Epson EMP-822 review

Office projectors are broadly divided into two types: some are designed for permanent installation, while others are meant to be lugged from room to room or place to place.

Epson's impressive EMP-822 certainly fits into the former category, although it has a number of features that make it suitable for projecting from a desk as well as being ceiling-mounted.

The first thing we noticed was the convenient sliding door on the front of the projector. This covers both the lens and manual focus and zoom controls, so they can't be knocked when not in use. Sliding it shut turns off the bulb and mutes audio from the built-in speaker. It's very handy for quickly bringing the audience's attention back to you when you're in the middle of a presentation.

Open the sliding door and the lamp can output an impressive 2,600 lumens, enough for your presentation to be clearly visible in even brightly lit rooms. The built-in speaker is also impressively loud, and sufficient for presentations in medium-sized rooms, although it does tend to distort low notes at over half-volume.

There are plenty of inputs on the rear, the most important of which are the two VGA connectors with matching mini-jack inputs, so you can permanently attach a PC and keep a spare input for laptop users. A VGA output means you can use a second monitor, or projector, and a mini-jack output lets you connect proper speakers if needed. There are no digital inputs, however.

The infrared receivers on the front and rear allow you to control the projector from almost any angle. However, there's no USB port for controlling your computer's mouse from the remote control. A network port allows administrators to control the projector remotely, and it can even be configured to send out emails warning of problems or servicing requirements, such as a replacement lamp.

The bright lamp means the EMP-822 is noisier, at 35dBA, than most projectors, but this becomes a whisper-like 28dBA in the 2,080-lumens economy mode. This also increases bulb life from 3,000 to 4,000 hours. Economy mode works out at 7.5p an hour.

Bright bulbs and LCD technology don't combine to give great contrast; the EMP-822's 400:1 ratio is average. The Micro-Lens Array (MLA) means more light makes it from the bulb to the screen, and a smoother and more natural picture than on most 1,024x768 projectors we've seen. Colours are bright and vibrant, too, and we saw no serious problems in any test images.

The EMP-822 is a good choice for permanent installation in a small or medium-sized meeting room. Its powerful built-in speaker and Ethernet connection will make life easier for both users and administrators. This projector is also very reasonably priced given these extras, and is a good buy.