Two out of every three projectors sold in Australia are made by Epson. The world’s leading projector manufacturer, has just launched a new lineup of 3LCD projectors that move away from the bulb model, in favour of a laser-light source. The projectors, which include the EB-L25000U, the world’s first 25,000-lumen 3LCD projector which uses an inorganic phosphor wheel to ensure the accurate colours remain throughout the life of the device.
Epson’s new projectors are still 1080p resolution, but do includes a 4K-compatible lens and 4K Enhancement. When we asked why they aren’t just increasing the resolution for real, Epson gave a couple of reasons. The first is the additional cost of components, while we see LCD TVs add 4K resolution without a severe cost addition, things don’t work the same way in projectors. The lens, processor, chip and almost every part of the projection pipeline has to be upgraded.
The other reason was a lack of confidence that 4K is the end game. There’s some nervousness that 8K may actually be the real step up from HD and while that leap may be a little further away, Epson would prefer to make the leap once, rather than twice.
Epson’s promoting the fact their new lineup of projectors achieve high-brightness, the result of sustained research and development. At the launch in Melbourne yesterday, media had the chance to see the projectors in action. The image quality, even at 130″ was great, the colour representation fantastic and the new projectors will include five models ranging from 6,000 to 25,000 lumens to suit different environments and budgets.
General Manager, Business Division, Epson Australia Craig Heckenberg was at the launch yesterday and said,
“This is the announcement the projector world has been waiting for from Epson. Epson’s 3LCD laser projectors offer customers the outstanding value and performance you would expect from the global projector market leader alongside the very highest quality and sharpness of image. As a result of the benefits that Epson brings to the laser projector market, opportunities and uses for these amazing pieces of equipment continue to grow.”
Check out an image gallery from the event.
The advantages of Epson’s new lineup of 3LCD laser projectors include:
Image quality
With a highly efficient light source, Epson’s 3LCD laser projectors are well suited for large venues such as auditoriums and concert halls. Using Epson’s proprietary 3LCD technology, the new projectors are capable of reproducing spectacular images with outstanding levels of colour brightness.
Reliability
Epson’s original LCD panels and phosphor wheel are made of inorganic material with superior light and heat resistance. Combining these in a laser projector results in bright, vibrant images for extremely long periods, and 20,000 hours of maintenance-free use.
Flexibility
Epson’s lineup of 3LCD laser projectors is designed for every venue and application. Rotating 360 degrees and fully tiltable, a large variety of lenses ensures that these projectors can be installed in a wide variety of locations for projection mapping, signage and a host of other applications.
The new L series 3LCD laser projector lineup includes the following models:
EB-L25000U – WUXGA – 25,000 white brightness/25,000 colour brightness
EB-L1505U – WUXGA – 12,000 white brightness/12,000 colour brightness
EB-L1300U – WUXGA – 8,000 white brightness/8,000 colour brightness
EB-L1200U – WUXGA – 7,000 white brightness/7,000 colour brightness
EB-L1100U – WUXGA – 6,000 white brightness/6,000 colour brightness
The enemy of projection technology is heat and dispersing it efficiently is critical to maintaining performance and reliability of projectors. Epson are clearly very comfortable their engineers have their cooling solution completely under control, offering a 5 year or 20,000 hrs guarantee (whichever arrives first), even with 24/7 operations. Personally you’ll never leave a projector running all day and night, but in commercial applications like advertising, this may indeed be necessary.
It is important to remember that while lasers are awesome, these laser-based projectors don’t simply have a bulb replacement at the end of life. At the end of the 20,000 hours of use, Epson estimate they’ll reach half their brightness, depending on your ability to control light in the environment, they may very well continue to be useful for plenty of years after.
Technically you could replace the lasers, but the associated costs means you’d just replace the projector. For the most part, what’s on offer here is set and forget, exactly what education and business want, usually roof-mounting and forget for 5 years.
While most people may know Epson for their printer technology, their work in projectors and display technology in general, is a much stronger play in the business world.
To learn more about the new Epson L Series 3LCD laser projectors, head over to:
http://www.epson.com.au/LaserProjectors/
