Check out what the trial users are saying about the new BenQ 4K Home Projector

[Milo T-REX]

A desire for big-screen entertainment

Ever wished you could own a 100-inch screen in your home for an exceptionally immersive movie screening or feel the exhilaration of a soccer match up-close? Large screen TVs are way overpriced, but the right projector can pull this off handily and not even require a dark screen viewing room.

To that end, BenQ wanted to impress typical TV owners with entertainment-class projectors and let them feel what their projectors can do for their big screen viewing ambitions. 3 lucky HWZ members had a chance to do just that with BenQ’s 4K home entertainment projectors.


The BenQ 4K home entertainment projector proposition

Two of them had a chance to try out the BenQ TK800 high brightness projectors that are primed for bright room usage with 3000 lumens light output and have custom football and sports viewing modes to amp up the built-in speaker to deliver great audio without additional speakers or equipment. One other HWZ member was loaned the BenQ W1700 home cinema projector to trial out the projector’s CinematicColor feature thanks to its high speed RGBRGB color wheel for improved color performance at a reasonably bright light output of 2200 lumens and still features CinemaMaster Audio+ for clear and sensual sound output all from within the projector.

Let’s find out what they’ve found out from unboxing, to setup experience and actual performance!

If you've ever thought of augmenting your current TV with a projector setup, drop in your questions here and let the trial users help you out!

 

[deekay99]

BenQ W1700 4K HDR Cinematic Experience Projector

When I told my dad that HardwareZone is sending me a projector, he thought I’ve gone crazy. We live in a 4 room HDB flat. How are we going to fit a projector in our house?

Contrary to popular belief, you don’t really need a big house to have a projector. In fact, with the right placement, you can even save some space compared to using a traditional TV. As this is just a short review session, I didn’t really bother placing the projector in a space-saving position. But if you are buying a projector for your house, you can simply mount it on your ceiling and have a retractable projector screen.

The projector allows you to position your projector in 4 positions: front, rear, front ceiling and rear ceiling. This allows you to place the projector in a way that best suits your needs.

It is quite shiok to have a cinematic projector at home. Feels like a mini cinema. The only thing missing is a popcorn machine. Even though my living room is just the standard 4 room HDB flat size, I’m able to move the projector back enough to produce a large image. The experience is definitely better than having a TV.

And the video quality on the BenQ W1700 is surprisingly great. I never expect a home projector to be able to do 4K resolution. 4K video is crystal clear with accurate colour. You have to see it yourself to believe it.

The BenQ W1700 projector looks sleek with its white body and dark grey front panel. Setup is very easy. Simply take the projector out of the box, plug in the power and turn in on. You can adjust the focus, zoom and keystone easily via the remote. The remote is backlit which is great in a dark room.

The BenQ W1700 projector has quite a number of I/O options. There are 2 HDMI ports and a VGA port for those who are still using old devices. Having 2 HDMI port means that most devices out there are compatible with the BenQ projector. All Androids TV boxes and Apple TV support HDMI. If you want to connect your iPad or iPhone to the BenQ projector, just get a Lightning to Digital AV adaptor and you are good to go.

I think one of the best ways to enjoy the BenQ projector is to connect it with a Google Chromecast. The Chromecast allows you to cast Youtube or Netflix video to the BenQ projector. And there’s no need additional power plug for the Chromecast. The BenQ projector comes with a USB port that is able to power the Chromecast.

The BenQ W1700 projector comes with a pretty decent internal speaker. It’s loud enough to fill the entire living room. Great for presentation or an ad-hoc video viewing. But for a truly cinematic experience, you can connect a soundbar or surround sound speakers to the projector via the Audio Out port.

The thing that impressed me the most about the BenQ W1700 projector is the image quality. It is beautiful. The projector supports up to 4K resolution and is bright enough to use during daytime.

Pro-tip. You can actually watch free to air TV channels easily on the projector. Just get a Digital TV set-top box and you can watch all the MediaCorp program on a big projector screen. Say bye bye to your television.

As a whole, the BenQ W1700 is a great projector for home use. The short throw and aesthetically pleasing looks make it great for the HDB living room. Oh, and did I mention that the BenQ W1700 retails for S$2499. That’s a pretty good pricing for a home projector.

 

[appleuser79]

BenQ TK800 Big Screen Home Entertainment Experience Part 1 of 3

What Matters

Most of the time I find that projectors are associated with office setups for presentations that need a large screen. So when I got the chance to test out a 4K projector I jumped at it, honestly I was a bit skeptical about projectors but after some time with the BenQ TK800 I was proven likewise.

Using it for the trial period, I must say it impressed the family members who enjoyed the Cinema Effect in the HDB living room. Apart from that audio from the projector was clear and no complaints on being unable to hear the dialogue in the video.

Honestly I did not have time to go play around with throw distance, but BenQ provides you with a calculator to help get the optimum throw distance to get the best out of their projector. You can find out more at http://projectorcalculator.benq.com/

The BenQ TK800 is really a bang for buck 4K UHD projector, it was certified because the projector reaches the requirements for 4K output. While projectors usually work best in dark environments, the TK800 has a new 4K RGBW Color Wheel (RGBW) of which BenQ was able to push this projector up to 3000 lumens of brightness, allowing it to perform even in a lit environment, of course when I mention lit, it does not mean you have bright sunlight, indirect sunlight is fine.

The TK800 is priced at S$2,099, but I found it at about S$1,999 on some online portals. Frankly at that price, I’m quite impressed, for the price you are getting a 4K certified projector, good and loud audio as well as a projector that is bright enough to perform even with indirect sunlight.

Visuals

When I fired up the projector, I started YouTube to look for a 4K Soccer Match, I was pretty blown away by what I saw. Images were sharp and clear, colors were also reproduced well. You can see the sharpness of the images that were produced by the projector, just check out the projection captured by my camera, you can see the details such as facial hair, wordings etc.

Apart from Soccer I also fired up Netflix and played an episode of Terrace House, check out the text at the bottom, it was clear and not pixelated. Honestly even with ambient light the projector continued to perform well regardless of the content I pushed to it.

Even small details such as facial hair was noticeable when using the projector to watch drama from Netflix.

As the projector was tested in the living room I had to wait till night fall to test out the projector in a dark environment. Colors where brighter and images tend to be more vibrant given a darker environment.

Sound

I wanted to hear what the CinemaMaster Audio +2 was all about, testing it out on the soccer clip I loaded, I was pretty impressed! Without hooking it up to a sound system the projector was able to deliver decent loud audio without cracking. The sound output really felt like a stadium effect and you can hear the cheers around the stadium even through the projector. The sound was loud when I turned the volume half way, but me it was loud enough for me even at about volume 7 out of 30.

I guess the CinemaMaster Audio +2 that BenQ promotes delivers on its promises. Details are good and Bass is decent with the sound chamber technology.

The speaker is encased on the right side of the projector (when you see if from the front), this small little powerhouse is what is responsible for the audio that comes out of the projector, it’s quite amazing that BenQ was able to engineer this small speaker to product such a large sound.

Even when watching the episode of Terrace House, audio was clear and conversations can be heard without muffle. I must say if you do not have an audio system this will deliver good enough audio if you’re not looking for audiophile grade sound.

 

[appleuser79]

BenQ TK800 Big Screen Home Entertainment Experience Part 2 of 3

Contents and Outlook

The BenQ TK800 comes in a brown box, with a nice clean look.

The top of the box gives you an idea of the capabilities of the projector.

The contents of within are as follow, the projector, instruction manual, addendum pamphlet, AAA batteries, remote and power cable.

The remote got me stumped for a while, even with effort it was quite hard to push open. Finally I got it, placing your thumb at the arrow area, apply a bit of downward force and push, it should easily open up for you to put in the batteries.

The BenQ TK800 looks like a regular projector but what it has packed under the hood is what matters. The projector is a matte white finish, so no finger print magnets if you move the item around.

The front face plate is an electric blue color, which I must say is very vibrant and pleasing to the eyes. I personally like the look of the projector, matte is the way to go and I’m glad they choose to use a matte finish.

The projector comes with rubber feet and can be adjusted to the correct height for display if you are using it on a table top.

The projector also comes with manual adjustment knobs to help you fine tune the image and sharpness so that you get a clear and sharp 4K image.

The rear features a 2 HDMI ports, of which port 1 is HDCP 2.2 capable. VGA port for computers though I'm sure most use HDMI these days. It also has a USB port that delivers 1.5 amps of power, enough for an android box.

 

[appleuser79]

BenQ TK800 Big Screen Home Entertainment Experience Part 3 of 3

Setup

Setup of the projector is very straight forward, after plugging it in the projector asks a few questions to help you get it up and running.

Step 1: First is placement, so that it knows how to oriented the display and do auto keystone.

Step 2: Choose the language is the second step, of which I choose English as the language of choice. There are 28 languages to choose from.

Step 3: The final step is to select auto input, this will allow the projector to auto scan for inputs and use the device connected for project the image.

Without auto keystone the image looked wider at the top, much like the top shape. In order to auto adjust, you need to press the MODE button, that is the one located on the projector, but on the remote it is labeled as PIC MODE.

Connecting it up to my Apple TV, HDR worked out of the box so it helped to display better blacks making the visuals look even better.

One nuance I found is the startup time, it took about 30 – 45 seconds to get the display up and running, honestly, I did not know if it was warming up or stuck, perhaps a status display would be useful to help one know what is the current mode the projector is in. That being said, once you get used to operating the projector, it will be fine.

Final Thoughts

As mentioned at the start, I was a little apprehensive about using a projector as a display, but after spending some time with the projector, I would say that the quality of the BenQ TK800 is great and I can spend hours just watching content on the projector. I did not even have to hook it up to a sound system because the audio was just so clear and I did not have to strain my ears to hear the conversation by the characters in the show.

I think the BenQ TK800 is a good contender for the common LCD TVs, because where can you find a 100 inch 4K display, that supports HDR and have good quality sound at that price?

Of course, you need a white wall or projector screen to get the best out of the TK800, but honestly how much more can painting a wall or installing a projector screen cost you?

The only thing I felt that could have been included as a home option would be smart functions such as android capabilities so that all can be integrated into the projector without the need to hook up and external box, this would be extremely useful if you mount the projector so that one can just launch their favorite streaming app, sit back and enjoy the night with a big screen.

If you are considering a large display and have a tight budget, this would definitely be a good choice. Alternatively, this can be used to complement your current LCD TV screen, deployed when you want a larger screen when having friends over. Overall I feel the BenQ TK800 is a good value 4K projector that can perform well for a cinematic experience at home.

 

[b|uebe||]

BenQ TK800 4K Home Projector Review

As a gaming enthusiast , I have always been fascinated and love exploring the display aspects of visual contents. When I looked at what the TK800 projector offered, I was drawn in towards its unique set of features. TV screens with a 4K resolution and HDR rendering capability isn’t something that’s common in many households, not to mention on a projector. And that’s something I wanted to experience with my own eyes.
In short, the projector ended up matching, if not surpassing my initial expectations!

What you get in the box.

The projector has a solid white body and an aqua-blue front, an interesting contrast versus most other projectors in the market. That said, most AV devices like TVs, consoles, cable box, etc., are black, thus making the projector stand out with its outlook (if appearances are something of a concern for you).


The physical set up of TK800 is exceptionally streamlined

The bare minimum setup requires two cables: the supplied power supply cord goes to the power socket, and a HDMI or Displayport cable to the display/content output device.

I connected one end of the HDMI cable to the projector (left) and the other end to my PC (right). Since this projector supports 4K resolution content, you’ll likely be interested to stream 4K content from the internet and as such, you might want to ensure your display output device uses an Ethernet cable (where supported like in my PC system for example or your content streaming box) to really ensure the best connectivity is available.

Take note that there are two HDMI ports available on the projector, but only the first one (on the left) is capable of accepting 4K resolution content. So do remember to check that you’ve used the correct HDMI port to avoid any mismatch in expectations. Upon powering up the TK800 projector, it will auto-detect the active input to use and setup time is further cut down as it has its own onboard speaker for audio output. The entire physical setup was straightforward and took me no more than 10 minutes to get it up and running from the time of unpacking the projector.

Unfortunately, the battery cover is rather tight, and I had to use my fingernail to pry the top of the cover to open it.

One minor issue is the removal of the remote control cover (which is really tight) to put in the batteries. It was hard to slide the cover via brute force, so we struggled a little and finally removed the cover by inserting our fingernail at the top of the cover seam to pry it off for fear of breaking the thin cover.

You can configure the various settings by the control pad on the projector itself (left photo) or the remote controller.

Once your content source is powered on along with your projector, proceed with the projector set up to optimize the viewing experience. Turn the focus and zoom rings (which only take a couple of seconds) until you are satisfied with the focus and viewing area. At this point, the setup should be sufficient enough for most people. You could further fiddle with the settings, such as adjusting the keystone, viewing mode and much more. Fortunately, navigating the menu was rather easy to facilitate any setup needs.

This was photo was taken in a bright room. As you can see, there’s a variety of settings you can utilize to enhance the viewing experience. Don’t let this photo fool you though as the projection looks great in-person.

BenQ touted the bright display (of 3000-lumen output capability) of the projector as one of the selling points of the product, and I couldn’t agree more. After setting up the projector and starting up a movie, I subconsciously settled in and start watching my movie due to how immersive the experience was before I realized that I was watching it in a bright room. The bright display along with the 92% coverage of Rec. 709 color space makes for a somewhat accurate representation of the content played back. Considering most households in Singapore are unlikely to have a customized private cinema theatre room setup nor a backyard, a projector with brighter projection capability such as this TK800 is more ideal than say BenQ’s HT2550 if one wants to enjoy the content in a lit room.


The projector’s built-in speaker is sufficient (quality and the volume-wise) enough for most people who prefer a simple setup, but for those who have a good audio system, the TK800 also provides a 3.5mm jack output and input too. Alternatively, hook up all your content playback sources to your audio system (assuming you’re using an AV receiver), then run a HDMI cable out from your audio system to the projector so there’s less cable clutter and you can switch sources using your audio system.

 

[b|uebe||]

- continue from above post -

A comparison between the viewing modes offered.

You can also dim the lights of your viewing room if you want, but that’s entirely up to you as the projector is designed for viewing in a bright environment as compared to a BenQ HT2550.

A quick test of the Football mode and Sports mode.

One strong point of this projector was the inclusion of Football and Sports modes. In both modes, the mid-frequency and vocal are boosted, allowing you to hear the commentators clearly in the midst of the noisy audiences. Sports mode offers clear acoustics as compared to Football mode, which I guess was made for indoor sports games. The Football mode also offers a more lifelike skin tone and lush green grass, whereas, in Sports Mode, it offers realistic skin shades with warm wood tones, vivid reds with a balance of the other two primary colors (green and blue), best suited for fast-paced indoor sports games on wooden courts (like basketball).

We also tried the projector with a video game, and the color looks great.

We also tested to see how the projector holds up with a video game and it turned out to be a rich and vivid experience thanks to the lovely colors rendered. It also seems that the projector would auto-switch to 1080p (60 fps) resolution (which is the game’s setting) when we launched the game.

I will recommend pairing the projector with a Cable/Android box or a Blu-ray player capable of outputting 4K content, rather than a laptop or a PC for a simpler and more elegant setup. One thing I realized when outputting from the PC to the projector was that the desktop display was zoomed out, and I had to zoom in to enlarge the font display of the Microsoft Edge browser to navigate and use Netflix to watch movies. This was somewhat cumbersome and something to take note if you are using a PC/laptop to this projector.

Where they could have improved?

To include a HDMI cable for a better ‘out of a box’ experience, rather than self-sourcing one

Also, the remote control has too many buttons, and the use of the technical terms on the remote control (e.g. Dynamic Iris and LUMI Expert), will intimidate users and appear confusing for those adopting projectors for personal use the first time.

One thing odd about the TK800 was the support of VGA port rather than something that’s more modern and common like DisplayPort for PC or have both HDMI ports support 4K input.

Another convenience feature that would be nice is wireless source connectivity options that would been handy to screencast/mirror from a smart device.


Conclusion

Overall I am thoroughly impressed with the BenQ TK800, and the product delivers well for the price point - especially if you’re looking for a high brightness output 4K projector. Set up and installation for the projector is fuss-free and easy, especially if you are using it with a Blu-ray player or an Android/Cable box.

If you are looking for a reasonably priced home theater projector that fits your primary check boxes of projecting in an environment with ambient lighting (like daytime), 4K output, and wow you without the need to blackout the room, you should definitely consider the BenQ TK800. This projector is excellent to use at night too – be it with or without room lighting.

 

[Sainté]

How much? I owned a 1080 short throw, kinda value for the price ($2k). Wouldn’t mind another Benq.

 

[deekay99]

How much? I owned a 1080 short throw, kinda value for the price ($2k). Wouldn’t mind another Benq.

The BenQ W1700 retails for S$2499. Not bad for a 4K projector.

 

[appleuser79]

How much? I owned a 1080 short throw, kinda value for the price ($2k). Wouldn’t mind another Benq.

The TK800 retails for $2,099. But I think it depends on your needs, because the TK800 pumps 3000 lumens while the W1200 delivers 2200 lumens. So if brightness if your thing then the TK800 performs better.

If color reproduction is more important the Color Wheel of the W1200 has better color accuracy, while the TK800 is slightly less accurate.

If you like you images bright and vivid the TK800 is the way to go, but if you prefer color accuracy the W1200 is the way to go.

Both I would say are value for money 4K projectors.

 

[Dr.Vijay]

Just an FYI that BenQ now has a newer 4K home projector that has even better positioning and proposition for your consideration

https://www.hardwarezone.com.sg/tec...ts-hdr10-hlg-dci-p3-and-even-lens-shift-s2699