Benq MP610 DLP Home Theater Projector
Great deal, great projector!
I was looking to upgrade to a newer projector later on in the year but was fortunate enough to receive one of these BenQ MP610 babies as a gift from my father-in-law. He had bought the MP610 (without consulting me first) and discovered how confusing the device can be to setup even for the experienced projector user and more so for the inexperienced user. <br /> <br />And that's pretty much my only knock on the BenQ MP610. It can be a bit daunting to setup and get working although its good at automatically picking up available output signals from video devices with no real issues there needing addressing. <br /> <br />I have mine paired up with a 96\\" pull down movie screen and a Toshiba 300W DVD/VHS Surround Sound system that cranks out a heck of a lot of great, crisp sound even at a fairly low volume. It fills the room its in right now at level 10 of 50 and the room is 14' x 12' x 8'. <br /> <br />Right now, I have the component video hooked up via the RGB-to-Component cable that comes with the unit. Beware however that some cheaper DVD players that pipe out component video may not come out correctly on the BenQ projector. They may appear all green or all red and it isn't the setup, it's the DVD player as I have a Desay DVD player (another cheapie) that does the same thing on my 30\\" LCD TV. That's the reason I upgraded to the Toshiba DVD\VHS surround sound system instead of the cheap Insignia DVD surround sound system I had originally installed previously and was using with my older InFocus projector. <br /> <br />My plans are to use the component video for gaming since I use the projector more for gaming than for movies and then use the S-Video connector for the movies. I have watched movies on both the S-Video and Component Video settings and I have a tough time telling the difference between the two to be honest. However, when you switch back to regular RCA video you can definitely see the difference. <br /> <br />It works quite well in a brightly lit room at thestandard 1600 lumens but you can bump that up if you need more brightness for any reason. The keystoning works great thankfully. Zoom is also easy to use. Plus, the setup allows you to set any one of your video inputs to a 4:3 or 16:9 presentation which is a great feature regardless of whether you are using RCA, S-Video or Component.  <br /> <br />The cons, well despite the fact that it tends to run a little hot, as long as you have it in a well ventilated room that shouldn't be a problem. The only other negative I could find was the setup which took me about 30 minutes to get used to on the remote and I am very familiar with projector technology. Those who have little experience might get easily frustrated ala my father-in-law, bless his generosity. <br /> <br />All in all, I highly recommend the BenQ MP610 as a home theater solution for someone who wants to setup a low cost home theater in their home or apartment.