Whether you’re a movie buff or just an average joe, we have to admit that the experience we get when watching a movie or film in general is heavily dependent on the screen in which the movie is being projected unto, be it a television or a projector.
That being said, with the price of a good TV these days equivalent to that of a car, you’d be forgiven for thinking twice before splurging that hard earned cash on a television set. Thankfully, the technology that has led to the rising cost of TVs has also led to the technological advancement of projectors, and what was once unthinkable is now made possible.
Projectors are now a viable replacement for TVs because why not? They provide a bigger screen and in most cases these days, are cheaper. Enter the BenQ W2700. At RM 7399, the projector is already cheaper than most TVs, but can its performance replace the conventional HD TV? Let’s find out.
Design & Build Quality
With BenQ marketing the projector as the projector for any room, I had high expectations of it. One of the great things about the projector is it’s dimensions. It has an extremely lightweight and sleek design. Measuring at just 380 x 127 x 263 mm (15 x 5 x 10.4 inches) and weighing 4.2kg, the projector is extremely practical. Add to that it’s relatively short throw projection capabilities and I found myself projecting films unto the wall of my small room, a mere 3 meters away from the projector.
On the back, you’ll find connectivity central. There are two HDMI ports, audio output, a USB port and a USB 3.0 port for a media reader. On top of that, there’s also a 12V trigger and an RS-232 port. Trust me, it’ll be more than enough for the conventional user.
Performance & Features
BenQ is renown for their displays and the W2700 4K HDR CinePrime projector is no exception. As it’s name suggests, the projector is able to project at 4K HDR quality, a feature that’s normally only available in high end projectors, so before we even test it out, that’s already a plus point. But can it walk the walk though?
The technology that the company put into the projector, dubbed “CinematicColour” technology, actually supports DCI-P3, which is the US movie industry colour standard. BenQ claims that the images produced by the projector actually reflect the colours intended by film directors better, and it really showed, well, kind of.
With HDR set to auto, the projector, which has 2000 lumens pretty much does all the work for you, and the picture looks immaculate. One thing that makes it particularly impressive is that this projector doesn’t come with the conventional DLP chip with 3840 x 2160 individual mirrors. Instead, it delivers 4K resolution through it’s Texas Instruments’ lens shifting DLP XPR technology to effectively quadruple the number of pixels produced by its 0.47in chip, with only 1920 x 1080 micro-mirrors. Whether or not this can be considered true 4K is entirely up to you. I didn’t have any problems with it though.
Another feature that’s normally found in higher end models is Wide Colour Gamut support. Thanks to the introduction of a new generation of Texas Instruments’ XPR (Expanded Pixel Resolution) devices, that wider colour palette can be yours to project. This comes at a cost though, and it’s a pretty significant one; brightness. I’d say light levels drop by as much as 50% when you switch in the filter but in a dark room, it is totally worth it, trust me. The most spectacular thing about this projector is its colour reproduction.
Watching content that isn’t 4K however, can be a hassle. I’m not saying that the picture quality if off or anything, it’s more of a hassle in the sense where it can be rather difficult to configure the optimum settings for SDR. You can still get an ok- balanced projection, but it takes a lot more work to get the best possible picture.
One of the best things about this projector is the fact that when i’m watching a 4K HDR film with it, I tend to forget it’s coming from a projector. That’s how clear and crisp the end product is. When watching a movie at standard definition however, i’m immediately reminded that i’m watching it on a projector.
The projector is far from perfect however, and one thing I noticed is that the cooling fan can get rather noisy after a while. To top that off, it emits a fair amount of heat as well, but then again, that is to be expected with long usage. What you shouldn’t expect though is that it’ll become buggy after long usage, which is exactly what happened. Maybe I got too carried away. Maybe I shouldn’t have went on a Lord Of The Rings marathon. Regardless, if this projector is looking to dethrone my TV, it has to be able to handle movie marathons.
Conclusion
The BenQ W2700 is a piece of work. Putting aside it’s minor fallbacks, the projector is not only extremely affordable for it’s specs, it’s also lightweight and attractive looking. It’s small form factor makes it portable and flexible enough to bring out for a movie night with the family or if you’re having a gaming session with the lads.
It’s short distance of projection, crisp colour and user friendly controls make it a great buy for anyone who’s looking to take their movie watching experience to the next level.
