When it comes to an installation home theater systemFrom watching matches on a giant screen to playing our favorite games at the maximum possible diagonal, two technological trends are the options that the market currently offers us: large format televisions and projectors.

Until a few years ago, TVs were far, far away in terms of screen sizes, and users only had the option of opting for the projector if we wanted to get what we wanted. Diagonals of 80 inches or more. However, with the development of both LCD and OLED panel production technologies, it is possible to find giant TVs in stores that compete almost head-to-head with projectors.

If we have never been able to compare both types of devices, the question may arise: Which one offers me better quality and suits my usage pattern better? Next we will review: advantages and disadvantages of both options To see if televisions are actually a realistic option compared to projectors.

Fair competition: A projector needs a good screen

Image: Leica

Before moving on to their advantages and disadvantages, it should be emphasized that in order for the comparison to be fair, the projectors have a good screen to reveal its full potential.

If we want our projector to show its full quality, most of the sheets, blinds, curtains and fabrics we have at home are not good options; because apart from being translucent and losing some of the emitted light, there is a decrease in brightness and brilliance. On the contrary, they will have textures and/or colors or folds This worsens image quality and may not reflect light at the correct angle, resulting in worse images.

Additionally, it is generally not recommended to use any untreated wall we have in our home, no matter how smooth it is. This is a quick solution but if we want to choose this option Flawless, textured, beautiful or similar and of course should be uniformly painted in white or gray tone.

We should also remember that painting the wall for use with a projector is not as simple as what we do to decorate the living room. It is necessary do not leave roller or brush marks (it is better to use a spray gun if possible) and get a very smooth surface. Otherwise, light will be reflected unevenly, creating tone spots or bands in the image that will worsen the perceived quality.

For all these reasons, the best option to get the most out of the projector is let’s accompany it with a good screen This allows us to extract maximum contrast, brightness and detail from the pixels, especially if we want a 4K model.

Projectors and televisions: advantages and disadvantages

The most important difference between both types of devices is ambient light. The main limitation of projectors over television is that they require a private or semi-private room. absolute control of ambient light.

traditional projector needed the dark Unlike televisions, which can be used in rooms with natural and artificial light, in recent years more and more manufacturers (such as Epson or Hisense) are betting on complete projection systems with screens that reject ambient light. It needs to be completely dark and maintain excellent contrast; Laser or LED lighting, which has more light power than classic lamps, also helps this.

Despite this, televisions are still the king of light output. If we want to use the screen in a room with windows that we cannot close, during the day and with light, projectors are still an option that is not recommended and we should choose it. a large format television. Even in low light conditions, where projectors can perform relatively well, televisions provide us with better contrast and above all, higher quality high dynamic range or HDR If we choose a model OLED and LCD FALD with many control zones.

Image: TCL

HE maximum diagonal size What we can achieve is the basic classic advantage of projectors. If we search for something Over 100 inches diagonal Unless we have a very large budget and prefer a large format television that is already available for sale with a miniLED panel, such as this TCL model, our choice will continue to be almost entirely limited to projectors.

A variant of the previous feature is the screen size-price ratio. Projectors generally continue to deliver the best cross price relationship It’s about televisions. TVs larger than 75 inches increase their prices significantly, forcing us to opt for a lower range if we don’t want to spend a fortune.

Image: BenQ

feeling of immersion in the movie What a projector can provide us over a television, even if it is large format, is one of the main advantages of these systems. The projector is clearly superior, but not only because of its larger size, but also because the light reaches us indirectly, being reflected on the screen, and as a result many users more natural and creates less visual fatigue than televisions offer.

The next point to consider is equipment durability. Projectors traditionally use short-life lamps, forcing us to buy a rather expensive replacement part every time. 1,500 or 2,000 actual hours use.

Fortunately, the situation has changed significantly and classic lamps now offer an average lifespan. more than 5,000 hours (some even have special mods that extend this time to over 10,000). However, in addition to this, projectors based on lighting systems have also emerged in recent years. LEDs or laser Their lifespan is approximately 20,000 or 30,000 hours.

However, in this sense, televisions well above this figure and some manufacturers estimate the average lifespan of their panels at 100,000 hours; This guarantees decades of use with a good gloss level.

Other classic flaws in projectors “grid effect” And “rainbow effect”. The first refers to the visualization of the structure of pixels at short and medium distances. On HD-Ready models and even some Full HD, this could take us back years, but with new technologies and improvements in resolution, this could take us back years. 4K models This (whether real or pixel shifting) is no longer a problem.

It refers to the rainbow effect appearance. colorful works In projectors with DLP technology. This is an inherent problem with the technology, caused by the spinning of the color wheels. However, it has been significantly improved in recent years with a greater number of color filters, but it is still advisable to try such models before buying to see if we are sensitive to this defect, because not everyone can detect it. .

Cover photo | Alex Litvin

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