How to choose an office projector
Designed for conference rooms, training and education purposes, office projectors do not require high resolutions such as 4K or Full HD, as regular presentations look attractive even at lower resolutions. Unlike home cinema projectors, office projectors use narrow aspect ratios such as 4:3 or 5:4. For business trips or use in multiple rooms, there are lightweight and portable projectors with integrated batteries.
Frequently asked questions when choosing an office projector
What resolution and viewing distance is ideal for presentations?
For standard presentations using basic graphics, SXGA (1280 × 1024 pixels) and WXGA (1280 × 800) will suffice. For more detailed images, choose a HD Ready (1280 x 720 px, 720p) or Full HD (1920 x 1080, 1080p) projector. 4K projectors, while offering four times as as much detail as Full HD, come at a much higher price.
What level of brightness is necessary for projecting in daylight?
For conference rooms and projecting in broad daylight, choose a projector with a brightness of at leat 3000 ANSI lumens. Portable models usually have only a few hundred lumens and therefore can only be used in darkened rooms.
I need a projector for use in different rooms and on occasional business trips. What features should I look for?
Projectors for use in various different places, whether within the same building or on business trips, should ideally weigh up to 2 kg and be max. 20 cm wide. As a practical matter, a built-in battery allows for hours of use without mains electricity.
What is the difference between native and maximum image resolution?
Native resolution is often confused with maximum resolution. Maximum resolution is not the resolution of the projector but an indication of the highest possible resolution that the projector can convert to its native resolution. A film with a resolution higher than the maximum resolution of the projector cannot, therefore, be converted and displayed by the projector.
What is the difference between DLP and LCD technologies?
DLP projectors offer quality colour reproduction, high contrast, and low maintenance. One downside is the occasional presence of the so-called 'rainbow effect'. DLP projectors either have a halogen lamp (larger size and higher luminosity) or LEDs (lower power consumption and smaller dimensions).
LCD projectors provide excellent colour reproduction and high durability, but offer lower contrast than DLP projectors as well as higher maintentance.
What other devices can I connect to an office projector?
Office projectors can be connected to multiple devices via various cables or wireless technologies.
- To connect to a notebook or PC - HDMI, DVI or VGA
- To connect to a DVD / Blu-Ray or other players - HDMI, component or composite connector
- To connect to a mobile or tablet - WiFi technology
- For multimedia playback on a network - LAN connector
TIP: Before buying, check what types of connection are supported by your device. If the projector has no common connector, use a reduction cable.
What else should I consider when choosing a home cinema projector?
Luminous flux (luminosity)
Luminous flux is measured in lumens (lm) and indicates the brightness of the projected image. The darker the room, the less bright the projector needs to be.
Up to 2,000 lm - suitable for darkened rooms with minimal lighting.
2000-3 000 lm - more suited to dimly lit rooms.
Over 3,000 lm - provides highly visible projections, even in daylight.
Useful functions and features
Remote control - for simple setup and operation of the projector from anywhere in the room.
Keystone correction - a function that corrects the output image if a projector is not placed perpendicular to the horizontal centerline of the screen (too high or too low).
Zoom - changes the image size without moving the projector.
PiP (Picture in Picture) - the projection of two images (video or photo) next to each other from two different sources.
Integrated battery - allows a projector to be used without mains electricity for several hours.
Built-in speaker - offers basic audio. Higher quality sound can be achieved by coupling the projector with a home theatre system.
Accessories
Glossary - Projectors
Keystone correction
Keystone correction is a function that corrects the output image if a projector is not placed perpendicular to the horizontal centreline of the screen (too high or too low).
FOV
FOV (Field of view) is the angle formed between your view and the projected image. The closer you are to the image and the longer the diagonal, the greater the angle, and vice versa.
PiP
Picture in Picture (PIP) means displaying two images (video or photo) from two different sources next to each other.
Glossary
Resolution and optimal viewing distance
Native resolution is based on the basic resolution of the image element (DMD chips for DLP projectors, LCD panels for LCD projectors). However, besides the basic resolution, projectors can display resolution lower or higher than native. In terms of quality, however, the picture will be worse, although this may not be visible to the human eye. The optimum viewing distance is derived from the native resolution; the closer you sit to the projector screen or wall, the higher the resolution should be. If the resolution is too low, the image quality will blur and pixelate.
Read about the difference between native and maximum projector resolution.