Projector Reviews

Increase Student Engagement with New Epson PowerLight Projectors Designed for K-12 Classrooms

Epson PowerLight 7 New Models

Epson is a leader in classroom projectors and is constantly improving their affordable PowerLight series. The Epson PowerLight series offers teachers powerfully bright, large displays to engage students in creative ways. Epson announced seven new projectors in the PowerLight series in Q1 of this year, each expected to ship around the time school districts will be purchasing new projectors for the 2020-2021 school year.

Of these seven models, three have XGA resolution, with a 4:3 aspect ratio, making them excellent replacement projectors for older models where a new 16:10 screen is not desired. This can save schools a boat load of money by simply swapping out for a newer projector. The remaining four projectors in this new series have a 16:10 aspect ratio, with three of the projectors being WXGA (1280 x 800) and one being WUXGA (1920 x 1200).

Meet the Projectors

Epson PowerLight 992F
Epson PowerLight 992F

The seven new Epson PowerLight projectors are wall-meltingly bright, which is a huge plus for classroom environments where there is often a degree of uncontrollable ambient light. Many a teacher has been frustrated about their PowerPoints or videos being washed out to the point of barely being visible, but this shouldn’t be a problem with any of these PowerLight projectors.

Epson uses 3LCD technology in their projectors. With 3LCD, you get as many color lumens as you do white ones, giving you an overall brighter image. DLP competitors cannot claim the same, and when a manufacturer of a DLP projector claims a certain amount of lumens, they are talking about white lumens, not color, so you can expect the colors of a DLP to get washed out easier in the face of ambient light.

The new PowerLight series has exceptionally bright projectors ranging from 3,400 lumens to 4,200 lumens. The three XGA models are the PowerLight E20 (3,400 lumens), PowerLight X49 (3,600 lumens), and PowerLight 118 (3,800 lumens). The three WXGA models are the PowerLight W49 (3,800 lumens), PowerLight 119W (4,000 lumens), and PowerLight 982W (4,200 lumens). The highest resolution projector is the WUXGA resolution PowerLight 992F (4,000 lumens).

The Epson PowerLight projectors we have reviewed have all impressed with their large, clear images, with excellent sharpness when projecting fonts of all sizes. Though we are still waiting for more information to be released on these seven new models, it is safe to say that most educators will find everything they need contained within one (or more) of these models, save for interactivity – but there are other Epson models that can do just that. What you can expect from these seven new models is the ability to display content from up to 4 devices simultaneously with Epson iProjector, which has a built-in moderator function, plenty of inputs and connectors, and a beautifully bright, clear image with great color. The highest end model, the PowerLight 992F, has support for Miracast, allowing for screensharing of a laptop, smartphone or tablet.

Projector Specs and Availability

Model Brightness Resolution Availability
PowerLight E20 3,400 Lumens XGA April 2020
PowerLight X49 3,600 Lumens XGA June 2020
PowerLight W49 3,800 Lumens WXGA June 2020
PowerLight 118 3,800 Lumens XGA June 2020
PowerLight 119W 4,000 Lumens WXGA June 2020
PowerLight 982W 4,200 Lumens WXGA June 2020
PowerLight 992F 4,000 Lumens WUXGA July 2020