NEC MultiSync LT25 review

NEC's MultiSync LT25 is a portable projector designed to be carried around.

It is not as small as the latest pocket projectors, such as Toshiba's TDP-P8 (reviewed in What's New, Shopper March 2006), but it weighs just 2kg and comes with a carry case so it's almost as easy to transport.

One of the problems with changing meeting rooms constantly is getting the projector set up; NEC has tried to make it as painless as possible. The LT25 has automatic keystone correction and auto focus. Just place the projector on a desk and you'll get a good image. There's also an option to select the background colour, which is useful for compensating for colour variances caused by projecting on to walls. Finally, the quick turn-off feature saves time when you're packing up. In our tests, the LT25 took just 16 seconds to power off, which is quicker than most notebooks.

There's a PC control port, so you can control the projector via a PC and use the remote control for mouse clicks, but no cable is provided. It's also a serial connection, so you need a PC or notebook with a serial port on it. A USB connection would be better. There are only D-sub, composite and S-video inputs. Picture quality over the D-sub connection was good, but we had to adjust the clock and phase settings manually to get the best picture.

The LT25 uses a 0.7" DLP chip that provides a native resolution of 1,024x768. Strangely, it has a contrast ratio of only 1,500:1, while most DLP projectors have at least 2,000:1. This could be the cause of the problems we saw in high-contrast regions of the picture. Otherwise, performance was fine, with excellent colour reproduction, particularly in our colour wheel test. There was little evidence of the rainbow effect, except in high-contrast screens.

NEC's LT25 has an great range of quick setup features, but a USB PC connection and better text quality would make it a more appealing prospect.

Author: David Ludlow