Now a days projectors have became a vital component in all the areas like business, educational institutions, home entertainment etc. Major companies are designing newer, technologically enhanced products every year based on the above categories. Even if televisions are coming up with large screen displays the demand for projectors are not loosing.
In this article, we try to shed light into the use of projector in gaming niche. Projectors can be used instead of monitors for gaming purpose provided these gaming projectors must possess certain qualities. What are the factors that you should take into consideration when buying a gaming projector, perhaps the best gaming projector? Which are the best gaming projectors available today? What are the pros and cons of using a gaming projector instead of gaming monitor? Read on to find out…
The major pros and cons of projectors are
Pros
Large Display
It save space
Portability
Feel the speed with a DLP gaming projector
High Refresh rates with lower cost
Cons
Extra Lag Time
Need External Speakers for better sound
How to Buy a Gaming Projector?
When buying the best gaming projector, consider these factors in mind. It is pretty easy because not many gaming projectors are available today as the gaming monitors are still ruling the market. But if you want an immersive big screen experience, projector is the solution.
Refresh rate — Unfortunately this information may not be available always, but gaming projectors have generally above 120hz.
Contrast ratios — To play the games without shadowy areas and more light contrast ratio and brightness is what you have to look for. Minimum of 10,000:1 is recommended.
Brightness — Better to go for 2500 lumens or above for larger screen size. (>100 inches). For lower screen size, 1000+ lumens will be enough.
Input Lag — You have to choose gaming projectors which have low input lag. Of course this cannot replace the gaming monitor but atleast we can reduce the lag.
Resolution — Go for 1080p if you are serious about gaming. Nothing less than that!
Short throw — Short throw projectors use less space as compared to normal ones. It will eliminate hinderance and provide flexibility in positioning the projector. Ultra short throw projectors are used mainly in business presentations.
Sound quality — This is unavoidable for a gamer and no projectors have the solution. The only option is to buy a home theater or a sound bar along with!
So here we list the best gaming projectors considering the above factors and rated accordingly based on our testing and user reviews.
The Best Gaming Projector List
#1 Optoma GT1080 Darbee – The Best Gaming Projector Under $1000
We will start with Optoma, the specially designed manufacturer for projectors. Optoma is a multinational audio and visual solution provider company which was started in 2002. They were the first manufacturer of 65 inch DLP projection Television and got awarded Consumer electronics Show innovations. The world’s first DVD projector was launched by Optoma in 2005. We will quickly go through the best three models of Optoma gaming projectors along with it features and specifications.
Optoma GT1080 is specially designed for gaming purpose whether you’re gaming on a PC, a PlayStation, or an Xbox. One of the specific feature of this product is it has 3000 lumen lamp which produces large and bright images comparing to an average projector. It can be used for a long time without any blocks. Almost all modern game consoles are Full HD. PC gamers can enjoy 4K content, but only at reduced frame rates and with extremely powerful hardware.
Design
It is easily portable because of its light weight and attractive exterior with whitish in nature. The top edges are polished artfully and cooling end is specially designed without much light leakage.
A remote control is included as an accessory which is made of light weight plastic features large, tactile, reasonably well-organised buttons and is comfortable in your hand.
Features
When we talk about the features two of them are very predominant which satisfies you the most; a native 1080p resolution, and the option to activate the acclaimed – and now exclusive to Optoma projectors – Virtual Presence processing from video specialist Darbee.
The Darbee processing uses Neuro Biological algorithms which sharpen pictures and enhance contrast range. It is powered with specially designed Enhanced Game Mode setting which delivers an exceptionally low input lag measurement – the time a device takes to render its pictures – of just 16ms.
It has got its peak brightness of 3000 lumens which I said already and a contrast ratio of 28,000:1 which is quite exceptional from other projectors.. It has got extremely short throw lens which can deliver a 100-inch image from a throw distance of just over a metre.
Connectivity
Its supports MHL connectivity with its two HDMI connective ports which makes it easy to wirelessly share content from MHL devices such as the optional Optoma HDCast Pro system, a Roku streaming stick, tablets and smartphones.
The GT1080Darbee does have a built-in 16W speaker and 12 vault trigger output a powered USB port to power an HDMI dongle (such as a Google Chromecast); a port for adding an optional extra 3D sync transmitter; and an audio output.
Set Up
One of the drawbacks of GT1080 is it lacks optical zoom or optical image-shifting capabilities. Because of this you need to move your project to adjust the size of the image relative to the screen.
The only physical setup aids are a focus slider accessed via the projector’s top panel, and screw-down legs under each corner of the device to adjust the image’s angle so that it appears in the right place on your screen.
Pros
- Less Gaming Lag
- Excellent Picture Quality
- Worth for money
Cons
- Vertical image lacking on zoom
- Light Instability.
Overall, taking all the features, performance and price into consideration, the GT1080 is the best gaming projector available today.
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#2 BenQ HT2150ST – Best Short Throw Low Input Lag Gaming Projector
BenQ Corporation is a Taiwanese multi-national company that sells and markets technology products, consumer electronics, computing and communications devices under the “BenQ” brand name, which stands for the company slogan Bringing Enjoyment N Quality to life. Its products include digital projectors, digital cameras, LCD monitors etc.
The BenQ HT2150ST is one of the fast moving devices in the market because of its specialized features and brand image. We will go through why almost major users choose Benq as your prime option.
Design
Its basically a DLP projector and easily portable with a weight of 3.6kgs (7.93 lbs). The dimensions are 15 x 4.8 x 10.9 (W*H*D)(inches). It has a native resolution of 1920*1080 and throw ratio of 0.69 to 0.83.
Features
As already said it is a DLP projector and one of the key features of this product is ,in addition to DLP technology, what makes the HT2150ST great for gaming is the fact that it can project a 100-inch image from a distance of only 5 feet.
It produces quality brightness with 2200 ANSI lumens and a contrast ratio of 15000:1. It displays 1.07 billion colors and a native aspect ratio of 16:9.The lamp type is 240W and the lamp life is 3500/5000/7000 in normal, eco and smart eco mode respectively. The lens shift system is not applicable for this projector and procures a zoom ratio of 1:2:1.The keystone adjustment is vertical + or – 20 degree.
Although the HT2150 is a great projector for home theater use, BenQ is also touting features such as low input lag and no motion blur – both are factors that can put a damper on the gaming experience if they are present.
Another important feature that distinguish this from other competitors are the HT2150ST is ISF-certified which provides calibration tools for optimizing image quality for room environments that may contain some ambient light and for rooms that are near-or-completely dark. The HT2150ST has a Wall Color Correction setting to aid in getting properly displayed colors, if you don’t have a screen and need to project on the wall.
Connectivity
It consists of 2 HDMI ports and one MHL port. In addition to HDMI ports it has 5 V USB type and 1 mini type B USB service. It comes with 10W two chamber speakers and which provides quality sound without the help of external features to an extend and includes MaxxAudio Wave’s sound enhancement technology with a 3.5mm audio output connection is provided for this purpose – or you can opt to connect an audio-only output from your source component or game console directly to a stereo or home theater receiver. There are two IR receivers one in front and top of the device.
The WDP01 and WDP02 eliminate the need for an unsightly HDMI cable run from your source devices to the projector, but also increases the number of HDMI inputs – The WDP01 provides 2, while the WDP02 provides 4.
For gaming, you may find that direct connection between a game console and the projector is the best option as wireless connectivity may cause response delay – although BenQ does claim Zero latency.
Accessories
The HT2150 comes with Remote Control with battery, Lens Cover, User Manual CD, Power Code, Carry Bag, Warranty card and Quick start guide. The optional accessories include Spare Lamp Kit, Ceiling Mount, Wireless FHD kit and DLP 3D glasses.
Conclusion
Taking all into consideration, the BenQ is one of the best gaming projector for those that have limited space or prefer not having the projector mounted behind the seating area.
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#3 Optoma HD143x – Best Projector for Gaming and Movies
The Optoma HD143X is the latest in a long line of entertainment devices made by a company.
Design
It is easily portable with a light weight of 5.2 lbs. The exterior is blackish in nature and a screen size of 27.88” to 305.5”.It produces a brightness of 3000 lumens and aspect ratio is 16:9. The contrast ratio is 23000:1 which produces quality brightness. The dimension of the product is 9*11.7*3.7 inches.
Features
A 3D capable device with a with DMD DLP display technology. Unlike some other 3D projectors which are locked to a set refresh rate, the Optoma HD143X can send itself into overdrive to 120Hz (144Hz advertised) in 3D mode. The HD143X may not be the fastest projector out there with a mere 60Hz refresh rate and sub-optimal response times, but it was still plenty fast even when we booted up games that needed the bleeding edge when it comes to raw performance.
The product is very best at it noise level it barely produces a whisper of noise out of the fan when it was turned on and the projector was doing its hardest work and heat generation is also like the same.
Connectivity
It has got HDMI ports 2 1.4/MHL and a single menu controls Brightness, contrast and picture settings. There are 4corner keystonning which controls the image to the screen. Presets included options for Cinema, Gaming, sRGB, and Reference, each of which changed options such as the color temperature and the response times depending on what particular application you’re using or type of content you plan to watch.
It produces some decent sound with 10W mono speaker but it sound shivers at a high bass, which is one of the disadvantages of this product.
Optoma HD143X is also the best choice for building a home theater system (if you insist on projector).
Pros
- 12,000 hour lamp life
- Very bright in ambient light
- Quiet and cool in high-performance scenarios
Cons
- Settings menu doesn’t have much customization
- Onboard speaker is completely lacking in bass (you ll need sound system anyway)
Overall a quality product with all the required features and gets your job done without spending a lot of money.
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#4 Viewsonic PJD7828HDL
Viewsonic have been a reliable projector manufacturer for some time now, and when the PJD7828HDL came out, it caused somewhat of a stir, with its smooth design and excellent price. We will go through the features and this product.
Design
It looks good with a tiny footprint and beautifully carved corners with whitish in nature. It is easily portable with a weight of 5.3 pounds and it measured by 9 inches of length, by 12.4 inches of width, and comes at a depth of 4.1 inches.
Features
It is a budgeted projector with required features and one of the major one that the manufactures demanding is the picture quality. It produces a brightness of 32000 lumens with a contrast ratio of 22000:1. The aspect ratio is 16:9(HD) and a resolution of 1920*1080. Another specialty while connecting to other same products in the market is its lamp life. It offers 4000 hours in full power mode and 10000 hours in eco mode. It comes with a 10W mono speakers which gives a good sound without any external speakers. The maximum power is 300W and voltage is 100V -240V.
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Performance
The set-up is mixture of good and bad news. The bad news is that like most single-chip projectors, the PJD7828HDL doesn’t have an advanced optical zoom, and there’s no vertical lens shift. Consequently, you’ll be using the Keystone Correction to level out the image, which can distort pictures. The good news is that if you do import distortions during the set-up, the PJD7828HDL, has excellent picture calibration tools, so you’ll be able to fix the problem immediately. Set-up is a little more work than with other projectors, but could hardly be described as an arduous job.
Connectivity
It consists of integrated and secure MHL/HDMI port that streams multimedia content from a wireless dongle, or lets you connect to other devices via an HDMI cable. There is 5V/2A USB and micro USB ports which allow users to charge mobile devices in less time. In addition, wireless HDMI dongles can be plugged into the projector’s HDMI port while being powered by a USB cable plugged into the USB port for Full HD contents. It consists of audio in and audio out and VGA in and VGA outConnectivity
Pros
- Excellent color technology
- Large screen size
- 10W speakers
Cons
- Some distortions in darkened conditions
- No vertical lens shift
Conclusion
The brightness is good, and the picture is great, with the color technology really making a difference in ambient light. In total darkness, you’ll be seeing some minor distortions, due to the lumen performance in darkened conditions. Overall an excellent affordable projector, you should own.
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#5 Epson Home Cinema 2045
Epson, is a Japanese electronics company and one of the world’s largest manufacturers of computer printers, and information and imaging related equipment. Epson product range varies from inkjet, laser printers, scanners, desktop computers, projectors, laptops etc. In the case of projectors Epson manufactures portable projectors, educational projectors, Home Projectors etc. They are coming up with new technological products and delivering customer demands on a high end. In the category of portable projectors Epson Power Light 2045 is one of the fast moving product in the market. We will run through the excellent features that will satisfy your need.
Design
The design and features are of same as that of Epson 2040 and the only notable difference is 2045 model has Wi-Fi capability and the power to mirror video from your mobile devices It weights 609lbs and a size of 4.5*11.7*9.7 inches(H*W*D). The Resolution is 1920*1080 and the ports consists of VGA, HDMI, USB, Audio Out and Audio In. There is manual focus and a 1.2x manual zoom, which allows for some flexibility of your preferred screen size. The remote control is easy to use and controls everything on the projector as well as your Blu-ray player, which is nice. The Exterior is of whitish in nature.
Features
One of the major outcomes of this product is the brightness they produce. It produces a brightness of 2200 lumens with a contrast ratio of 35000:1. The aspect ratio is 16:9(HD) and the maximum power consumption is 307 W. The voltage is from 100-240V.It is coming up with 5.0W monospeakers which helps to avoid external speakers to somewhat extend. On eco mode the lamp life is 4000 hours and on power node the lamp life is 7500 hours. This projector can project a screen size of 50 inches all the way to 300 inches if need be. I set the projector up at 90 inches and at 144 inches in both theater dark settings as well as during the daytime.
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In 3D to test this out and it looked fantastic. One of the great things about this 2045 model is that it is completely rainbow free, meaning there are no artifacts. When comparing the 3D to the 2D scenes here, both looked almost identical, and the 3D effect never hindered the clarity or vividness of the picture.
The 2045 comes with a small IR remote that lacks backlighting but features dedicated input buttons, playback controls, and direct access to functions like color mode, memory settings (you can store up to 10 picture memories), a pattern to assist with image placement, image enhancement tools, frame interpolation options, and more. The remote also includes a Home button that pulls up a new Home screen through which you can select a source option or jump directly to Color Mode, 3D Setup, Power Consumption, Auto Iris, or Main Menu. Should you misplace the remote, the 2045’s top panel sports buttons for home, menu, power, vertical keystone, and volume.
Connectivity
The 2045 provides both native-3D and 2D-to-3D conversion viewing options – However, the 2D-to-3D viewing option is not as consistent as sometimes you will notice mis-layered objects and some object folding. The Epson Home Cinema 2045 also incorporates MHL compatibility on one of its two HDMI inputs. Using the capabilities of the MHL/HDMI port, you can view content from your compatible device directly on the projection screen, and, in the case of the Roku Streaming Stick, turn your projector into a Media Streamer without connecting an external box and cable. Being able to use USB as the power source makes connection of these devices to the projector more convenient. An additional feature provided on the Epson Home Cinema 2045 is the inclusion of wireless connectivity in the from Wifi-supported Miracast and WiDi.
The Epson PowerLite Home Cinema 2045 is a good performer overall but lacks some of the required features for gaming such as performance booster mode.
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#6 Sony VPL-HW40ES
Sony is a multinational organization founded in 1946 in Tokyo, Japan. It was into different electronic equipments and the major products includes PC, Televisions, Mobiles,Projectors, Videos games,network services etc.
Sony is manufacturing different ypes of projectors like gaming, business, home etc. Here I will take you through the features of one of the highly demanded gaming projectors of Sony: Sony’s VPL-HW40ES 3D SXRD
Design
It has a sleek look with its whitish exterior. It is easily portable with a weight of 22.1 lbs. It dimensions are 7.1*16.0*18.3(H*W*D) in inches. The exterior part comprises of two HDMI ports j and RCA component with VGA in (DSUB -15pin).
Features
Sony’s VPL-HW40ES is an entry into its ES home theater video projector line that features a large cabinet with a center mounted lens, and incorporates a variant of LCD technology, known as SXRD. With SXRD, instead of light passing through an LCD chip(s) on its way to the screen, light is reflected off the chip(s) surface in order to create the image to be projected onto a screen.
In other words, SXRD has some of the characteristics of both LCD and DLP technologies.
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This gaming projector produces a brightness of 1700 lumens with a resolution of 1920*1080. Particularly impressive is the way its pictures are sharp enough to effortlessly bring forth the maximum impact from high quality Blu-rays. It has an aspect ratio of 16:9(HD) and a lamp life of 2000 hours in power mode and 5000 hours in eco mode. Its maximum power is 300 Watts and voltage range between 100 to 240V.
Connectivity
In terms of physical connectivity, the VPL-HW40ES provides 2 HDMI inputs, 1, 1 set of component video inputs, and an Ethernet-based 3D Synch connection. One of the drawbacks is the absence of 12v trigger outputs. These can be used for, say, firing up a motorised screen when the projector turns on, limiting this projectors potential in more complex installations.
Overall, It’s a truly outstanding projector but expensive, there are better options available.
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#7 Optoma HD27
Another major moving brand from Optoma is HD 27; a single chip LP projector intended for home thetre and gaming use. It is specially designed for the above purpose and is very useful in ambient lights.
Design
It is easily portable with a weight of 5.5lbs and exterior is of whitish in nature. The exterior comprised of 2 4aHDMI ports and a USB port that unfortunately only works for device charging and servicing only. There’s also a minijack audio output and a 12v trigger, which can be used to integrate the projector with an electric screen. Its size measures 9*30*23(H*W*D)(cms). Like many budget projectors, especially in the DLP category, the HD27 doesn’t offer a lot of lens adjustment to aid in setup. It has a limited zoom of 1.1x (controlled via a slider on the top panel) and a throw ratio of 1.48 to 1.62:1. There’s no horizontal or vertical lens shifting, only a trio of adjustable feet to raise the physical height of the projector and +/-40-degree vertical keystone correction.
Features
It is remarkable with its performance with variety of image presets like cinema, vivid, game etc. It uses Dynamic Black which adjusts the lamp output on a scene-by-scene basis, and the results are suitably cinematic. It produces 3200 lumens of brightness and a contrast ratio of 25,000:1. The lamp life is 5000 hours in full power and 8000 hours in eco mode. It has got an aspect ratio if 16:9 in HD and resolution of 1920*1080.The maximum power is 260 W and a voltage of 100V to 240v.
Connectivity
It is very easy to connect and it provides two HDMI inputs enables an easy setup. Perfect for connecting a laptop, PC, Blu-ray player, media streamer or games console. You can even turn it into a smart projector by connecting a HDMI dongle like the HDCast Pro (sold separately), Google Chromecast™, Amazon Fire TV or Apple TV™ to play games, stream videos and share photos on the big screen in the comfort of your own home.
The HD27 was good until they released the HD142X. It has got good features at reasonable price, but the HD143X outweigh in every parameters.
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The best gaming projectors listed here are not exhaustive but I recommend to stick with the top 3 in this list as they deliver best performance at reasonable price.