[Todd Anderson]

Sony Electronics recently announced four new projectors, taking dead-aim at customers looking to upgrade their old 1080p gear with full-4K and HDR imaging. The company has a rich history of great performing projection gear, and this year’s class looks to be a continuation of what we’ve come to expect. With a range of pricing options, Sony has just about every level of big-screen buy-in covered.

Sony’s new big gun, the VPL-W5000ES.​

Headlining Sony’s new lineup is a heavyweight hitter with a suggested MSRP of $60,000. I had an opportunity to demo the VPL-W5000ES at CEDIA 2015 and must admit: the model delivers incredible light output and imaging capabilities. The VPL-W5000ES offers up to 5,000 lumens of light via a laser light source that offers instant on/off times and a linear decrease in brightness over the life of the projector (which helps to combat color shift seen with traditional lamps). It also offers full HDR compatibility, can emulate the new BT.2020 color gamut, and covers the full DCI color space. With full 4K output, High Dynamic Range, and Digital Cinema color space reproduction (which is larger than the current television standard of Rec. 709), the W5000ES appears to be primed to perform well into the future. Other features include onboard auto-calibration, motion interpolation modes, and – not surprisingly – HDCP 2.2 compatibility.

At nearly a tenth of the cost, Sony’s least expensive model hits the streets for $3,999. The VPL-W65ES is Sony’s lone 1080p model, featuring SXRD panels and processing technologies found on its more expensive 4K cousins. Sony has managed to kick-up expected lamp longevity to 6,000 hours on this entry model, as well as promising higher brightness output. The company says that the projector has a built-in RF 3D transmitter and a USB function for firmware updates.

The VPL-VW365ES features 4K output and improved color management.​

Sony’s other new projectors (VPL-665ES and VPL-VW365ES) hit slightly higher price points, with suggested MSRPs of $9,999 and $14,999. Both of these projectors are able to deliver native 4K resolution paired with High Dynamic Range. Similar to the W65ES, they have a lamp life rating of 6,000 hours with improved brightness capabilities. In line with other recent 4K products, both projectors ship with HDMI 2.0a inputs and HDCP 2.2 compatibility. On the calibration front, Sony says they carry full color management systems allowing fine tuning of red, green, and blue output.

"Ten years after introducing the world's first 4K projectors for the industry conversion from film-based to digital cinema in neighborhood theaters, Sony is releasing our next generation of 4K projectors for use in home theaters. These latest models continue to expand our support for enthusiasts and dealers with features like HDR and IP control," said Andre Floyd, Product Manager for projectors at Sony Electronics Inc. "By improving brightness, contrast and lamp life, and providing great calibration tools, we deliver users out-of-the-box optimized picture quality while enabling installation experts to tweak the image to meet the needs of a particular environment or a viewer's taste. Sony's 4K SXRD imaging technology remains the state of the art in home theater projection."

All of Sony’s new projectors are currently available for purchase. For more information, visit Sony on the web at www.sony.com.

Image Credits: Todd Anderson (Image 1), Sony Electronics (Image 2)

 

[Talley]

And so it begins.

I told myself that I would upgrade to 4K projection when I can buy the projector and 4K capable screen for $6k. Until then my BenQ will work just fine....

Today they are announced... which means It'll probably be 5 years before the prices come down to that $6k price range.

 

[Todd Anderson]

They'll come down sooner than you think...it's almost guaranteed that you'll see 4K/HDR capable projectors in the $3-$5K range within a year or two... no rush though, a properly calibrated 1080p projector still can look devastatingly great. ;-)

Sony is really pumping the 4K tag this year...with not so subtle digs at some of their immediate competition's use of non-native 4K-ish projection tactics (e.g. 4K e-shift). The market is being pulled toward 4K, whether justifiably beneficial or not to the end user... that means price wars are just around the corner.

 

[Talley]

Can't wait to see the end results for mainstream media. Wasn't the new bluray standard released yet?

 

[Todd Anderson]

Yes, it's been released. Look for players to start being revealed very soon!

 

[Zee]

They'll come down sooner than you think...it's almost guaranteed that you'll see 4K/HDR capable projectors in the $3-$5K range within a year or two... no rush though, a properly calibrated 1080p projector still can look devastatingly great. ;-)

Sony is really pumping the 4K tag this year...with not so subtle digs at some of their immediate competition's use of non-native 4K-ish projection tactics (e.g. 4K e-shift). The market is being pulled toward 4K, whether justifiably beneficial or not to the end user... that means price wars are just around the corner.

Agreed - I calibrated a Sony 1080p (can't remember the model name, but looks remarkably like the one in the pic above) projector for a client a couple of weeks back, and it calibrated to perfection, and it was one of the quickest calibrations I've done. The interface was pretty good, not too much to-ing and fro-ing, I was actually reasonably impressed.

On top of that, there is still no 4K source material in Aus, so 4k is pointless here...

Z...