Sanyo demonstrates its first 1080p projector at CES

 

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Posted on 8 Jan 2008 at 00:23

There's been a lot of talk at CES this year concerning the possible tipping point in the Blu-ray and HD-DVD format war, see here. Both formats store movies at a 1080p resolution, and so you'll need a 1080p display to see every detail. It made perfect sense, therefore, to take time out from the show floor and attend Sanyo's demonstration of its first 1080p home cinema projector, the PLV-Z2000.

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Sanyo has been producing excellent LCD-based 720p projectors for some years now, with the current PLV-Z5 being the only thing we've seen to rival Panasonic's PT-AX200. Because of this we were optimistic about this 1080p model. Initial impressions didn't dissapoint, with the dynamic iris providing a 15,000:1 contrast ratio that brought Pixar's Ratatouille to life. It's very hard to judge a projector's image quailty without a head to head comparison, however.

What's easier to appreciate is the excellent design and easy of use. The lens has a 2x zoom and an excellent lens shift system, so you can set up it up in a wide variety of situations. More innovative is the lens shift lock button, so you don't change the screen's position accidentally, and an automatic sliding door to keep dust off your lens when it's not in use. The remote is well designed and lights up for use in the dark.

Inputs are identical to those on the PLV-Z5, with two HDMI and two component inputs, plus D-sub, composite and S-video. It's dissapointing not to see a SCART input for connecting a Freeview box. Though with a projector like this we'd seriously suggest an upgrade to either Sky or Virgin's HD services.

The 1200 lumen bulb will require a fairly dark room to function well, but the lower power means that noise is kept down a low 19dB, we certainly couldn't here it over the sound leaking into the room from the hectic show floor. The projector has just become available in the UK, and costs around £1800 inc VAT.

Author: Seth Barton in Las Vegas