A unique projector with an extremely
short throw ratio
Ratings: 3/5
Price: $737.5
Acer S1210
Acer S1210 is a unique
projector with an extremely short throw ratio and high 2,500-lumen brightness.
The projector's throw ratio measures how big an image can be projected compare
to the distance from the screen, and the S1210's throw ratio of 0.61 to 1 means
it can project a 60in screen at a distance of under 30in.
Although the big lens arises from the front of the S1210
point forward, actually it shows the images upwards so that the screen bottom
line is as high as the top of the projector. For that, you can put it on a
coffee table, or even put the projector on the floor in front of a wall, and it
is ideal when be hung onto the ceiling.
You will have to put the projector face to face to the
screen so that the top and bottom of your shown images are straight because the
projector doesn't have horizontal keystone control. Do not worry if the
projector is not located right in the vertical position, because there is the
vertical keystone. But keep in mind that adjusting this will degrade the image
quality.
2,500 lumens are extremely bright, which means the S1210
flashes through fluorescent lighting easily, creating a bright, colorful image even
under fluorescent neon light. Contrast is very good for this projector, but
such high brightness level affects black levels. However, in our test, you can
even see many details in dark areas of the images.
Color accuracy does not have a strong impact. Colors are
enforced to be better under harsh lighting, and the S1210 defaults setting has
warm color temperature. In our test images, skin color were red at the default
setting, so we changed the Color Temperature to the average setting. You may
also see that the DLP rainbow effect; which happens when showing black and
white films if you spread your eyes rapidly over the screen, and see individual
colors in the whirling DLP wheel.
When lights are off, colors are bold and bright, but often
too much. This can be seen most clearly in reflections and brightest areas -
light shining on skin can create a kind of twinkle green. However, movies often
benefit from larger-than-life colors, and Royal Casino looks nice. The only
problem is the projector's natural 4:3 aspect ratio - you can change it, but
image quality will be affected because the projector is forced to use a
non-natural resolution. This is clear in Windows, in which changing the
resolution from the natural 1,024x768 to 1,280x720 made text look blurred.
The S1210 is made for
presentations, rather than watching movies. The light costs not much, although
the projector takes 223W in use. However, it is expensive. The Epson EB-X11 has a bright light with horizontal
keystone adjustment and zoom and it creates no DLP's rainbow effect. It's also
about $155.3 cheaper, so it’s better unless you need the short distance of
showing.
Conclusion
Verdict: It has bright light and DLP color
technique, but you need to place it precisely.
Office projector: 1,024x768 resolution, 4000:1
contrast proportion, 2500 ANSI lumen, $0.04 (VAT included), 104x272x229mm,
2.7kg, 2-year RTB warranty (1 year for light).
Energy consuming: 1W for stand-by, 223W for
performing.
Choosing projector
Natural Resolution: 1024x768
Brightness: 1,000 ANSI lumens
Contrast proportion: 500:1
Light life: 2,000 hours
Test: weight, distance, noise
Follow these steps to
figure out your ideal configurations
Cheap projectors have 2 main sacrifices: Brightness
(measured by ANSI lumen) will be low and the natural resolution will be limited
at 1024x768. There would be no serious disadvantages if you want to use a
projector for presentation or DVD. For HD video, you need to prepare a
projector with resolution of 1280x720 as the lowest and 1 HDMI port or a DVI
port with HDCP standard.
The image quality is more important, but of course, it is
difficult to judge based on specs. The high contrast proportion (500:1) adds
depth to the images and that is the advantage of DLP projector rather than ones
using LCD technique. Optics quality and color balance cannot be evaluated
without a review.
Considerate the places you use the projector. Size and
weight are important if the unit is moved around. You should aim at a under-3
kg ones if mobility is the problem. Small rooms require silent projector (under
33dB) and the distant is flexible; it tells you how far the screen should be.
Most projectors can reflect or rotate its images to face being hung onto
ceiling.
Check if the projector can handle all the formats you want
it to show. The popular formats are supported by most projectors; HD VGA
signals and HDMI, however, may not be supported. The high-definition images
will be shown at their best with more expensive HD projectors.
The projector’s brightness will depend on where you need to
use it. 1,000-ANSI-lumen projectors are good for dark rooms. But you should use
a 1,300-ANSI-lumen projector for conference rooms. Remember that brighter
projectors will be more expensive because their lights need replacing more
regularly. ECO model increases the light’s life, but decreases the brightness.
