Dim bulb? How about no bulb!

Specialist video maker Runco QuantumColor Q-750i and Q-750d front projectors got a lot of attention at last year's CEDIA, as they’re the company’s first offerings that include a trio of high-output, light-emitting diodes that provide the light source, in lieu of the traditional high pressure lamp.

LED will set you free

It's a beefy looking thing, this projector. It's not much larger than other high-end single chippers, but there's something about its boxy, ribbed design that makes it a little more commanding than others. This is a good thing, I think. If you're going to spend 15 large on a projector, it should look the part.

Its claim to fame, though, is not its size or aesthetics, but its light source. Three little LEDs—making all the light needed to fill your big screen.

Big Big Screen
Stewart Filmscreen's Cabaret and StudioTek 100 combine for a 130-inch big-screen experience.

I scoff at your puny big screen. I am amused by your 42-, 50- and 60-inch TVs. These are not big screens. These are just TVs. Go big or go home as people I don't like often say.

But go big I have, with a 130-inch diagonal screen.

Something Old, Something New, Something Red, Green and Blue

I have this déjà-vu feeling that I've reviewed this projector before. And in some ways, I have. Much of this projector is very similar to the VW70 I reviewed last year, which itself was similar to the VW60 and the 50 and so on.

Each generation, though, has had notable and noticeable improvements, each a step up from its predecessor. The new VW85 brings us a big jump not just in contrast ratio or brightness, but in resolution.

The best gear of the year, as picked by the editors of Home Entertainment.

Going Pro

There’s a new top pick in Epson’s already-crowded 3LCD projector line.

The Pro Cinema 7500UB utilizes the company’s most advanced imaging technologies and has its most thorough assortment of features, yet it carries a price tag of just $4,199.

Leave the lights on

If you’re considering a front projection system for your home theater but don’t have a dedicated light-controlled environment to put it in, you may want to check out one of the new high-contrast screens like Screen Innovations Black Diamond II.

Using a special screen design, these screens minimize ambiant light while still giving you a bright and punchy projected image.

Three. Two. The One.

Aptly named after the mythological Greek sun god, the helios is outfitted with not one but two 330-watt UHP lamps. These can be operated in single- or dual-lamp modes according to light output requirements.

This flexibility affords a wide range of installation and usage options, including the ability to have the projector put out a sufficiently bright image that allows daytime viewing in a high ambient light environment or dropping light output by half or more for nighttime viewing.

Real Wide Screen and No More Black Bars

One of the most common questions I get is about the black bars that appear above and below the image with many movies.

After all, a spiffy new HDTV and Blu-ray player will banish the black bars we had with DVDs and old TVs, right? Nope.

But with the right projector, screen, and lens, you can have CinemaScope in your home.

And no more black bars.

The Sony VPL-VW70 does black, it does bright, it does color and above all, it does it quietly.

I’m not sure how Sony does it, but it seems like with each new generation of projector, they somehow make them quieter.

This is kind of like saying, walking barefoot on moss was quiet, but not walking barefoot on moss is even quieter.