Is it DLP? Do you know the model number?

Often business projectors are design to be used in a bright room for presentations. They are usually very bright and have poor black levels. If you are only using it for the Wii this might be preferable. $380 doesn't sound too bad...

 

If it is an LCD business projector, I am strongly against (even for free).

 

to pick up a Dell 5100MP for $380 clams

Dell 5100MP Projector
Starting Price $2,499

Ultimate Performance and Versatility

* Bright 3,300 ANSI Lumens (Max) 2
* Superior high contrast ratio of 2500:1 (Full on/Full off)
* At less than 8.3 pounds, the 5100MP is ideal for professional presentation in the conference or boardroom
* Integrated zoom lens and Automatic Vertical Keystone correction
* DLPTM LVDS technology from Texas Instruments
* Native SXGA+ (1400 x 1050), with autosync up to UXGA (1600 x 1200)
* Eco-mode option for quieter operation and to extend lamp life 3 up to 2200 hours
* One Audio In and Out connector
* Supports full range of television and video standards, including NTSC, NTSC 4.43, PAL (B/D/G/H/I/M/N), SECAM (B/D/G/K/K1/L) and HDTV (480i/P; 576i/P, 720P; 1080i)
* Separate HDMI and Component video input
* Internal 2 X 2W speaker

So it's a DLP projector.... These types of projectors are usually geared toward putting out as much light as possible, to be used in non-darkened meeting rooms etc. The Dell projectors we have at work are in general pretty decent in regards to build quality, menu options etc., so it'll probably not fall apart in the near future, and you'll probably be able to tweak the settings :bigsmile:. Most of these are not ideal for critical movie-type viewing, but given enough tweaking etc I think a somewhat decent picture can be obtained, especially if there's not going to be looked at ultra-critically, like when playing wii-games... For that price, personally I would give it a shot....

 

Definitely, I now agree with you! A careful selection of a grey screen may balance black level and brightness...

 

Good catch TRiSS, I missed the model in my first post.

As Blaser says, with the right screen you may be able to get some great results. With 3,000 lumens and only 2500:1 contrast you would probably want one of the darkest screens. I say go for it. For that price you can't go wrong and if you decide to you can put the money saved into a screen. We have lots of experts at DIY screens here

 

Okay,

Thanks guys, I 'll give it a go then. I saw a DIY paintable screen system thru Vistek camera stores here in Ottawa.

It's called "Goo systems", and it seems to be fairly well respected for what I've been able to find out about it. I'll go with the grey screen and hopefully with a black background all around the border, it will give decent results. I have a very, VERY, smooooth wall to paint it on, so hopefully I'll get no distortion on it. Let me know what you think.

Thanks for the replys.

Elton

 

Goo screens do seem to be respected. Before you pull the trigger on it though you may want to read through our DIY Screen section of this forum. Particularly Black Widow.

 

Hmm, Black widow might be the way to go, definitely cheaper than the 300 plus for all of the goo product.

 

I played around with my sharp work projector for a couple of weeks at home while I waited for my Epson HT projector.

Make sure you use all the adjustments to best effect. For work I always just turned the proj on plugged it to the source and said lets go. But for home use you can often change everything from color temp to greyscale. A proper calibration (not PRO claibration just with a disk or something) would mage a huge difference.

With such a bright projector you should be able to run it in economy mode save the bulb and noise too.

Should be fine for Wi but althoughit will work with PS3 you won't get nearly the full benifit from Blu Ray.

 

The problem with office or so called PC projectors is that the native resolution of them is designed for PC use not home video. This means that all video inputs will need to be scaled to fit and this always causes degradation in picture quality.