Fancy a home theatre projector that turns your room into a real theatre with the same colours you see at a cinema? One that is liquid cooled so that it does away with noisy fans that distract from the action on your large screen?
If you have S$84,000 to spare, and a room large enough to fit a screen and associated speakers, then Sony has what it claims is the best 4K projector out there now in the new VPL-VW5000ES.
The projector uses a laser light engine for projection instead of regular lamps in other projectors and can provide a touted 5,000 lumens of brightness.
Even in a brightly lit room, like during a demo today in Singapore, the VPL-VW5000ES doesn’t worry about images being washed out. When darkened, a home theatre room will work well with the projector.
Folks who want the latest bells and whistles can look to support for high dynamic range (HDR), which shows off the brightest parts of an image, say, sun beams reflecting from an ocean, and details from the darkest parts of a night scene.
The projector also emulates the new BT.2020 colour gamut as well as DCI (Digital Cinema Initiative) standard, which is used by Hollywood studios in a number of 4K Blu-rays. Depending on what you prefer, the projector can customise an image to your liking.
Certainly, from a viewing of The Martian and Life of Pi 4K Blu-rays today, I couldn’t fault the colour reproduction of either option. It’s down to your own preferences (read a good article here on colour).
I was most impressed by the motion though. There’s none of the judder you sense on a regular LED TV or older projector. Smooth throughout, the images from the VPL-VW5000ES reminded you of what you see at a cinema.
And perhaps mindful of the tight spaces that many Singaporeans live in, Sony folks said the rather large projector could be installed in relatively small rooms. It can be tilted as much as 30 degrees as well as fit in many off-centre setups, so you have options when placing it in a room.
Okay, I don’t think it’d fit in a typical HDB room, especially new ones that are so small today, but if you are lucky enough to have a large room to convert into a home theatre or man cave (or woman cave), then Sony wants to sell you a projector that replicates the best experience you have had at a cinema in the privacy of your home.
I’ve seen several projectors before but this 4K one shows off the detail that the higher resolution offers. Now with 4K content coming onboard through Netflix and others, you’d have more stuff to use the projector for.
Night scenes on a demo reel on Las Vegas today really impressed me with their colour, contrast, detail and smooth motion as the camera tracked and panned.
Now, if I have S$84,000 in the bank and money left over for a new house for this projector…
