ProAV Roundup

Feature: Page (1) of 6 - 02/23/05

ProAV Roundup Latest news and views By Gary Kayye, CTS

Mitsubishi Announces PocketProjector
The rumor has been around a while, but now the projector is official. Mitsubishi is showing a prototype of a new product they call PocketProjector ? so small it fits in the palm of your hand.

Not all specs are finalized yet ? including the amount of lumens and the contrast ratio. But what we do know is it will weigh around 14 ounces, produce a 20-inch wide image from about a foot away or a 40-inch one from less than a yard, and it?s going to carry an MSRP of $699.

As if that weren?t cool enough, Mitsubishi plans to offer an optional battery base for $149 as well as what they call Convenience Packs, with application-specific cables, other accessories AND small screens designed for consumer and commercial. The screen is a nice touch.We have a source at Mitsubishi that also says they will offer a wireless projection version that will allow you to beam video from both DVD players and from computers via 802.11x wireless networking technology.

Okay, so killer price, great design, and a checklist of add-ons that take the guesswork out of purchasing accessories. I?ll know a bit more about the performance once I see the final specs and see it in action.

But here?s what has all the other manufacturers saying a Homer Simpson ?D?oh!? Mitsubishi has the trademark on the term PocketProjector! Well, I used that term back in 1999 but only after hearing Lars Yoder from TI use it a year earlier. So, Lars? What do you think?

The PocketProjector will be available in July through online retailers (meaning, basically direct) and major retail channels as will the accessories.

New 5K Lumen Network Projector From Christie
Christie introduced the LX50 LCD projector, specified at 5000 ANSI lumens, 1200:1 contrast ratio and XGA (1024 x 768) resolution. The projector is network-enabled via TCP/IP. The projector offers scaling up to SXGA and HDTV, and a variety of short and long throw lenses as well as motorized zoom, focus and lens shift with ?Fast Lens Change? mount.

This is an impressive projector. The auditorium, church and staging markets now have a new market leader in the LX50.

The LX50 projector is priced at $9,495 US.

PLUS Intros Another Sub-3-Pound Projector
PLUS Vision has a new light-weight projector, the V-332. It has rather nice performance for its sub-3-pound size, specified at 1200 ANSI lumens as well as XGA (1024 x 768) resolution and 2000:1 contrast ratio.

PLUS also incorporated its Unplug & Go function, which lets you unplug the power cable without having to wait for cool down ? something we all did anyway. The fan continues to run. The V-332 also has PLUS?s dial-type "Iris" protective lens cover, opens with a twist.

The PLUS V-332 supports 480p or 576p for progressive DVD, and 720p or 1080i for HDTV. It comes equipped with a presentation timer and what PLUS calls ?double security? settings.

The V-332 has a street price of $1,995.

DPI Adds Two 2K x 1K Resolution Projectors
Digital Projection introduced two 3-chip DLP projectors with 2048 x 1080 native resolution. This brings DPI?s offering of these high resolution projectors to three, adding to the LIGHTNING 35HD introduced last year.

The new projectors, the HIGHlite 10000HD (specified at 10,000 ANSI lumens) and the 12000HD (specified at 12,000 ANSI lumens) have contrast ratios of 2000:1.

The company is targeting wide format staging applications, medium-to-large-venue system installations, scientific visualization, simulation and premier home entertainment. DPI says these projectors can support any video, HD or computer source, have four-side soft-edge blend ? seamless cross-fade and user-definable geometric warp can be configured. They can also support active stereo 3D up to 1400 x 1050 at 96 Hz.

DPI has designed all its six Pro Series projectors to rig or stack, with integrated pitch and roll, out of the case.

The projectors will ship in March and pricing is yet to be announced.

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