720p Projector under Rs 30000

[arnprasad]

I am trying on all fronts - lets hope for the best.

I am no videophile for sure. I got my 50XT50 for 50K and I think this is the best TV in the world in terms of VFM. - that speaks for itself!!

And frankly I dont need a projector coz I rarely watch movies seriously. I am just buying it coz I am in between jobs - dont have anything better to do - watched few threads on projectors and got hooked - my family will kill me for this - but i am hoping playing tennis on WII on a 120 inch wall should be fun

 

[avink]

Just FYI for the folks tracking this thread - I contacted Optoma India to inquire about the PJ availability and pricing in Indian market . I got a call from them and they told me - "HD66/HD20 are EOL products(they have stopped the production) and are not available in Indian market. HD66 has been replaced by GT750 and is available in India @ around 70K!"

 

[arnprasad]

On Amazon thats less than 700 dollars and it has 3d inbuilt and only needs glasses costing 25 dollars each - not bad compared to hd66 at 550 dollars

 

[prosenjit]

yah its double than in us...simple calculation....so frustrating..anyway arnprasad I think your tv is best buy I have ever heard...50 inch at 50k..wow.wish I cud buy it.

 

[avink]

US trip has delayed a bit so i have more time to decide.
Based on comment from Optoma folks in India, I was wondering should I go for GT750e(selling for $678 on Amazon) instead of HD66. Though its about 7/8K INR expensive but being a newer one it may have some tech. advancements over HD66. OR it doesn't really matter.

Thoughts? ..esp. rajdeep since you seems to be most informed and helpful when it comes to PJ advice in this forum.

 

[rajadeep]

Well I do my research before buying just like everyone else... But I do like to share my views here from time to time... Anyway I am pretty sure the Indian Optoma ppl have u confused... The model previous to GT750 was GT720 & GT700 before that... Its a totally diff line of projectors... It comes under the 3D 720p category... I no most 720p projectors claim to be "3D ready" but this is probably the only 3D projector I no which runs 3D out of the box without needing a expensive converter box of a high end Graphics card from a PC... It is quite a unique product & I believe it has no peers... Anyway if u want a Cheap extremely good VFM 3D projector than GT750 is a right way to go... But if u are like me & dont care about 3D then buy a good 2D 720p projector like HD66/H5360/others or if u are willing to push to the $700-800 range there are some fine 1080p offerings launched this year in that segment that are available at killer prices... I myself went for a refurbished 1080p projector from Epson(8500UB)... Its a 2 yr old model & is 2D only but considering its fantastic picture quality & amazing price it was a steal(only $1100) ... Epson is one of the few companies I know of which provide a 2yr warranty even on their refurbished products... Although it is of little use to me here in India, it does tell me that the product is atleast trust worthy... The other projector I was considering is the recently launched Acer H6500 which has received good review & is extremely bright... Best price I saw for it was $730 (which was fantastic)... But if u just was good 2D performance at a cheap price than HD66/H5360 is the way to go... BTW if u have a bit of ambient light H5360 might be a better choice... Not saying HD66 does not perform satisfactorily with some ambient light... I recently visited Santy to chk out his HD66 on a sunday afternoon... I posted a video taken by a cellphone of the HD66 in action here ... Mind u it was the afternoon & light was peaking for the curtains behind us but the HD66 still performed fantastically(even with its brightness being @just 43/100) ... Hope this helps rather than confusing it even more for u ...

 

[arnprasad]

the 420 dollar offer on Newegg is not available although today was supposed to be the last day. But Amazon now is offering it and it has it in stock. I too am confused between 5360 and the Optoma 3d. Since Optoma is closer to 700, i am worried customs folks may play spoilsport since its a friend who will be getting for me. Do you think 5360 today and may be the 3D convertor after 1 year will be same as the Optoma 3d one?

 

[arunsankar]

the 420 dollar offer on Newegg is not available although today was supposed to be the last day. But Amazon now is offering it and it has it in stock. I too am confused between 5360 and the Optoma 3d. Since Optoma is closer to 700, i am worried customs folks may play spoilsport since its a friend who will be getting for me. Do you think 5360 today and may be the 3D convertor after 1 year will be same as the Optoma 3d one?

If I was in your situation, I would've picked 5360 without a second thought. 420$ is a sweet sweet deal. 3D is a nice have, not a deal breaker anyway. Also, these DLP 3-D ready PJ's are quite good at it. Am using one on my HTPC with Stereoscopic Player and it serves me well for 3D.

 

[avink]

thanks rajadeep. I think I have pretty much made my mind and will be going for HD66. will place my order sometime next week. I will also be ordering the 25' HDMI (that Amazon is suggesting).

I wont be mounting it yet but are the mounts model/brand specific. Are they easily available in India if and when i decide to mount it.

 

[vinay]

It is a bad idea to buy a additional bulb because the original bulb will mostly last it's full life of a full 3 to 4 years depending upon the usage etc and what if you want to upgrade for a better projector after 2 years or so?

It is any day good to project the image on a screen instead of a bare wall and ideally projector should be ceiling mounted. To view movies in 720/1080P via projector is much better then going for lower qualities.

V.

(2) Cost of additional bulbs
(7) Best projector for display on a normal wall
8) 95% of the viewing will be Wii (480i??) or Tata Sky HD channels. Other High def would be 1-2 GB rips and the occasional 10GB rips. Blu rays are very very rare
(9) most probably I will NOT have it wall mounted.

 

[arnprasad]

It is a bad idea to buy a additional bulb because the original bulb will mostly last it's full life of a full 3 to 4 years depending upon the usage etc and what if you want to upgrade for a better projector after 2 years or so?

It is any day good to project the image on a screen instead of a bare wall and ideally projector should be ceiling mounted. To view movies in 720/1080P via projector is much better then going for lower qualities.

V.

Thanks. As of now - the room I plan to use it is a kind of temporary (although its been around for 10+years now) - made up of grill and covered by fibre glass. Eventually I plan to build a room in maybe 3 mths time - once I do that maybe I will have it wall mounted. Till I build a permanent room, I will have to use it on a table or stool..Thx

 

[arnprasad]

the 5360 which was on sale on new egg till 12th for 420 was listed on Amazon for 420 till today morning ( although it wasnt in stock) - now they have bumped it up to 524 and equalled it to the Optoma 66!!! that is some increase in one day - guess it makes sense to buy the Optoma instead.

 

[rajadeep]

Err I did kinda warn u it was on a limited time sale on newegg & amazon was just price matching it ... anyway better luck next time...

 

[avink]

Finally, I made the purchase - HD 66.

One of my colleagues will be bringing it over this week. The price was $534 but was charged $46 as sales tax ??. I haven't seen this before on Amazon..may be there was change in taxation recently.

waiting anxiously for my PJ to arrive

 

[rajadeep]

Sales tax is charged by Amazon in the following states in the US... If ur frnds ordered it & had it delivered to any of the following states then u have to pay sales tax... Too bad u could have easily ordered from another website & saved urself those $40-50... Well what ever works for u...

California
Kansas
Kentucky
New York
North Dakota
Pennsylvania
Texas
Washington

 

[avink]

Sales tax is charged by Amazon in the following states in the US... If ur frnds ordered it & had it delivered to any of the following states then u have to pay sales tax... Too bad u could have easily ordered from another website & saved urself those $40-50... Well what ever works for u...

yep..that's what I figured out later. But I have placed orders in the past and those were not taxed. I think it also depends who is the seller, if the seller is Amazon, whose warehouse is in Nevada, they get taxed. My past purchases were also delivered in California but the sellers were not amazon and may be that's why it wasn't taxed.

Anywaz..reliability of speed/delivery were my main concerns since the person was leaving within 3 days. It has been delivered and will be in my hands next Monday..just in time for T20 WC

 

[Santy]

Congrats avink... You made a wise choice. Its a good projector for its price. Enjoy the big screen experience!

 

[kaptan]

Can we have a same video experience what we feel in theaters from this projector.

 

[arnprasad]

Can we have a same video experience what we feel in theaters from this projector.

good question and I was wondering whether we can get a second hand theatre projection unit and some real film reels and use it at home - not sure if such projectors can project at 120 inches or they only project at screens which are tens of feet

 

[kaptan]

good question and I was wondering whether we can get a second hand theatre projection unit and some real film reels and use it at home - not sure if such projectors can project at 120 inches or they only project at screens which are tens of feet

Wat I am intended to ask is the picture quality not the size.