Reviews Multimedia Projectors

The multimedia projectors category includes the latest projector technologies such as 3LCD, DLP, 1080p Home Theater Projectors, and Computer Projectors. See below for a list of multimedia projector reviews and information pages.

The term multimedia projector is perhaps the broadest, most encompassing term in the projector world, and implies that projectors have evolved to do pretty much everything!

Technically, multimedia projectors range from the smallest Pico projectors to the heftiest 100 lbs.+ large venue projectors. Therefore, to put it simply, basically every projector is a multimedia projector nowadays.

Multimedia Projector Reviews

About Multimedia Projectors

The term implies flexibility.  In the early days, the first projectors were video signal only, no ability to work with, say, a computer input.  There have even been a few specialty projectors, I believe, that have only been PC projectors without a video. There are projectors that dont have video but just computer – just for data

Today’s multimedia projectors start entry level with SVGA resolution projectors from under $500, and move up into models with resolutions all the way up to 1080p and WUXGA+ (1920×1200).

From a compatibility standpoint, most offer HDMI or DVI inputs, as well as all the older favorites and standards including VGA and composite and S-videos. Even the pico projectors, which are all multimedia, are starting to sport HDMI. Almost all that are for business and education have a built in speaker or two.

Most multimedia projectors have 5-8 different inputs.  Many models now offer wired, wireless, or both types of networking, and some can even present from content passed along the network.

Some with wireless networking can even switch between many different computers (laptops) in the room! Talk about versatility.

A new feature of streaming data off the internet has allowed for its own category in the world of multimedia projectors. We are starting to see projectors that don’t need computers or blu-ray players, but that can stream directly from intenet!

An interesting example is LG’s HW300T mini projector, which is not only small in size but boasts that capability. Set it down on a table and, if you’ve got Wi-Fi, it can stream!

Even in the low cost pico category, every projector must be considered multimedia because they support all at least one video format, most support computers, and some even have a multimedia player that lets you do presentation from .jpg images… So today’s projectors feature both video AND stills combined? You have to call that multimedia.

To give you an example of how much things have changed over the years, let’s examine the evolution of multimedia projectors:

Above is Proxima’s original multimedia portable projector, the DP2800, which surfaced in 1994. The DP2800 weighed 19 lbs., offered 110 lumens, was VGA resolution, and cost approximately $5000.

Ready for the punchline?

Meet today’s Samsung P400 pocket projector. It weighs 2 lbs. (roughly 1/10th the weight of the Proxima), is small enough that you could fit around 20 P400’s in one Proxima box, boasts much higher resolution, offers more features, and costs only $699.

Or alternately:

This is the Sanyo PLC-XM150L, an auditorium projector. In many ways it is similar to the Proxima DP2800 – it weighs about 19 lbs., offers 6000 lumens, and has an MSRP of $4,795, but it is higher resolution and packs many more features.

Clearly, multimedia projectors have reached new levels in terms of performance, price, and size. And because multimedia projectors is such a broad breed, we can guarantee there is one out there that’s perfect for you.

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