InFocus ScreenPlay 4805, What do you think?

[neokeelo]

I am thinking of buying one of these in the next year or so for my parents. I am also looking into bulb costs. If we did get it, it would only be used at night because of large windows on both sides of the room. The room has tall 18ft ceilings and we sit back about 14ft from where the screen would be.

I have read good reviews but I trust you guys alot and was wondering if anyone here has seen this thing in person.

http://www.projectorcentral.com/InFo...nPlay_4805.htm

Thanks!

[tryrrthg]

I just helped a friend put a dedicated HT in his basement and he bought a 4805. It looks damn good for only a grand. His projector is about 14' away from his screen (the projector is right over the seating position). He's getting around a 106" screen, but he's right on the verge of the screen being too big for the room and seating distance. If it were my room I'd have a slightly smaller screen, but he was dead set on it being as big as possible. The picture looks very good for the money. We haven't hooked up his HD cable yet, but I've seen HD on the Infocus X1 and it looks very good also even though the 4805 and X1 are not HD projectors.

[ledhed]

Hey, if you want to buy one, found a great deal-the 4805 for 700$ It is one day only and still while supplies last so hurry Here

[jdhdiggs]

It is a solid entry level projector. We used them both at TI (of course) and at my new company as conference room projectors. Always had good performance whether its DVD or powerpoint.

[louthewiz]

Yes they are nice units but the bulbs go for $300-400.00, but the epson Powerlite S1+ goes for the same price it has the same output and the bulbs go for $150-200.00 and twice the ansi lumens(and I am saving up for one). Just my 2 cents

[louthewiz]

http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/c...dmcfjgckidnk.0

[wal1885]

4805 on woot.com right now for 699 + 5 shipping. Just to let you know.

[ND13]

Did I read the specs correctly???? It displays all HDTV/SDTV signals at 480p?????

[gregure]

Did I read the specs correctly???? It displays all HDTV/SDTV signals at 480p?????

Yes, the 4805 is an EDTV projector. HiDef looks ok on it, but not what you would get from the 7205. The 7205 has a better chip also. However, for $1000, it's a steal of a unit, and movies look damn good.
Warning: it will look like **** on a sub-par screen. Expect to spend about double on the screen if you want it to look as good as it should. Stewart Filmscreen models are probably the best, they're Firehalk material being the best for DLP in dark rooms. A 100" fixed screen (non retractable) with Firehalk is about $1800. Double the price for a motorized retractable screen. I'm telling you, the difference is huge. I saw the 4805 on a crappy white screen, and it looked terrible, like a board room powerpoint show. On a Stewart, it looked like a movie theater screen. Do yourself the favor and factor the cost of a good screen into your budget.

[Toxis]

Definitely need to have a quality screen! I'm a huge promoter of that point. But how do you justify a $1800 screen for an ED data projector? No thanks. I'd spend the extra bucks and get the Hitachi PJ-TX100.

[neokeelo]

1800 bucks for a screen?!?! wow. There is no way I could spend that much. My friend who has the Infocus X1a, got a 97" widescreen that we built onto his wall for $27.00 off of Ebay and I think it looks great. It has the same gain levels as the more expensive screens so how else would they be diffrent? If they are made out of the same material and reflect the light the same way. Now if I was paying $4000.00 or more for a projector I could see spending that much but other wise I was just going to order the same screen he got.

[tryrrthg]

1800 bucks for a screen?!?! wow. There is no way I could spend that much. My friend who has the Infocus X1a, got a 97" widescreen that we built onto his wall for $27.00 off of Ebay and I think it looks great. It has the same gain levels as the more expensive screens so how else would they be diffrent? If they are made out of the same material and reflect the light the same way. Now if I was paying $4000.00 or more for a projector I could see spending that much but other wise I was just going to order the same screen he got.

Exaclty! My buddy and I made his 106" 16:9 screen out of blackout cloth from a fabric store and some wood from Home Depot, for a total of around $20. Pretty simple and looks plenty good for a $1000 projector. I don't think I could live with myself if I spent $1800 on freaking cloth. There is just no way it can look $1780 better!

If you want to go the extra mile you can experiment with the different paint schemes that some of the crowd over at the AVS forums are using. I believe some of them have compared their painted screens vs the expensive screens and gotten almost exact results. It all boils down to whether you've got the time to mess around with it...

AVS DIY Screen Section

[Toxis]

Yeah exactly! Why buy a seperate amp when you can get a Sony receiver that has 120w per channel for under $500??? How much power do you really need?




Heaven forbid people ever fudge a few stats for more sales. Has that ever happened in the HT realm?

[louthewiz]

SONY ??!! Yuck...

[gregure]

1800 bucks for a screen?!?! wow. There is no way I could spend that much. My friend who has the Infocus X1a, got a 97" widescreen that we built onto his wall for $27.00 off of Ebay and I think it looks great. It has the same gain levels as the more expensive screens so how else would they be diffrent? If they are made out of the same material and reflect the light the same way. Now if I was paying $4000.00 or more for a projector I could see spending that much but other wise I was just going to order the same screen he got.

Look, guys, I know it seems exessive, but all I know is how damn good the thing looks on the Stewart Screen. We had it on a $400 Traveller screen from Draper, and it looked horrible. Moved it to a Stewart Screen, and viola, looked amazing. It may not fit your budget, and that's cool, I'm just suggesting that you will notice the difference, and it will maximize the projector's picture. Your $27.00 screen may have the same "gain" but I guarantee it does not look as good as a high end screen. The Grayhalk and Firehalk material from Stewart is a silvery, fine material that brings out colors and blacks like nothing else, and increases brightness. Ironically, a plain white screen detracts from brightness. Funny. Again, just my experience.

[Dennis Gardner]

The 4805 is a great front projector value for those getting into a projector for the first time. I have had an X1 for 2 years and have over 2000 hours on the original bulb and still marvel at what it does for me. The bulb price is a moot point on the Infocus models as many go well over 3-4k hours on them. I worried about the cost at first, but the enjoyment of viewing DVDs at home is where its at for me. I have seen over 200 movies in the past 2 years, but only 1 was in a theater, and that was just for my kids birthday on vacation.

Spending $2k on a screen for a $700 PJ is backwards thinking in my experience. You will get better results for your setup with a $2200 Pj on a $500 screen in most instances. Don't get me wrong, a good screen brings out the best in any PJ, but it can't increase resolution like adding the $$ to your PJ purchase in the first place. There is alot of success with DLP/blackout combos that can be found over at AVS forum. Building a blackout screen is so cheap that it is worth trying just to see if it fits your needs. A dedicated theater may deserve much better just as a listening room deserves more than your living room. Keep it in perspective, and enjoy the upgrades as they come, and they will.

Good video is just as addictive as good sound. Once you go 100"+ screen, your audio system won't keep up with the image on the screen and you may find yourself needing bigger subs to match the screen size. :D :D

[tryrrthg]

Your $27.00 screen may have the same "gain" but I guarantee it does not look as good as a high end screen. The Grayhalk and Firehalk material from Stewart is a silvery, fine material that brings out colors and blacks like nothing else, and increases brightness. Ironically, a plain white screen detracts from brightness. Funny. Again, just my experience.

I'm sure the screen/picture look amazing! but there are countless people over at AVS forums that are coming up with a lot of paint formulas that produce the same results as a Grayhalk screen. And as crazy as some of those guys are I'd imagine that if it didn't produce similar results they wouldn't be happy with it.

I guess it all just boils down to how insane you are! :D Some people are insane enough to spend $1800 on a screen and others are insane enough to spend countless hours of their time DIY'ing a painted screen to get similar results. Either way we're all crazy bastards! :D