Projector Suggestions

Kalinda

New elf
Joined
Nov 13, 2019
Messages
2
Hi Everyone, I’m new here and have a question about projectors. I’m wanting one to do Virtual Santa. I have a bit of light thrown onto the front of our house from an orange street light. Can anyone suggest a good projector that won’t break the bank that would be suitable for this? Would prefer one that could play the video straight from a USB drive. Is that even possible? Many thanks
 

OzAz

Senior elf
Global moderator
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Dec 29, 2015
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997
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Newcastle
If you want a cheap one, the Excelvan P4 or for a bit more something like the Devanti might be OK - I don't have either, but David reckons the Excelvan +33 was OK (but I dont think that model is still available, the P4 might be the newer version?) and I have one physically similar to the Devanti which is OK.

Just be aware the lumens and resolution quoted on ebay cheap projectors is usually wrong. Rules of thumb - (1) divide lumens by 3; (2) double check the actual native resolution quoted.

Don't get anything quoted as "mini" they are all useless.
 

Kalinda

New elf
Joined
Nov 13, 2019
Messages
2
Thank you for your reply. I will check out both of those projectors. And thank you for the heads up about the possibility of the lumens being quoted incorrectly on the cheaper units. I'm wondering if I should just pay the bit extra and get a name brand?
 

timdks

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Joined
Mar 22, 2012
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Location
Olathe, KS
I use to have a virtual Santa in the front window for Christmas and other videos at Halloween, but in 2019, went to house projection for both Halloween and Christmas. Because I needed a short throw projector, I went for the Optoma DLP EH460ST, which has 4200 lumens that is bright enough for my rather dark house. I also bought my projections from digitalpressworks.com. Recommend you check out their website if you are interested in house video projection.
 

David_AVD

Grandpa Elf
Community project designer
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Jun 12, 2010
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That Excelvan P4 looks similar to the 33+ units I bought a couple of years ago. They are quoting a native resolution of 800 x 480 for the P4. I think the first 33+ I got was 800 x 480 and the others were 800 x 540 ? Either way, they are certainly not 1080, 4K , etc but worked fine for the applications I had.
 

Katekate

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Joined
Jan 1, 2020
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Location
Portland, Vic
a lot of those cheap projectors list upfront the resolutions they can accept, and try and keep the actual native res in the fine print.
 

Tonyst

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Joined
Feb 9, 2014
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Location
Newcastle, NSW
I have used a Benq projector for the last 4 years to display santa in my window. It cost around $500. The most important factor is the lumens. You need at least 2,200, preferably better. I have pixels around the outside of the window and the projector is bright enough to overcome them, to the extent of the children believing santa is really in the window. Contrast and resolution are important, but not as high a priority, depending on what you want to do with the projector for the rest of the year (they become more important if you want to use the projector for home cinema as well).
Another important factor is the lens and focal length. How far will the projector be from the window and will it focus on the whole window to get the best effect. I bought a proper rear projector screen I believe that this gives a better/brighter image than just a normal screen (or sheet!), but have not seen any research to prove if I am right or not.
Also, consider that the cheaper projectors are not DMX, so I have to manually switch on and off each day. (There are workarounds to this which have been discussed previously.)
 
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