This new projector is the successor to the GP2, and BenQ claims it comes with improved brightness and better contrast. The GP3 can also project images up to 160 inches in diagonally, and it has a 2-watt built-in speaker, although it most likely won’t do the trick in a slightly larger room, so a pair of external speakers may come in handy in this case.

Of course, though, the main new feature on this palm-sized projector is the iPhone dock (using the older 30-pin connection). However, if you don’t have an iPhone, the projector offers several other ways to hook up media to the device, including plugging in a flash drive and microSD card, as well as wirelessly streaming content from another mobile device or PC.

There’s also 2GB of storage tucked inside in case a flash drive or microSD card is too much for you, although that probably won’t be enough for a couple of movies, but an album-full of photos would be the perfect fit. The internal battery is said to last 2.5 hours, which will get you through at least a movie and some, so be prepared to take the charger along with you. The GP3 is expected to ship later this month, but no pricing details have been disclosed yet.

The Microsoft Research team responsible for IllumiRoom is currently using a standard projector with a wide field of view, and a Kinect for Windows sensor bar, though any commercial implementation would probably be designed to sit on a coffee table. Automatic room calibration is included, projecting various patterns and sequences which map the outline of the TV, furniture, and the room’s geography in 3D; future iterations could even identify and track moving objects, such as people, as they move through the projection.

Once the layout of the gaming arena is understood, IllumiRoom’s real magic can begin. Various implementations are proposed, from fully extending what’s on the TV to greater fill the room – making for a more immersive environment – to picking out specific elements to highlight them, such as weapons fire that escapes from the primary display. By changing how physical objects in the room have their own textures projected, furniture could be made to ripple and wobble, change color or desaturate, or have their lighting adjusted.

Alternatively, the IllumiRoom system might just expand on the theme of the current game: having virtual falling snow spread across the living room, perhaps, building up on the actual furniture. The three possibilities, Microsoft Research suggests, are “negating”, “including”, or “augmenting” real-world objects: either digitally masking them, allowing them to remain visible, or adding to them with projected graphics.

“Ideally, IllumiRoom would be directly integrated into a next generation console and new games would be designed for IllumiRoom from the ground up. We envision an API that enables triggering illusions, changing surface appearance, controlling room lighting, inserting objects into the physical environment, etc.” Microsoft Research

While the best result would be if games natively supported, and integrated, IllumiRoom functionality, the system could also fashion a suitable AR scheme by analyzing gameplay in realtime, similar to how Philips’ Ambilight system tracks on-screen colors and matches them with its periphery of multicolor LEDs. The developers also suggest that audio cues could be used, such as triggering a ripple of the surrounding projection whenever the system hears a gunshot sound.

There’s also potential for how IllumiRoom could work with non-game content, such as movies and television; the team fashioned a prototype extended field-of-view camcorder – in effect pairing a standard camcorder with one that has a wide FOV – with the main screen showing the core video and the IllumiRoom projector showing the peripheral footage.

“Can a grenade from the latest Bond film explode in your living room? How would such content be authored? It would be im- portant to investigate how the movie director should deal with the fixed nature of a film and the randomness imbued by the system adapting to the user’s living room” Microsoft Research

Unsurprisingly, there’s still no (public) talk about how IllumiRoom tech and Microsoft’s Xbox ambitions might work together. As it stands, the current projection system relies on a PC for its brain, though it’s worth remembering that Kinect itself started out as a proof-of-concept peripheral, and only later evolved into an Xbox 360 add-on.

[via The Verge; via CHI 2013; Thanks Zak!]

Unlike the small pico projectors that use LED light sources, the Solid Shine series of projectors are very bright all producing 3500 lumens of light. The series uses one-chip DLP technology and promises up to 20,000 hours of virtually maintenance free operation. The series of projectors are aimed at all sorts of markets including education, museums, digital signage, and even home use.

The series includes several projector models including the PT-RZ370 Series and PT-RZ470 Series. Within those two series are for different projector models. The PT-RZ370U supports full HD resolution and has a contrast ratio of 10,000:1. The projector is available now with an MSRP of $5899. The PT-RW330U is also available now and has a resolution of 1280 x 800 with the same 10,000:1 contrast ratio. The MSRP for that projector is $4599.

The PT-RZ470UK/UW projector supports full HD resolution and has a contrast ratio of 20,000:1. It will be available in March an MSRP of $6799. The final projector is the PT-RW430UK/UW featuring a resolution of 1280 x 820 10,000:1 contrast ratio. The projector will be available in March for $5499.

[via Panasonic]

DLP Pico product classes include mobile phones, tablets, digital video players, mobile accessories, and near-eye displays. Reduced power consumption is hugely important for mobile devices. The IntelliBright algorithms allow the technology to intelligently analyze image content in real-time and create broader, higher contrast images without raising the net power consumption for the device. Better image quality is promised in bright light conditions including longer battery life.

The technology will allow manufacturers to tailor the product performance in specific needs of their customers and devices. IntelliBright uses two different patent pending algorithms to achieve its low-power and high image quality goals. One of the algorithms is called Content-Adaptive Illumination Control and the other is Local Area Brightness Boost. Both of these algorithms operate autonomously and can be tuned independently by the manufacturer.

The Content-Adaptive Illumination Control algorithm automatically adjusts red, green, and blue illumination strength on a frame-by-frame basis and can be configured to maintain a constant image brightness resulting in less power consumption. It can also be configured to maintain constant illumination power, boosting image brightness. The Local Area Brightness Boost also operates on a frame-by-frame basis and identifies dark areas in bright areas within a frame in the and adds in a programmable amount of gain to the dark areas for more viewable image. The technology also supports an optional integrated ambient light sensor allowing the picture to be tuned even more for ideal viewability and power savings.

[via DLP.com]

This projector is able to bring on a fabulous 10,000:1 DynamicBlack contrast ratio for the most crisp execution of graphics you’ve ever seen. You’ll find that you’re projecting at a rather green speed as well with ExtremeEco mode. Acer says that this mode allows you “up to 70 percent” power savings and will extend the life of your device’s lamp “up to 7000 hours.” That’s quite significant, needless to say.

So you’ll be using this device not just to watch movies projected from – for example – your laptop. With a compact size – 10.4 x 8.7 x 1.3-inches and a weight at just 4.8 pounds, you’ll be able to bring it along in your backpack wherever you please. Of course you could also hook it up to your gaming PC and project to a massive wall in your basement for 3D gaming galore – can you imagine a next-generation title like Destiny rocking out at 1080p and in 3D on your wall next year?

With this projector’s 2D-to-3D conversion technology, you’ll be able to, as Acer says, “[convert] into 3D any 2D picture or video signal that passes through the HDMI port.” We’ll see how this tech actually stands up when it’s available for demo rather soon. Until then, you’ll also want to know that you’ve got Analog RGB/component video (D-Sub) for input along with component (three RCA), S-Video (mini DIN), and Composite video (RCA), as well as HDMI (video, audio, HDCP) x 2. This is all joined by regular PC audio via a stereo mini jack.

You’ll be able to buy this Acer H6510BD Projector immediately if not soon for a cool $799 USD MSRP. This price includes a limited one-year warranty and is sure to be irresistible to those of you out there with an itch for 3D on a massive scale. Let us know if you’re planning to dive in!

The projector uses DLP technology and has energy-saving RGB LEDs rather than a traditional bulb. Those LEDs promise up to 20,000 hours of lifetime and provide 45 lm of maximum brightness. The resolution of the projector is 640 x 480 and it can throw an image of up to 60-inches diagonally.

A resolution of 640 x 480 is a low for a 60-inch image, but it may be better than watching on a small screen for some users. The projector offers a contrast ratio of 1000:1 and no software is required to project media using the device. Power comes from an internal rechargeable battery good for 120 min. of use.

The projector requires a projection distance of 20 cm to 200 cm. The little projector measures 132 x 71 x 15 mm and weighs 170 g. The device has manual focus and features a micro HDMI and USB output. The projector also has an internal speaker for improved sound.

[via Aiptek]

“The effects in the video are rendered in real time and are captured live,” Microsoft research says, “not special effects added in post processing.” The system uses a Kinect for Windows camera paired up with a computer-controlled projector, with the sensor bar mapping the geometry of the room and then overlaying the digital graphics on top.

None of the visuals are pre-processed, with the whole IllumiRoom system figuring out the skew of the walls and how the images need to be modified to suit in real-time. “Our system can change the appearance of the room, induce apparent motion, extend the field of view, and enable entirely new game experiences” Microsoft suggests.

Full details of the system haven’t been revealed yet, with Microsoft saying that it will be detailing the whole system in an upcoming paper. Exactly how the company might leverage the technology into a commercial product isn’t detailed, though we think it might be a while before Xbox gamers can fill their living room with gameplay.

The Qumi Q7 is a LED-based projector and weighs just 3.1 pounds. It provides 800 lumens of brightness and offers over 30,000 hours of operating time. It’s also 3D-ready, thanks to Texas Instruments’ DLP Link technology, and it integrates 2D-to-3D content conversion technology for standard and Blu-Ray 3D playback.

The Qumi Q7 also features the unique touch sensitive button controls and a sleek design that’s familiar across the Qumi family of projectors. It’s already ready to be used with a variety of devices, including digital cameras, laptops, smartphones, tablets, and more.

Specifically, the Qumi Q7 outputs at 1280×800 HD, and it includes two HDMI ports, VGA-In, Composite Video, Audio-In RCA, and a USB port. There’s also 4GB of on-board storage, and Microsoft Office as well as Adobe Reader are built-in. The Qumi Q7 will be available sometime this summer at a steep price of $999.

Big-screen TVs are getting bigger – our review of Samsung’s 75-inch ES9000 behemoth is evidence of that – but projectors are still the best way to get a huge picture at home. Unlike traditional projectors, however, the Hecto system doesn’t lose out on all the web-enabled features that Smart TVs now come with.

So, there’s not only a trio of HDMI inputs, an optical audio output, an RS-232 interface for automated home integration, and a digital TV tuner, but WiFi for streaming from Netflix, YouTube, and other services as we’ve seen on recent LG HDTVs. There’s also a pair of 10W speakers, though we’re guessing anybody serious about a 100-inch display will be equipping it with a surround sound system too.

LG isn’t saying how much the Hecto projector system will cost when it lands, either in their home country or elsewhere in the world later in Q1. However, the flexibility of being able to create a 100-inch display with just 22-inches between projector and screen is likely to win LG’s new home entertainment kit some fans.

The projector has 3000 lumens of color and 3000 lumens of white brightness allowing for better image quality in rooms that have more ambient light. The projector supports full HD resolution content and supports active shutter 3-D viewing at 720p resolution. The projector supports picture size up to 300-inches.

Epson designed the projector to be placed in an entertainment center or mounted to the ceiling. The projector uses Epson’s latest RF 3-D glasses promising up to 40 hours of use with a full charge up to three hours of use with a three-minute quick charge. The projector has a 1.2 times optical zoom lens to allow for positioning flexibility and has automatic vertical keystone correction.

Connectivity options include component video, S-video, HDMI, and USB connectivity. The projector ships with a single pair of 3-D glasses and promises a lamp life of up to 5000 hours. One of the most interesting features of the new projector is that it has a surprisingly affordable price of $899. The projector will be available in late March through select dealers nationwide and online via Epson.com.

The setup sounds like a throwback to the 80s when front projection screen TVs and rear projection screen TVs were the only way to get a large image in your home. LG promises the system will be demonstrated for the first time at CES 2013 kicking off next month. The 100-inch class LG Hecto Laser TV supports full HD resolution and promises incredible contrast.

The high contrast the TV promises comes courtesy of the LG advanced laser-based illumination system used in the external ultra short throw projector. LG promises that the system will offer a theater-like experience at home without the difficult installation required with most projector-based entertainment systems. The projector needs only 22-inches of space from the screen to throw the 100-inch image.

The dynamic contrast ratio for the television system is 1,000,000:1. The laser TV also has a digital tuner with a pair of 10 W speakers providing integrated sound. Connectivity options include three HDMI inputs, optical audio output, RS-232 interface, and more. The screen used in the television system has a thin bezel and the laser TV supports the LG Smart TV platform including integrated Wi-Fi for streaming content such as Netflix and YouTube. Pricing and availability on the Hecto Laser TV is unknown.

The Samsung EAD-R10 mini-projector is currently available for sale in South Korea, and all you needs to do to get it up and running is connect a MHL-supported Galaxy device to the projector and then you’ll be off to the races, projecting images with up to 20ANSI lumens and an nHD resolution (640×360).

The projector accessory features a loudspeaker, a focus control button, HDMI-out, and a 1650mAh battery, with a price of around $220. The device is about as big as a Galaxy S III, and it’s only about a half of an inch think, so it can easily fit into a pocket for portability purposes. It also has a full-size HDMI-in port so you can also plug it into laptops and other devices.

The device promises two hours of non-stop projecting, and hopefully that’s true, since most movies are usually an hour and a half to two hours long. We’re not sure if this new accessory will be hitting other countries or not, but even if it did land in the US, we’re not sure if the device would really take off, especially considering the $200+ price tag.

[via Android Community]

Projecteo is a tiny projector that shines your Instagram images on the wall or other surface. The Instagram photos have to be turned into tiny little wheels of 35 mm slide film to be used in the projector. The tiny projector would have adjustable focus, and the projector wheels can be removed and replaced allowing you to see more images.

The team behind the project says that it works best in the dark, and they’ve been able to shine images up to 2 1/2 feet wide in a completely dark room. Since slide film doesn’t use pixels, the images are just as clear as the originals. It appears the power for the little projector comes from three little circular watch batteries.

You will be able to select the pictures you want to place into your slide wheel using an application. The photos would be sent to a developer in the US the converts them to 35mm film to make the wheel. The entire Projecteo device is designed to be easy to disassemble and hackable. The first 50 backers will be able to get their own Projecteo and create wheel for $15. After the first 50 are sold, another 150 units will be available for $20. The standard price for the device and one wheel on Kickstarter will be $25. The project is seeking $18,000 and has raised a little more than $1000 with 34 days to go.

NEC says that the projector uses the new Texas Instruments S2K chip making it the most compact 2K DCI-certified digital cinema projector on the market. It also two terabytes of RAID5 storage via a storage server and has an integrated Media Block. The projector uses a three-chip DMD reflection method.

The native resolution of the projector is 2048 x 1080, and it uses dual 350 W lamp bulbs. The projector also has multiple bayonet lens options allowing for easy installation and motorized zoom, focus, and shift capabilities. The projector is 3-D compatible and can be mounted on the floor or the ceiling with no exhaust system required.

The projector has dual HDSDI 3G interfaces and has advanced networking features. The director is cooled by air and has a dust-preventing electrostatic filter. The projector weighs 97 pounds and is expected to be available in December for $29,999 including the projector, lens, and IMS system.

The 271X and 311X projectors both have a bulb life of up to 10,000 hours and contrast ratio of 3000:1. The 311W projector has a lamp life of 8000 hours and the same 3000:1 contrast ratio. NEC promises that these projectors consume 12% less power in ECO Mode than previous models.

The 271X and 311X offer 2700 lumens of brightness with the 311W offering 3100 lumens. The projectors have XGA resolution with the 311W offering WXGA. Connectivity includes HDMI inputs, and all three projectors have dual computer inputs for switching between presentations.

The projectors also support presentations from a flash drive with no computer needed and offer a self-powered external speaker. The projectors have integrated Ethernet ports and optional wireless connectivity. All three projectors will be available in December with the M271X selling for $802, the M311X selling for $912, and the M311W selling for $989.

In our hands-on demo here you’ll find that we’ve got an Apple Digital AV Adapter working with the HDMI input on the device – this adapter is sold separately, and you should note that you’ll need it to work with the iPhone and the iPad. This is a similar situation to most other smart devices as it’s rare that you’ll find one that outputs directly to full-sized HDMI. Of course there’s always the Motorola lineup of Android smartphones, for the most part – ease in conversions via built-in HDMI right out of the box! You get a 3 foot HDMI cable, a micro-HDMI adapter, and a mini-HDMI adapter included in the package.

The Brookstone HDMI Pocket Projector contains a 3800mAh battery that’s both rechargeable and is able to act as an output battery for your mobile devices through the projector’s full-sized USB port. This means that if you’ve got a smartphone that you’re using to output to HDMI and you’re in need of some extra power for the phone itself, you’ve only to plug into the projector with your standard USB cord to the phone. Of course that means a much quicker drain on the battery that’s already working quite hard if you’re projecting at the same time, but there’s always the chance of emergency – and you won’t find this feature on one whole heck of a lot of similar devices either, I can tell you that.

You’ve got dual built-in speakers that are quite generous, made for a small space and loud enough for a crowd of just a few people. You’ve got an audio out port though for extra speaker action if the standard inbuilt speakers are not enough for you. The focus of your picture is done with a simple adjuster up near the front lens, the projection shining bright and up to 1080p resolution in a 60-inch image on your wall.

And it is indeed quite bright and sharp – amongst the best we’ve seen. The mega-bright LED lamp projects at what Brookstone notes is 85 lumens “for up to 2 hours on a single charge.” We’ve also found this claim to be quite accurate – with a full charge, we’ve been able to watch full-length movies unplugged without a problem.

The whole device measures in at 3.9 w x 3.8 d x 0.89 inch h, and weighs in at half a pound – it’s small enough to fit in your pocket and light enough to forget about. The cords will be the only hassle you’ll have to consider when thinking on your next anywhere-use projector experience. And even those aren’t going to be a big deal if you’ve got a simple converter for HDMI – minimalize!

This device will cost you $299.99 USD straight from Brookstone right this minute, and they’ve got their free shipping online deal going now for all devices over $99 – or you can grab it from your local Brookstone store too, right in hand. With enhanced DLP technology from Texas Instruments bringing the brightness and sharpness to this beast up front, you’ll have the whole big-time light-blasting world at your fingertips right out of the box.

There’s also a glass bubble roof, for star-gazing, and external speakers built into the sweeping B-pillar for those outside the car. Media playback is controlled by a smartphone – and content can be streamed from there over Bluetooth, too – and the smart app allows drivers to remotely set the aircon temperature before they get into the car.

The rest of the design borrows from the smart for-us concept shown late last year, though with a few tweaks. The charging point is hidden behind the left rear light assembly; the space behind its right counterpart is saved, bizarrely, for a drinks can. Inside, the seat covers can be removed, and the rear load space shifts electrically for easier stowing of your shopping.

smart isn’t saying whether it’ll put the forstars into production, though we’d doubt it; if anything, it’s merely a hint at what the car company has in mind for its next-gen model. However, there’s also a new smart BRABUS electric drive, up for order from today, which uses the same electric engine as the concept and can manage 0-62mph in 10.2s and a top speed of 81mph, with a range of 90 miles.

More importantly, smart says, the new eco-friendly BRABUS can go 0-37mph in 4.4s, a far more useful achievement for a city car. It’s up for sale in 11 countries, priced at €29,990 ($39,000) for the coupé and €33,080 ($43,000) for the cabriolet.

The contrast ratio for the projector is 500,000:1. Panasonic equips the projector with a new 220W Red Rich Lamp for increased red intensity allowing it to produce brighter images and deliver improved color reproduction. The projector also uses Panasonic’s Pure Contrast Plates to generate deeper blacks and eliminate light leakage.

Panasonic Pure Color Filter Pro and Dynamic Iris technologies work together to allow for the 500,000:1 contrast ratio. The 3-D technology used in the projector creates alternating right and left images using an active shutter system for smooth and properly positioned 3-D effects. The system uses active shutter 3-D glasses and includes an integrated IR transmitter that has a 20-foot range.

The projector uses a two times zoom lens with a wide range of lens shift. The projector supports a 120-inch diagonal screen from as close as 11.8 feet away or as far as 23.6 feet away. The projector has +/-100% vertical adjustment and +/-26% horizontal adjustment. Pricing on the new projector is unannounced and it will launch in late September or early October.

The high-end projectors are the 6020UB and the 5020UB/UBe models. These machines feature contrast ratios of up to 320,000:1 and up to 2400 lumens of color brightness and 2400 lumens white brightness. All of those projectors are THX Certified for delivering dark black levels and realistic color. The projectors are equipped with Epson Super Resolution technology, THX 2-D and 3-D cinema viewing modes, and FineFrame technology for smooth frame interpolation and sharper video in 2-D modes.

The high-end projectors also have a cinema filter feature and improved color fidelity with use of a Fujinon OptiCinema lens with the 2.1 zoom ratio. The 6020UB also gets two anamorphic lens modes, ISF calibration, color isolation, a ceiling mount, cable cover, and an extra bulb. All of these projectors support 3-D and come with two pairs of 3-D glasses.

The 3020/3020e projectors differ only in that the 3020e is wireless. Both projectors promise and 2300 lumens of color and white brightness and a contrast ratio of 40,000:1. Both have integrated 10 W speakers and come with two pairs of 3-D glasses. These machines are aimed at home theater enthusiast and don’t require professional installation or color calibration tools for install. Common features between all these projectors include a pair of HDMI inputs, component video input, composite video input, VGA, RCA audio, and USB connectivity. Both the 3020e and the 5020UBe ship with a wireless transmitter for streaming HD quality video without needing a wire from up to five devices to the projector.

Pricing on the high-end 6020UB will be under $4000, and it will ship in November. The 5020UB and 5020UBe will be offered in October at under $3000. The lower end 3020 and 3020e projectors will be available for under $2000 in October.

One of the projector’s most noteworthy features is its utilization of Sony’s Reality Creation technology, which made its debut in the VPL-VW1000ES 4K home cinema projector. Reality Creation allows the projector to restore any information that was lost as the original video was copied to the disc the end users purchase, which means that users get a full HD picture without losing any color or image quality.

The VPL-HW50ES is capable of 1,700lm brightness, with Sony making improvements to bulb efficiency and utilizing a “Bright Cinema and TV” mode to be able to boast a 30% brightness increase over the VPL-HW30ES. The projector also boasts a 100,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, thanks in part to Sony’s contrast enhancer technology, which changes the contrast on the fly depending on how dark or bright the scene on screen is. Sony is also offering a number of functionality upgrades with the VPL-HW50ES, including a built-in 3D transmitter, a V shift range of +- 71%, and a maximum output noise of 21db.

The VPL-HW50ES should launch across Europe by the end of October, and when it arrives, it will be available in the different colors – black and white – pictured above. We don’t have any pricing details just yet, but don’t expect it to be cheap, as this model’s predecessor, the VPL-HW30ES, came with an MSRP of $3,699. Keep an ear to SlashGear, because we’ll have that pricing information for you right here once Sony parts with more details.

We shot a few pointed questions at Dolgoff before he jumped right in on his Reddit AMA which, we’ll vouch for, is certainly going on today right here: [Ask ]. Have a peek at what we got to know about the project as it’s being developed for the consumer world as we speak.

SlashGear: What’s your ultimate goal with 3-D Vision technology?

Gene Dolgoff: I have been involved in the effort to promote 3-D to the world since the beginning of the 1960s. Now that the world is finally catching up, but is stalled when it comes to consumer 3-D at home (for TVs, computers, projectors, and handheld devices), I want to break that logjam with our revolutionary technology and move the world to the next level so that everyone can view and make 3-D anytime and anywhere they want.

SG: Will the device being released in the Fundable program you’ve got up right now require special eyewear for the user to see 3D? Or will the output completely depend on the device it’s working with?

GD: Our Instant 3-D Converter(TM) is currently designed to use special 3-D glasses. One type is for use with any TV set and the other type is for use with computers and handheld devices. We include one pair of each type of 3-D glasses with the converter (additional glasses will also be sold separately).

SG: What are the limits of the video content 3-D Vision technology can convert successfully?

GD: Our Instant 3-D Converter can convert any video content to 3-D instantly with high quality. Our inputs are composite, component, VGA, and HDMI.

SG: Why did you choose to work with Fundable rather than seeking out funding via traditional means?

GD: We have a business plan and even a draft private placement memorandum and are starting to talk to potential investors. However, that route is typically a slow route, and we want to get this technology out as quickly as possible. Crowd funding potentially provides a faster route for initial funding if your product and company meets the right criteria (which I think ours does).

I had been talking with the founders of fundable.com since before they launched their site. We all felt that, working together, we could be beneficial to each other both in raising some initial capital in a relatively short period of time, and in demonstrating consumer interest, which can be very important in influencing potential conventional investors.

SG: What are your plans for projects beyond this one? Will you continue your work towards a real Star Trek holodeck situation?

GD: We do have other consumer-oriented as well as commercial 3-D products in the pipeline, and will intend to continue to develop them into products and large markets. If we are successful enough to produce the kind of funding needed, we will continue to also pursue the development of holodeck-like products and applications.

Stay tuned as we follow this project through to full funding and beyond! Also be sure to check out the 3-D Vision Fundable project right now and toss in some cash for early access to the device!

For your money you’ll be getting a 4-inch AMOLED screen with a 800×480 resolution, a dual-core Cortex A9 processor clocked at 1Ghz, 768MB of RAM, 8GB of storage, a five megapixel camera with 720p video recording, and a pico projector capable of outputting 640×360. It’s a bit chunky at 12.5mm, but when you take the projector into account plus the 2,000mAh battery, Samsung did a pretty good job of keeping the chassis reasonable.

The phone is also now shipping in the UK with the same specs for a slightly more agreeable price of £394.99 (~$541) from Expansys. Still, you’ll have to ready love the idea of a phone doubling as a projector before committing to such a device. Maybe think it a little bit more before hitting “Buy.”

[via Facebook/Engadget]

The projectors are all reasonably priced ranging from $649 for the 1751 to $1099 for the 1776W. The 1751 and 1761W projectors offer 2600 lumens of color brightness and white brightness. The 1771W and 1776W offer 3000 lumens of color and white brightness. The 1751 projector has XGA resolution with the other three projectors offer WXGA resolution.

All of the projectors with the W designator have wireless 802.11 Wi-Fi integrated and the ability to offer projections via most iOS devices. All the projectors have HDMI connectivity and support USB plug-and-play. They also have integrated USB ports for directly showing presentations from a USB device. The projectors also have 1.2x zoom and can throw 60-inch image from 4 feet away from the surface. All of these projectors are available right now and use 3LCD technology.

If you thought 1080p was already excellent, then you have to see 4K. According to Sony, with its 4K resolution, you can sit closer to the screen without seeing any image degradation or the “screen door” effect. Unlike 1080p, you can view 4K projections without any issues when sitting within the distance of three times the height of the picture.

The Sony VPL-VW1000ES not only projects 4K video, but also can upscale SD or HD content to 4K resolution. It also supports 3D content, but Sony has opted for active shutter 3D technology, which would require a separate pair of USB-chargeable 3D glassses. But to be among the first to see the Sony 4K difference in your living room, you’ll have to fork out £16,799 or about $26,000.

[via Gizmag]

Ubi Interactive is a startup based in Munich, Germany and the company’s system will turn any surface, including walls into a touchscreen. I can see turning a large wall into a touchscreen being very important in education or when delivering a presentation in the business world. The Microsoft Kinect sensor is used with a regular projector to become a multitouch PC projection system.

The system works in much the same way is an interactive whiteboard or a giant tablet screen. As you can see in the video here, the system supports gestures for zooming in and out and more. The video shows a normal projector throwing an image on a pane of frosted glass suspended in the middle of a dimly lit room. The Microsoft Kinect sensor is placed on the other side of the glass to capture the hand movements of the user and send the movement data to Ubi’s special software running on a Windows PC. That same computer is running the projector as well. The system also works for gaming with touch games such as Angry Birds.

[via Wired]

The PicoPix 2480 will be able to throw a 120” (320cm) image with its 80 lumens LED bulb, although that will drop to 55 lumens when you’re relying on the internal battery. If you want to pipe some media to your projector, you have a couple of options. You could use the internal MP4 player to view videos from the 2GB internal storage and microSD/USB ports, rr you could rely on the traditional video hookups, which include HDMI, VGA, Component and Composite connections.

Natrually, you won’t be enjoying HD content with such a small form factor, but it’s not all bad news. The PicoPix 2480 has a 854×480 resolution, and a respectable contrast ratio of 1000:1, so it should be good enough for a quick spot of YouTube or last week’s episode of Mad Men. The battery is rated for up to 2 hours of playback.

The Philips PicoPix 2480 is available now in the UK, and can be purchased from retailers such as Currys and PC World. You’ll be able to buy it online from Dixons and John Lewis, and should set you back £279.99 (~$452).

The Home Cinema 710HD is easy to setup and works in both small and large spaces. The projector can be placed anywhere between 3.5 feet and 35.5 feet from the wall or screen. It offers a new Easy-Slide image correction, that is an intuitive way to help you align and center images on to a screen with the touch of a finger.

The projector also boasts 2,800 lumens of color and white light output and comes with four pre-set color modes for various viewing environments. A game model lets you use the projector even in bright rooms.

Connectivity for the Home Cinema 710HD include a USB 2.0 port, HDMI input, as well as component and S-video inputs. The projector has a 1.2x optical zoom with 30-degree range for vertical keystone correction and a lamp rating of up to 5,000 hours. It’s expected to ship later this month for $650.

[via eCoustics]

The Acer C120 Pico Projector is available today, weights just 6 ounces, and will literally fit in the palm of your hand. Being powered by nothing but a USB cable, or optionally a power outlet this is as portable as they come. Acer has conveniently also made it so the C120 can be powered by the AC adapter that comes standard with all of their laptops.

The Acer C120 has a quick start bulb, and offers around 100 lumens of brightness. It’s worth noting that if you use the USB power option and not a power outlet, you’ll only get around 75, but that should still be plenty for a quick presentation or meeting. As you can see from the spec sheet above it offers a 1280 x 800 resolution, USB 3.0, and micro-USB.

You can get the all new mini-sized Acer C120 today from the Acer Store.

[via CNET]

The H6500 will work perfectly for projecting video content from Blu-ray Disc players via HDMI or for viewing other HDTV content. It provides crisp, rich visuals with a brightness of up to 2,100 ANSI lumens that can be dimmed to 1,680 to save power. It has a contrast ratio of 10,000:1 and a native 16:9 aspect ratio, adjustable to 4:3.

Using Acer’s eColor Boost II+ technology, the H6500 will project images with colors that “pop” even on tinted wall surfaces. The projections can be seen even with bright ambient light, allowing you to enjoy film quality viewing both outdoors at night or indoors without having to draw the shades or turn off all the lights.

The projector also boasts easy setup and a long lamp life. It can provide up to 3,500 hours of standard lamp life, up to 5,000 hours of ECO mode, and up to 6,000 hours in ExtremeECO mode. It is available for sale now, priced at $899.99 with a one-year warranty.

[via eCoustics]

This device’s display is a 4-inch WVGA while the projector, again, runs at 640 x 480 up against your wall. You can use this device to project on to your ceiling, your wall, a gigantic screen outside your house, and more. The device runs a 5 megapixel AF camera on the back so you can capture fine videos to project from the projector, and the battery is a 2000mAh so you can project for as long as possible. The lamp has an LED life of 20,000 hours (essentially permanent) and the battery life is set to be improved while the device goes through its final design iterations.

The Samsung Galaxy Beam has a Ebony Gray tactile feeling non-slip back with a yellow band around the entire unit for a “youthful feel” for the entire experience. The entire unit is relatively light, has the ability to catch your eye from afar (in more ways than one) and will be coming to the market inside 2012. The projection quality is amongst the nicest we’ve seen for a projector this size. Videos look fabulous, there’s absolutely no flicker or break in the projection in any way, and the idea of projecting as a real-world use case suddenly seems like a real possibility for everyday life.

Once you project you’re able to manually refocus your image, and accessories are in the works – such as stands, for example, so you can make full use of your new projector smartphone in the wild. A fun bit of information here on projecting, too – if you hold the device flat, it’ll project the image in landscape, while if you hold the device diagonally, the image is in portrait. Again the software is not final when we’re getting to see it here, and such items as automatic keystone fixing are not going to be available at launch, but such improvements will be available at the upgrade to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. This device will be available in the second quarter of 2012 in Europe and no announcements have been made in regards to a USA launch.

Check out the rest of our Mobile World Congress 2012 coverage as well as all the hot Samsung action by heading to the [MWC 2012 portal] and the [Samsung portal] all this week!

The setup you see here is done with a user interface for Serato Scratch Live which uses both sound and the rotation of the vinyl record to react and produce effects. With this system, you’re able to do digital mixing without having to even glance over at your computer screen – a crossover method that adds to the digital revolution happening in the DJ world for the past decade, crossing this and analog in a way that is, once again, a first with the other effects you’re about to see. Real time waveforms stream across mixers and vinyl while video comes in via Wii remotes. Have a peek;

UPDATE: a message from E.N.S. himself:

I only assisted by offering some Visual interface concept ideas, and created the video for them, the engineers are Mark Morris and Bruce Lott

The entire project video presentation here has been created primarily by Ian Silverman, aka E.N.S., and the video you see here will act as a sort of step-by-step guide for you to start your own setup right away! You’ll of course need some Wii controllers and the Serato Scratch Live software to make it all happen, but it’s all easy from there on in! If this does not seem easy to you, on the other hand, please feel free to continue tapping on your iPad DJ station instead. Have fun!

Thanks for the tip, Jnus!

The geek who put the hack together goes by DDRBoxman. He took his Samsung Galaxy Nexus smartphone and output the video to a projector to toss it up in 50-inch size on the wall. To get the touch control interface back the guy uses a Kinect to see where he was touching and activate the content.

The Kinect in question was hooked to a Windows PC and used a custom app to control the touch interface. This doesn’t sound like something the average geek would pull off. It required a custom ROM. I wonder if you have to touch the wall to activate things on the projected interface. It would be better if you could control it with gestures from across the room. See the hack in action below.

[via AndroidCommunity]

The iProjection app works with devices running iOS 4.2 or later, which includes the iPad 2, iPhone 4S, and iPod touch. It integrates cloud features that let users access files from cloud services such as Dropbox and email applications such as Gmail.

The app supports full Word, Powerpoint, Excel, Keynote, and PDF documents. Image files such as JPEG, TIFF, and PNG are also supported. The app is free to download and is available now in the iTunes App Store.

[via Engadget]

The flagship model is the DLA-X90R, followed by the DLZ-X70R and the DLA-X30. The top two models feature JVC’s 4K e-Shift technology and are also now officially THX 3D Certified. This certification means that the models had to pass more than 400 rigorous tests, including color accuracy in 2D and 3D, crosstalk, uniformity, grayscale tracking, deinterlacing, and convergence.

Other features to note about the projectors include a Lens Memory function that offers three memory settings to store custom focus, zoom, and horizontal or vertical lens shift positions, allowing for a constant height display ratio of 4:3, 16:9, or 2:35 without an additional anamorphic lens. The projectors also allow users to adjust 3D depth and subtitle geometry correction.

The JVC Procision Series D-ILA home theater projectors are available now. The DLA-X90R is priced at $11,999, the DLA-X70R is $7,999, and the DLA-X30 is $3,499.

What sets the 3M MP220 apart from the rest isn’t that its fully portable and battery powered, or that it offers 2 hours of battery life. What’s important is they’ve managed to offer an impressive 50 lumens of brightness AND 2 hours of battery life in one compact and portable package. We recently reviewed the AAXA P4 that offered 80 lumens of brightness, and it was impressive but only lasts 70 minutes if you’re lucky.

The 3M MP220 has all the features we’ve come to expect from our pico projectors too. Offering 2GB of internal storage with option micro-SD for expanded storage, micro-USB, and plenty of AV and VGA inputs. Projecting all that across a 65″ screen and a WSVGA (1024 x 600) native resolution. The MP220 also comes equipped with stereo speakers, and a 50 lumen engine that lasts up to 20,000 hours all weighing under a pound.

Like we said above, it might not be the brightest or the smallest — but offering portability, quality, brightness, and that all important battery life all-in-one is the key difference here. The LED-lit navigation buttons were a nice edition as I’ve used a few in the past and trying to find the right button in the dark can be a challenge. The only con from my initial impressions is the lack of HDMI options — a feature many pico’s have been missing.

The 3M MP220 Mobile Pico Projector is slated for a late April launch and will come to market priced around the $479 mark. Expect a full SlashGear review soon!

Announced late last year many still haven’t seen or heard of such a device so we figured a few quick photos would give you a good idea of what to expect. This pocket projector is basically an iPhone 4/4S battery-equipped case featuring TI’s DLP Pico projector technology. It will extend the battery life almost double offering a 2,100 mAh battery, and also doubles as a case — just a bit fat and not very ergonomic.

The Brookstone projector case/sleeve only outputs around 15 lumens but being able to project an image up to 50″ in size is quite impressive for its size. 15 lumens might not be as bright as many pico projectors but they aren’t attached to a smartphone either. The projector isn’t anything professional but for the quick video playback or low-key presentation this would be perfect. In real world situations the built-in battery should give you more than double the battery life — but while projecting pictures and movies you’ll have around 3 hours to work with.

Just recently launched by Brookstone this can be yours for the low low price of $229 by clicking here.

The recently announced P4 from AAXA is a big step up from previous models such as the AAXA P2, and many similar priced projectors from the competition. Offering extremely crisp colors, great brightness, and being fully portable with a built-in battery makes this a perfect companion for any business minded individual.

Hardware

While many competing projectors might have better battery life its the 80 lumens of brightness and array of options that sets the P4 apart from the pack. Being labeled the “worlds brightest pico projector” gives it some big shoes to fill — and it didn’t disappoint.

The AAXA P4 Pico Projector is powered by a 750 MHz Windows CE mobile processor, and is plenty bright too. It gets an 80 lumen high-contrast optical engine by way of Texas Instruments DLP. It features AAXA’s vibrant color technology and the LED should last for up to 20,000 hours. Some of the other specs that make the P4 special include: 2GB of built-in memory, 1280×800 VGA input, micro-SD slot for extra storage (up to 32GB), composite video input, 1-watt stereo speakers, 3.5mm headphone jack, and even 720p video support.

Included with the projector AAXA has provided a mini tripod as well as your usual charging and USB cables. The box also provides a mini to full-sized USB, VGA and AV input and more. The included remote (as seen in the video below) is a nice touch but is extremely cheap and gives off a bad impression.

The actual projector itself is very durable and feels great. It’s covered in a soft-coat matte black design and all the ports and buttons are extremely durable. Nothing feels cheap about this premium projector — and it shouldn’t for $399. The buttons on top make navigation easy and simple but the remote is a much better option. I would love to have a better included remote but that’s just me.

AAXA P4 Pico Projector unboxing

Software

Now the software side of things will be completely based on the buyers overall needs and usage. With Windows CE 6.0 on board we have plenty of options with mobile applications. With Office Mobile, Microsoft Word, Adobe PDF, and tons of Windows CE based games the options are fairly open. With the P4 AAXA doesn’t recommend you enter Windows too much unless needed and has a basic overlay to keep things straightforward and simple.

Setup is basically non existent unless you need to use Windows CE apps. The standard media player for pictures, and video is simple to navigate — although is pretty bland. From the start screen you can stream any movies from internal or external storage within seconds, the input settings are easy to access and dead simple. Those needing to start presentations will need to launch Windows CE and that takes a bit longer with a warning you must agree to on every start-up seems extreme.

Performance

While I’ve only used a few cheaper and much dimmer projectors in the past, everything about this projector was impressive in terms of performance. The 80 lumen engine is extremely powerful and is by far the brightest portable projector I’ve seen to date. the 750 MHz processor churns out 720p video with ease and my demo shows some impressive output watching AVATAR on a good 40″ size. Fast forwarding through videos or presentations is extremely fluid and there seems to be zero stutter or lag. The only downside to the performance is only about 75 minutes of battery life. To make things worse there isn’t a notification or indicator and once the battery is up you get lights out — no warning.

I can explain performance but instead I’ll just let you all watch the hands-on video demonstration. I start off showing the basic UI in a fully lit room before turning out the lights. The 80 lumens keeps things bright enough that a dark room isn’t required — but sure makes it nice. You’ll be able to use in a lit room with zero problems should the situation present itself.

AAXA P4 video demonstration with light/dark room

As you can see from the video preview the output is extremely bright and impressive, even from a good 6 ft away from the wall. The manual focus makes things very easy for quick adjustments and changes. From the AVATAR scenes in the clip to my Modern Warfare 3 trailer screenshot below you can clearly see just how great the colors are. Thanks to AAXA’s vibrant color technology the colors are exactly that — vibrant.

Wrap-Up

I’ve seen this projector in action for over 2 weeks now. I used it to stream a few clips while visiting family for my extended holiday vacation and everyone was pleasantly surprised by the sound and image output. With 1 watt stereo sound its nothing special but gets the job done. You wouldn’t expect such an incredible bright and vivid picture from this small pocket-able unit — but it does impress.

Battery life is rated for 75 minutes of usage but while outputting 720p video that time dropped significantly and it lasted around 60 minutes for me. While that isn’t very long, completely battery powered is the key here. Being small and weighing under a pound, being fully portable and battery powered makes this perfect for business situations where a full fledged projector isn’t possible. To conduct a full presentation with this quality all on the go with no wires is what sets this apart from the others. For those needing a bigger, longer lasting device for those weekly earnings reports AAXA also has some larger micro projectors to suite all needs.

For a fun toy the pricing is a bit steep but for the on-the-go businessman or professional it should find a place easily in your laptop bag of gear.

The AAXA P4 Pico Projector runs for a pretty penny at around $399 but it’s currently on sale for $339 for a limited time. Get your own today by clicking here.

The cheapest is the PT-LX26HU, which makes due with a 2600 lumen lamp and a maximum resolution of 1024×768. Its brother the PT-LX30HU bumps up the lumens to 3000 with a $1099 price tag, but everything else remains the same. If you’re up for a wider experience in your semi-portable projection lifestyle, the PT-LW25HU increases the resolution to 1280×800 with a 16:10 aspect ration, but the lumen rating is lowered to 2500. The more cinematic of the three newbies retails for $899.

Panasonic claims up to 4,000 hours of use before the lamp needs replacing, and you can use the company’s proprietary Multi Projector Monitoring and Control Software to operate the controls remotely. Real-Time Keystone correction allows the image to square itself automatically. The new models should be available immediately at Panasonic’s retail partners, and it looks like they’re showing up an a few online retailers as well, at a significant discount in some cases.

The company also has a new tablet called the T507 that sells for under $150 and has a 7-inch screen. The processor is a Cortex A8 at 1.2GHz and it has a Mali 400MHz GPU. Other features include 8GB of RAM, a front camera, Android 4.0, and access to the Amazon app store. The Cruz T510 is a 9.7-inch tablet with the same specifications.

Velocity Micro also has a new ProMagix HD6000 notebook with Xeon processor inside, 32GB of RAM, Quadro 4000 graphics, 120GB SSD, and a 1TB HDD. The notebook also has a Blu-ray player, the notebook sells for $3,500. Rounding out the new announced products is the VMUltra drive that sells for under $180 and has a DVD burner, 500GB HDD, SD card reader and more.

The rear projector system shoots the gauges and displays onto a curved surface touch display providing all the buttons and controls you might need. Mitsubishi says that it hopes to be using the concept dash in cars in the next decade. I don’t see that happening, touch interfaces for car controls are far from ideal. That half steering wheel won’t make it either, there is a reason steering wheel are round.

The entire system has 18 buttons that are on two keypads on each of the uprights of that wheel. A touch display to the right of the dash allows the user to enter handwriting or characters for input to the system. The system also uses facial temperature and heart rate monitoring to recognize a user and change seat position. This is not what we need if the government wants drivers to be less distracted.

[via DesignBoom]