Home theater projectors

Long-throw projectors for a room you can darken, mounted or shelved behind the seats. This is where lens shift, real contrast figures and the biggest screens live.

15 models · 6 brands · $1,249–$16,999

Brightest on the ISO/ANSI scale: Optoma UHZ664,000 lumens
Cheapest of the type: BenQ HT2060~$1,249

Optoma~$1,895

Optoma UHZ66

Home theater · DLP · 4K pixel-shift

Brightness: 4,000lumensANSI
Screen at 10 ft: 61–98 in
Input lag: 9 ms

4,000 ANSI lumens
30,000-hour laser
1.6x zoom

Best for: A bright family room where the projector has to reach from the back wall

ViewSonic~$1,300

ViewSonic LX700-4K

Home theater · DLP · 4K pixel-shift

Brightness: 3,500lumensANSI
Screen at 10 ft: 95–130 in
Input lag: 17 ms

3,500 ANSI lumens
7.3 lb
1.36x zoom

Best for: Bright-room viewing from a shelf, without a mount

Epson~$7,999

Epson Home Cinema QB1000

Home theater · 3LCD · 4K pixel-shift

Brightness: 3,300lumensISO 21118
Screen at 10 ft: 48–102 in
Input lag: 20 ms

3,300 ISO lumens
4K/120 HDMI 2.1
20,000-hour laser

Best for: A large screen in a theater that cannot be made fully dark

BenQ~$2,999

BenQ HT4550i

Home theater · DLP · 4K pixel-shift

Brightness: 3,200lumensANSI
Screen at 10 ft: 92–120 in
Input lag: 18 ms

3,200 ANSI lumens
Lens shift on DLP
100% DCI-P3

Best for: A bright media room that wants wide-gamut color without a lamp

Epson~$1,399

Epson Home Cinema 3800

Home theater · 3LCD · 4K pixel-shift

Brightness: 3,000lumensISO 21118
Screen at 10 ft: 64–104 in
Input lag: 21 ms

3,000 ISO lumens
Optical lens shift
4K pixel-shift

Best for: A first real home-theater projector where the mount has to go off-centre

Optoma~$1,599

Optoma UHZ55

Home theater · DLP · 4K pixel-shift

Brightness: 3,000lumensANSI
Screen at 10 ft: 87–114 in
Input lag: 17 ms

3,000 ANSI lumens
30,000-hour laser
+10% lens shift

Best for: A first laser projector for a mixed-use room under $2,000

Epson~$1,399

Epson Home Cinema 2350

Home theater · 3LCD · 1080p

Brightness: 2,800lumensISO 21118
Screen at 10 ft: 63–103 in
Input lag: 18 ms

2,800 ISO lumens
1080p, no pixel shift
Streaming built in

Best for: A bright living room where a shelf at the back of the room is the only place a projector can go

Epson~$4,999

Epson Pro Cinema LS12000

Home theater · 3LCD · 4K pixel-shift

Brightness: 2,700lumensISO 21118
Screen at 10 ft: 48–102 in
Input lag: 20 ms

2,700 ISO lumens
4K/120 at ~20 ms
20,000-hour laser

Best for: A dedicated theater that is also a console gaming room

JVC~$16,999

JVC DLA-NZ800

Home theater · D-ILA · Native 4K

Brightness: 2,700lumensANSI
Screen at 10 ft: 50–101 in

2,700 ANSI lumens
100,000:1 native contrast
8K e-shiftX

Best for: A purpose-built theater where contrast is the entire brief

Epson~$2,299

Epson Home Cinema 5050UB

Home theater · 3LCD · 4K pixel-shift

Brightness: 2,600lumensISO 21118
Screen at 10 ft: 48–102 in
Input lag: 23 ms

2,600 ISO lumens
Motorized lens with memory
Dynamic iris

Best for: A dedicated dark room, especially a 2.35:1 scope screen driven by lens memory

BenQ~$1,249

BenQ HT2060

Home theater · DLP · 1080p

Brightness: 2,300lumensANSI
Screen at 10 ft: 92–120 in
Input lag: 33 ms

2,300 ANSI lumens
20,000-hour LED
98% Rec.709

Best for: A movie-first 1080p setup that should never need a lamp

JVC~$8,999

JVC DLA-NZ700

Home theater · D-ILA · Native 4K

Brightness: 2,300lumensANSI
Screen at 10 ft: 68–109 in

2,300 ANSI lumens
80,000:1 native contrast
Lens memory

Best for: A serious dark-room theater with a scope screen

Sony~$9,999

Sony BRAVIA Projector 7

Home theater · SXRD · Native 4K

Brightness: 2,200lumensANSI
Screen at 10 ft: 62–100 in
Input lag: 12 ms

2,200 ANSI lumens
12 ms at 4K/120
24 dB — quietest large model

Best for: A theater that doubles as the best console room in the house

JVC~$5,999

JVC DLA-NZ500

Home theater · D-ILA · Native 4K

Brightness: 2,000lumensANSI
Screen at 10 ft: 68–109 in

2,000 ANSI lumens
Native 4K D-ILA
40,000:1 native contrast

Best for: A light-controlled theater where black level decides the picture

Sony~$5,999

Sony VPL-XW5000ES

Home theater · SXRD · Native 4K

Brightness: 2,000lumensISO 21118
Screen at 10 ft: 62–100 in
Input lag: 21 ms

2,000 ISO lumens
Native 4K SXRD
X1 Ultimate processing

Best for: A dark room where picture processing matters more than peak brightness