The Quietest Projectors
Every maker publishes two noise figures, and the quiet one is the eco mode that costs you a third of the brightness. This list uses the normal-mode figure. It matters most in a small room or a bedroom, where the projector may be closer to your head than the speakers are.
How this list is ordered: Ranked on published fan noise in normal operating mode, not eco mode. 28 of the catalog’s projectors qualify. 1 of them is under a manufacturer safety recall — BenQ GV31 — and is marked in the list rather than removed from it, because the specification that put it here is still true.
1Epson
~$999Epson EpiqVision Mini EF22
A 1080p laser 3LCD cube on a rotating stand that swivels 150 degrees, so it can throw at a wall or straight up at the ceiling.
- Brightness
- 1,000lumensISO 21118
- Screen at 10 ft
- 134 in
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
2Sony
~$9,999Sony BRAVIA Projector 7
Sony's renamed successor to the XW5000ES, and the fix for its two biggest limitations: 4K/120 now works, and input lag drops to 12 ms.
- Brightness
- 2,200lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 62–100 in
- Input lag
- 12 ms
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
3Dangbei
~$949Dangbei DBOX02
Sold as the Mars Pro 2 in most markets: a 4K ALPD laser projector with licensed Google TV, 24 W of audio and a 30,000-hour light source, for under a thousand dollars.
- Brightness
- 2,450lumensISO 21118
- Screen at 10 ft
- 108 in
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
4Dangbei
~$319Dangbei Freedo
Dangbei's first battery projector with licensed Google TV: 3.1 lb, two hours of runtime, a rotating handle stand, and 24 dB operation that makes it the quietest battery projector in this catalog..
- Brightness
- 450lumensISO 21118
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Light source
- LED
5BenQ
~$1,199BenQ GP520
A 4K Google TV lifestyle projector with 2x12 W of audio, auto keystone and auto focus, designed to be carried to a wall and switched on.
- Brightness
- 2,600lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Input lag
- 18 ms
- Light source
- LED
6AWOL Vision
~$2,499AWOL Vision LTV-3000 Pro
The gaming ultra-short-throw: 15 ms at 4K/60 and 8 ms at 1080p/120, which is unheard of in a category where 30 to 50 ms is normal.
- Brightness
- 2,000lumensISO 21118
- 100-inch screen at
- 22 in
- Input lag
- 8 ms
- Light source
- Tri-laser
7BenQ
~$799BenQ GV50
A 4.6 lb laser portable on a tilting cradle that swings through 135 degrees, with Google TV and a 2.1 speaker system with its own bass driver.
- Brightness
- 500lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
8BenQ
~$599BenQ GV31Safety recall
A battery projector built around its speaker: a 2.1 system with an 8 W woofer in a 3.7 lb cylinder that runs three hours off the internal cell.
- Brightness
- 300lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Light source
- LED
9Optoma
~$999Optoma UHD35x
The cheapest way to get 4.2 ms of input lag and 3,600 ANSI lumens into a room.
- Brightness
- 3,600lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 83–92 in
- Input lag
- 8 ms
- Light source
- Lamp
10Optoma
~$1,066Optoma UHD38x
The UHD35x with the brightness turned up: 4,000 ANSI lumens from the same chassis, lamp and gaming path.
- Brightness
- 4,000lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 83–92 in
- Input lag
- 8 ms
- Light source
- Lamp
11Formovie
~$2,399Formovie Theater Premium
A tri-laser UST tuned for a dark room rather than a bright one: 2,200 ISO lumens, Dolby Vision, and a Bowers & Wilkins audio system.
- Brightness
- 2,200lumensISO 21118
- 100-inch screen at
- 18 in
- Light source
- Tri-laser
12XGIMI
~$1,429XGIMI Horizon S Max
XGIMI's brightest standard-throw lifestyle projector, on an integrated stand that tilts through a wide arc so it can throw from a coffee table to a high wall.
- Brightness
- 3,100lumensISO 21118
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Light source
- Hybrid
13XGIMI
~$949XGIMI Horizon S Pro
The Horizon S Max with the light engine turned down and the price cut by a third.
- Brightness
- 1,800lumensISO 21118
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Light source
- Hybrid
14XGIMI
~$1,699XGIMI Horizon Ultra
The first consumer projector to combine a laser and an LED source in one engine, and still one of the few lifestyle boxes with a powered optical zoom.
- Brightness
- 2,300lumensISO 21118
- Screen at 10 ft
- 92–115 in
- Input lag
- 18 ms
- Light source
- Hybrid
15Valerion
~$2,999Valerion VisionMaster Pro 2
An RGB tri-laser projector that behaves like a home-theater model: motorized lens shift, a 1.67x optical zoom, Dolby Vision, and 15 ms input lag at 4K/60.
- Brightness
- 3,000lumensISO 21118
- Screen at 10 ft
- 92–153 in
- Input lag
- 8 ms
- Light source
- Tri-laser
16Valerion
~$3,399Valerion VisionMaster Max
The brightest ISO-rated projector in this catalog at 3,500 ISO lumens, with ±55% motorized vertical lens shift, a 1.67x zoom and a published 5,000:1 native contrast figure — the only tri-laser projector here that publishes native contrast at all..
- Brightness
- 3,500lumensISO 21118
- Screen at 10 ft
- 92–153 in
- Input lag
- 8 ms
- Light source
- Tri-laser
17XGIMI
~$399XGIMI Elfin Flip
A flat slab with a hinged lens housing that flips up to aim at a wall or a ceiling, then folds shut to travel.
- Brightness
- 400lumensISO 21118
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Light source
- LED
18Anker Nebula
~$570Anker Nebula Capsule 3 Laser
The laser version of Anker's can-shaped projector: 1080p, 300 ANSI lumens, two hours of battery and licensed Google TV.
- Brightness
- 300lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
19Anker Nebula
~$420Anker Nebula Mars 3 Air
A battery projector with a proper carry handle and 16 W of stereo audio, aimed squarely at back yards and camping.
- Brightness
- 400lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Light source
- LED
20Dangbei
~$549Dangbei Atom
A 2.8 lb slab barely thicker than a paperback, with a laser engine putting out 1,200 ISO lumens — nearly three times what the LED portables of the same weight manage.
- Brightness
- 1,200lumensISO 21118
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
21Optoma
~$1,599Optoma UHZ55
Optoma's mainstream laser home-theater projector: 3,000 ANSI lumens, a 30,000-hour laser, a 1.3x zoom with a little vertical shift, and 20 W of built-in audio.
- Brightness
- 3,000lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 87–114 in
- Input lag
- 17 ms
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
22LG
~$1,299LG CineBeam Q
A 4K RGB tri-laser projector in a 3.3 lb aluminium cube with a swivel handle that doubles as a stand.
- Brightness
- 500lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Light source
- Tri-laser
23Epson
~$4,999Epson Pro Cinema LS12000
The projector that made 4K/120 gaming normal in a home theater.
- Brightness
- 2,700lumensISO 21118
- Screen at 10 ft
- 48–102 in
- Input lag
- 20 ms
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
24Optoma
~$1,895Optoma UHZ66
4,000 ANSI lumens from a 30,000-hour laser with a 1.6x zoom — the widest zoom range of any laser projector under $2,000 here.
- Brightness
- 4,000lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 61–98 in
- Input lag
- 9 ms
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
25Optoma
~$1,849Optoma UHZ35ST
A 0.50 throw ratio puts a 100-inch picture on the wall from about three and a half feet, which is closer than anything here except the true ultra-short-throws.
- Brightness
- 3,500lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 275 in
- Input lag
- 8 ms
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
26LG
~$2,999LG CineBeam HU715QW
LG's mainstream laser TV, running the same webOS as its televisions with all the streaming apps built in.
- Brightness
- 2,500lumensANSI
- 100-inch screen at
- 19 in
- Input lag
- 54 ms
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
27Anker Nebula
~$1,564Anker Nebula Cosmos Laser 4K
Anker's original 4K laser box, built on an ALPD 3.0 phosphor engine with a 25,000-hour rating and a carry handle.
- Brightness
- 1,840lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 108 in
- Light source
- Laser-phosphor
28Samsung
~$498Samsung The Freestyle 2nd Gen
A 1.8 lb cylinder on a cradle that rotates through 180 degrees, running the same Tizen platform as Samsung's televisions including the Gaming Hub.
- Brightness
- 230lumensANSI
- Screen at 10 ft
- 115 in
- Light source
- LED