Drive-in movies have all but faded from existence with the exception of a couple places, but the experience of watching a moving underneath the stars has certainly not gone into the sunset! In fact, outdoor movie theatres are a massively growing market spurned on by projectors that continue to improve in offering quality images and brightness. If you are considering taking your movie experience outdoors, here are some great outdoor projectors to bring your flicks to life…
Best Choice: Acer H5380BD, $549.99
Acer’s entry into the home theatre market has been quite successful, especially with the unit that they originally released in 2013. Retailing for around $550, the H5380BD offers 720P video through its DLP projection system that puts out about 3,000 lumens. The system is 3D ready, offers ColorBoost II+, and has an instant resume featured within the first 2 minutes. This unit is also ecofriendly, with the ability to control the brightness and extend the lamp life beyond its 5,000 hours on standard mode – up to 10,000 on ExtremeEco mode. For $550, you are getting a projector that can really do no wrong!
Great Choice: LG PA77U WXGA 3D, $699.99
This slightly smaller projector only puts out 700 lumens through LED, but is ideal for apartments where you might only have a small deck for your projector setup. Plus, with an LED light source, your bulb will last up to 30,000 hours. The LG projector comes with a built-in Smart TV Tuner, which connects to Netflix, Vudu and can even pick up signals from local digital OTA channels – in Toronto, that is quite a few great channels! The system puts out video in slightly higher format that 720p, and as the name says it is 3D capable.
Good Choice: Epson 730HD, $649.99
The Epson 730HD is a great indoor/outdoor projector that retails for about $650. This unit features design elements exclusively present to improve the quality of the image. Putting out 3,000 lumens of light on colours and in brightness, this unit is quite a lot brighter than others in the same price range. With a built-in speaker, 720p resolution, and a simple set-up, the Epson 730HD’s only drawback may be its higher price point. However, when you consider it is ready to project a 300′ screen, perhaps that is not a concern at all.
Good Choice: JVC DLA-X35, $3,500.00
Now we get into a higher price range with the JVC DLA-X35 unit selling for about $3,500. The system features an outstanding 50,000:1 contrast ratio, and puts out video at 1080p resolution. It has a motorized zoom lens that assists with sizing your video correctly, and has a built-in 4th generation optical engine. The system is 3D-ready with anamorphic capabilities, parallax adjustment, and even does 2D-3D conversion. If price is no issue, the JVC DLA-X35 should be on your short list.
Will you be using an outdoor projector this summer? Let us know in the comments below or tweet us @ViewTheVibe.
