thoughts? i was bored and paging through tigerdirect's catalogue and saw their "hi-res" screens and hdtv projectors...getting a pretty nice system seemed to cost $280 for the screen (100" widescreen, motorized with remote) and about $2000 for the projector (hdtv ready, 1500 lumens, projects from rear or front depending on the screen)...okay, so that's what, $2300 for a 100" widescreen setup?

assuming you have the space, how does this compare to, say, a 50" widescreen hdtv flat panel (the cheapest being some brand name i've never heard of - maxent at best buy for $2600)?

i KNOW there's got to be a quality difference, i just don't know how severe it would be, and what the main disadvantages would be

i did NOT bother to search for this topic already, and i didn't feel like googling it (besides, i'd rather have the opinion of people i can meet face to face if i REALLY wanted to)

2/18/2006 3:16:34 PM

I'm not sure what the difference would be but I would be concerened with the life of the bulb/bulbs for the projector and the replacement cost. Might want to factor that in also.

2/18/2006 3:28:54 PM

paging Quinn

2/18/2006 3:30:38 PM

the $400 bulbs every coupel years turned me off.

2/18/2006 3:39:49 PM

most projectors don't have sound, or sound that'd you'd want to use for that kind of viewing.

3000 hour bulb life will last you 1.6 years watching 5 hours a day every single day.
however, $400 for a new bulb gets you back to where you started compared to buying another $2500 tv if something breaks or pixels die.

i personally love having a projector, but i also have a standard crt tv for every day tv watching.

2/18/2006 4:10:52 PM

Quote :

"the $400 bulbs every coupel years turned me off."

Yes this can be an issue for some people.

You will be replacing the bulb in rear projection DLPs as well however (projecter in a box).


I think if you are serious about a projecter you should look at the 900u by panasonic or the z4 by sanyo. I think you can swing the 900 for around 1300-1400 after rebate which is pretty much a no brainer. If you want to wait and consider the DLP the in76 ships mid march, and optoaomtma however the fuck you spell it has a few 720dlp models in the low 2000 range.

I personally love front projection and would recommend it to anyone who doesnt watch tv in a green house. Once you get it setup, you will have a hard time viewing anything else.

Make sure you buy something with 720p native if you can afford it (which it sounds like you can). The 280$ screen isnt a "must have" and some cloth from joaans will tide you over until you decide on one or like me never change.


Personally im going to decide between the z4,900, in76, and HD72.


Check out:
visual apex: http://www.visualapex.com/
avsforum: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/forumdisplay.php?f=68

I wouldnt recommend buying anything from tiger direct, as watching movies and displaying power point in lecture halls are different affairs. They might have something like an infocus 4805 which is a sweet little unit, although 480p.

Good luck





Yeah, the projecter we currently use , is used for all tv viewing. It gets quite a work out but ill gladly pay the 350$ luxury tax every 2 years.

[Edited on February 18, 2006 at 4:15 PM. Reason : .]

2/18/2006 4:12:36 PM

thanks for the advice...i WISH i could afford it, this is information for my girlfriend's parents, and with as much tv and movie watching they do (mostly movies), i thought they would benefit from having a slightly more advanced setup if the price/quality wasn't too different

thanks again!

2/18/2006 4:36:35 PM