 4k projector. I don't even want to think how crappy the image will look on a 720p or 480p (840x480 = 16:9) projector you'd be getting for $200.
  ■ Should be obvious, but the black point on a projector's image is however bright your wall/screen is with the projector off. This means you have to darken the room to get a decent contrast ratio. A TV or monitor screen is black, so it will have good contrast even in a brightly lit room. I had to add drapes and shutters to the room to get it sufficiently dark.
  ■ A big, expensive projector can somewhat overcome the above by throwing a huge amount of light onto the screen. A $200 projector OTOH is going to yield a pale, almost invisible image except at night.
  ■ Throwing a huge amount of light also means generating a huge amount of heat. The fan to dissipate that heat will make noise that a TV won't. And if you sit in the wrong spots you'll be blasted with hot exhaust air from the projector.
  ■ I threw some spackle on the wall and use that for my "screen." It works, but I want to eventually get a real screen. A real screen with proper reflective material to improve contrast at these sizes will cost you in the neighborhood of a thousand dollars for a decent one. A cheap one (not as good reflectance, may not be flat, questionable durability) is still $100-$200. Your budget is only $200 for the projector alone...
  ■ Kids love to hold their hands up in front of the projector. If you have kids, you will never be able to watch a movie without this happening at least once. More likely you'll have to suffer through it continuously throughout the movie.

Unless you're planning to use this in an interior room (no windows) to watch movies (lights off), just get the TV.