BenQ

The new BenQ projector is travel-friendly and comes with smart feature
Rs. 30.990, benq.co.in

Customers now understand the advantage of installing projectors at home versus going with a large-size television. But when it comes to portable projection, there’s still some ground to cover. We have seen some solutions from ViewSonic, Sony and Asus in the past and now BenQ has launched its offering, the GV1.

Off all the portable projectors we have seen recently, GV1 is the most portable. As compact as a small soft drink bottle, the GV1 is tiny and well-designed. Equipped with a travel case, the 708g GV1 goes for a dual-tone design with the top quarter of the device housing the projector essentials like the controls at the top, focus ring at the side and the lamp on the front whereas the remaining three-fourth of the device goes with a mesh grille design that conceals the back-firing speaker and a USB Type-C and power port at the bottom. Overall, the design is slick and premium-looking. 

Being a smart projector, GV1 is as easy as setting up an Android smartphone but this is where the similarities end. It runs a custom version of Android and since it does not have a Google certification, there’s no access to Google Play Store and related services. Instead, it comes with Aptoide TV app store. The app store allows downloading popular entertainment apps, but the library is sparse. If you use Netflix, Prime Video or Disney+ Hotstar, the projector can play the content but going through the menu and settings are laggy, given the slow Snapdragon 210 processor and meagre 1GB RAM that powers the forked Android OS. There’s a delay in registering the commands while using the remote control. Connecting an external device is one way to watch content on this projector, but you will have to use the bundled Type-C to HDMI port since the projector does not come with a full-sized HDMI. Another way is to wirelessly project, which works well with PC and Android but was a hit-and-miss with iOS.

GV1 can project images to up to 35-inches from a distance of 1m, which is good enough for such a small projector, but it can project up to 100-inches in size. However, the experience is underwhelming considering the FWVGA (854×480) resolution support and 200 ANSI lumens brightness that goes dimmer if you use the projector with the integrated battery. The 15-degree tilting lens is a nice touch along with the auto keystone that ensures the projection is straight, irrespective of the angle. Users can adjust manually, as well. The 5W back-firing speakers offer good crisp audio, good enough to fill a small room and even has a dedicated Bluetooth mode allowing the GV1 to function as a Bluetooth loudspeaker. 

GV1 is an interesting device. While BenQ has nailed the portability factor with its compact and handy design, this same compactness compromises on the picture quality. Adding insult to injury is the laggy user interface. 

RATING 3/5
WE’RE IMPRESSED Design, portability, audio
WE’D IMPROVE Performance
THE LAST WORD A decent attempt by BenQ to appeal to customers looking for portable projection but falls short in terms of its smart features and picture quality. 

Unboxing the W1700M for the first time was a feeling of déjà vu because of its uncanny resemblance with BenQ’s last year’s model – W1700. There’s little to differentiate between both the models on the outside but few tweaks internally and we have the W1700M, which is what we’re taking a look at, this month. 

The W1700M has the same design as the W1700, which is compact and weighs 4.2kg. The W1700M comes in BenQ’s signature matte-white finish with vents on the front and right-hand side for heat dissipation, focus and zoom ring along with physical keys at the top and connectivity options like two HDMI ports, D-sub, RS-232, USB Type-A and mini USB, and audio in/out ports at the back. However, the regular Type-A USB port does not support any playback of multimedia content. BenQ also bundles a backlit remote control that comes in handy if you mount the projector. The projector also comes with adjustable legs for tabletop setups.

W1700M features a 0.47-inch single-DMD DLP chip that allows the projector to output content to up to 4K UHD resolution (3840×2160) and a contrast ratio of 10000:1. The projector also features CinemaMaster Video+ that helps with the overall picture quality and other features like pixel enhancer. W1700M sports a single 5W speaker that delivers crisp and non-distorted audio, making it good enough for a small room. 

Lamp is one component where W1700M differs from the W1700. BenQ has lowered the brightness to 2000 ANSI lumens from 2200 ANSI lumens but massively gains in terms of lamp life that goes up to 15000 hours with LampSave mode.  

The W1700M now has full 100% Rec. 709 colour coverage and supports two HDR standards – HDR10 and HLG. Our experience with the W1700M has been positive. The projector handles 4K HDR content well with a good balance of colours and contrast. It also supports 3D content but requires an additional purchase of 3D glasses from BenQ. Auto keystone automatically adjusts the content according to the projection angle surface but W1700M also gives an option to tweak it manually. 

The W1700M is targeted at home cinema users and if you’re an existing W1700 user, there’s not much going for you to upgrade. However, if you’re in the market looking for a good performing projector with a space-saving design, the ₹2,10,000 W1700M needs a serious consideration.

RATING 4/5
WE’RE IMPRESSED Design, performance, lamp life
WE’D IMPROVE N/A
THE LAST WORD W1700M is a compact projector with 4K and dual HDR standard support with longer lamp life