Review: Epson Dremio EH-TW6100 Home Projector

Tested

Review: Epson Dremio EH-TW6100 Home Projector

Projectors have been a rare entry in PC.com’s Tested labs of late. While it isn’t a big deal really and whatever comes in is usually for portable projection or boardroom usage. If I remember correctly, there had not been a proper high end home projector to land on the labs’ doorsteps in a long time. Well the winds have changed as Epson sent over one of its premium cinema projectors in for a review with the team. The Epson Dremio EH-TW6100 Home Projector, from the outset, looks like it has more to offer than the most generic ones in the market. Read on to find out why.

Mr. Big
When I say big, I meant it in the literal sense. Projectors designed for the home are usually compact or slim so it would fit nicely in the living room. This is not the case with the EH-TW6100, which Epson classified as one of its more premium entries in its home theatre range. The size of the projector is non-standard to the ones you’d normally see in boardrooms and lecture halls. Roughly double in proportions from conventional systems, it rocks a bunch of advanced features to complement its hefty build.

Decently Packed
In terms of features, the EH-TW6100 is short of being choked full. Beyond the variety of input ports it has available for content players to jack in, the lens throws out a more than adequate 2,300 ANSI lumens of visual clarity. This lumens rating promises a less dim 3D visual experience as well as exceptionally vivid colours, both of which the EH-TW6100 manages to deliver in spades.

Visual Impact
There is this saying that 3D would have either one of two effects occurring when used: dimming overall visual content or providing true user immersion. In the case of the EH-TW6100, it delivers more of the latter. With its high ANSI lumens, the usual dimming effect problem that comes with 3D visual effects has been made negligible. What is left then is superb 3D rendering with exceptional colours and crisp clarity. Personally, the Epson projector went above and beyond to convince me of its 3D prowess as visually interactive elements jumped out at me and manage to trick my eyes to believing they really broke the fourth wall. Rolling waves from a documentary demo Bluray and schools of fishes from an underwater story popped out at me. Lovely surprises indeed!

Arresting Colours
Since I did calibrate the EH-TW6100, I really didn’t want to waste my work by not running it through my usual review process on full tilt. For this I took out Crimson Tide, Dick Tracy Remastered, Summer Wars, The Dark Knight, and Pacific Rim to test for screen ghosting, residual noise, and rainbow effect. The yellows and reds really stood out in Dick Tracy while the deep blacks and super whites in Crimson Tide and The Dark Knight really stood out and packs a punch. That’s a big, BIG, plus!

Dimensions (W x H x D): 420 x 137.3 x 365mm
Weight: 6kg
Projection Technology: RGB liquid crystal shutter projection system (3LCD)
LCD: 0.61in wide panel with MLA (D9, C²Fine, 12 bit), Native 1080p (1920 x 1080)
Lens: f1.51 – 1.99, 18.2 – 29.2mm Focal Length with, 1 – 1.6 Zoom Ratio and 1.32 – 2.15 (Wide – Tele) Throw Ratio
ANSI Lumens: 2,300
Contrast Ratio: 40,000:1
Video Quality: Interlace-Progressive conversion, 3D Y/C separation, Noise reduction
Supported Video Signal: 480i / 576i / 480p / 576p / 720p / 1080i / 1080p/NTSC / NTSC4.43 / PAL / M-PAL / N-PAL / PAL60 / SECAM
Colour Mode: Auto, Dynamic, Living room, Natural, Cinema, 3D Dynamic, 3D Cinema
Speakers: 10W x2
I/O: D-Sub (15-pin) x1, D-Sub (9-pin) x 1, RCA (RGB) x1, RCA (Yellow) x1, HDMI (HDCP Support) x2, RCA Audio x1, USB (Type-A) x1, USB (Type-B) x1
3D Features: Active 3D Display, 2D/3D Conversion, 3D Format Modes (Auto / Side by Side / Top & Bottom / 2D), 3D Depth