Epson S1 LCD Projector Review
The Epson PowerLite S1 LCD projector is rated at 1200 ANSI lumens with 400:1 contrast. The unit has a few was designed with home theatre in mind and has a noticeably smoother picture with a less obvious "screen door" effect that other LCD projectors suffer from.
Epson PowerLite S1 LCD projector
Inexpensive home entertainment LCD projector
Recent price drops have seen the street price of the Epson PowerLite S1 LCD projector plummet to under $1000 making it excellent value.
The Epson PowerLite S1 LCD projector smooth image and solid performance
The Epson S1 replacement bulbs are only $199 which is the cheapest I've seen and that's worth a first mention.
As for technical performance the S1 has a 1.2x digital zoom. Meaning that from any distance it will throw a fixed full frame 4:3 image in 800x600 resolution. The digital zoom feature shrinks the image within that fixed frame by up to 20%. This allows you to match the image to a screen if the screen happens to be too small for the throw distance you have to work with. However, digital zoom does reduce the quality you have to work with.
One very nice feature reduced screen door effect. Though still visible, a combination of reduced interpixel gap and a (unique to Epson) Micro Lens Array produces a visibly reduced pixel matrix grid. It is very easy to watch movies on this machine without being bothered at all with pixelation. This makes the Epson S1 quite competitive in smooth picture quality with newer DLP based projectors.
The main criticism of this LCD projector is the weak contrast and brightness when compared to DLP projectors such as the Dell 2200MP. However this Epson doesn't suffer from the rainbow effect during fast motion on the screen that DLP projectors sometime exhibit.
On a positive note the fan noise from this projector is very low and not annoying at all. This will appeal to home theatre people who will have it installed in their lounge.
Here are the specifications:
- Projector Technology: LCD
- Brightness (in Lumens): 1200 ANSI lumens
- Contrast Ratio: 400:1
- Maximum Native Resolution: 800 by 600
- Estimated Lamp Lifespan: 2000 hours
- Inputs: S-Video, Component, VGA (with pass through)
- Replacement Bulb Cost $199.00
Epson PowerLite S1 projector difficult to place
I was very impressed with the performance of this LCD projector. Great color accuracy and very little pixelation make this a very nice performer for the price. The lack of the rainbow effect will also attract people who perceive this artifact.
However the new range of SVGA DLP projects do offer much better contrast and brightness due to the increased efficiency of DLP technology. In the end you'll have to make up your mind on what's most important to you. With low replacement bulb costs and quiet operation I think the Epson S1 is definitely near to top for home entertainment applications.