Comparison Blaupunkt F-Stream vs Xiaomi Mi Smart Projector 2

The number of lamps provided in the design of the projector.

Most modern projectors have one lamp, but there are also multi-lamp models. More lamps increase the light flow and, accordingly, the brightness of the image provided by the projector. In addition, in models with 4 lamps, it may be possible to continue working even if one of the lamps burns out — the brightness of the remaining ones is enough to provide the desired brightness. In two-lamp versions, most often you have to change a burned-out lamp.

Minimum projector lamp life as stated by the manufacturer. Specified by the total time of continuous operation. Note that if the projector was operated without violations, then upon reaching this time, the lamp will not necessarily fail — on the contrary, it can work for quite a long time. However, when evaluating durability, it is best to focus on the claimed service life.

When working in economy mode, the brightness of the backlight is noticeably reduced, on average by 30-50%. With a decrease in brightness, heat dissipation also decreases, which saves the working life of the illuminator, thereby increasing the lamp life. Thus, the ECO mode allows you to extend the lamp life by an average of 30%. If the typical projector lamp life is 4000 hours, regular use of the ECO mode will extend the backlight life to approximately 5500 hours.

The power consumption of the backlight lamp installed in the projector.

Theoretically, the more powerful the lamp, the brighter it is. However, this is only true when comparing lamps of the same type (see above); and even in this case, the brightness may also depend on the nuances of the design. Therefore, when evaluating the capabilities of a lamp, it is worth focus not so much on power, but on the directly claimed brightness in lumens (see below).

But what this parameter directly affects is the total power consumption of the projector: the lamp is the most “greedy” component of the device, compared to it, the power consumption of the rest of the electronics is very small. Also note that many powerful lamps have high heat dissipation and require cooling systems, which affects the size and weight of the projector.

This parameter largely determines the ability of the projector to work in a well-lit room. For a dark room, 1000 lumens is enough to make the projection picture bright, rich, clear and understandable. But when working in a lit room, the projector will need at least 3500-4000 lumens. Do not confuse ANSI lumens with Peak lumens. These are two different brightness standards. To convert one type of brightness to another, you need to multiply Peak lumens by 10-12. The result will be an approximate value of ANSI Lumens.

However, experts do not recommend chasing high ANSI lumen brightness values. There are many professional projectors with brightness up to 3500 lm. The lower the brightness, the lower the power consumption, and at the same time, the life of the illuminator increases. Of course, if the projector will be installed in a work office or classroom where good lighting is required, it is recommended to purchase a model with ANSI Lumens brightness of 4000 lumens and more.

The static contrast of the image provided by the projector.

Static contrast refers to the maximum difference between the brightest white light and the darkest black that a projector can provide within a single frame. Unlike dynamic contrast (see below), this parameter describes not conditional, but quite real capabilities of the device, achievable without the use of any additional tricks like auto-brightness. And since the quality of colour reproduction and detailing depend on contrast, the higher this indicator, the lower the likelihood that details will be indistinguishable in bright or dark areas.

The technology by which the projector sensor is built.

— DLP. This technology is based on a chip with thousands of rotary micromirrors. Each such mirror corresponds to one pixel and has two fixed positions — “lit” and “darkened”. In most DLP projectors, there is only one sensor, and the output of a colour image is provided by the colour wheel, thanks to which the projector alternately displays the red, green and blue image; they are replaced so quickly that the viewer perceives not individual frames, but a whole colour picture. Compared to LCD models (see related section), these single-sensor projectors are more compact and offer better image contrast with deep black levels (which improves black and white image quality). However, the brightness of the colour image in DLP devices is relatively low, in addition, they are subject to the "rainbow effect": in dynamic scenes, colour artifacts may be noticeable due to the mismatch of red, green and blue image components. Three-sensor DLP projectors don`t have these shortcomings; however, such a design is very expensive, so it is found rarely, mainly among premium devices.

— 3LCD. Technology based on the use of translucent LCD sensors. There are three such sensors, each of them is translucent with its base colour (red, green or blue), and the final colour “picture” is formed from three images simultaneously superimposed on each other. Thanks to...this format of operation, you can achieve brighter, more saturated colours than in single-sensor DLP projectors (see the relevant paragraph); in addition, this technology is completely devoid of the "rainbow effect". Among its shortcomings are the relatively low contrast ratio (in particular, due to the low black depth) and the larger size of the projectors.

— LCD(Liquid Crystal Display) — a colour rendering technology based on the modulation of light by liquid crystals. Do not confuse LCD and 3LCD sensors. 3LCD technology forms an image from three separate light streams, and in an LCD sensor, the image follows immediately from a single light beam. Sensors of this type provide a stable, contrasting and colour-rich image. Among the shortcomings of the technology, one can note the glimpse of the light grating, if you look at the picture from a close distance. Additionally, the substrate of LCD sensors is prone to fading, due to which the blue colour may begin to turn yellow over time (note that this can happen after a long time of active operation). LCD sensors require periodic maintenance, the service comes down to cleaning the air filter. LCD-sensor projectors are usually compact in size and light in weight, such models are prone to heat, and the noise threshold is above average.

— LCoS. A technology that combines the properties of DLP and LCD. Like LCD, it provides three separate sensors for the three primary colours (red, green, blue), and the final colour image is formed by the simultaneous superposition of these three components. The difference lies in the fact that in LCoS projectors the sensors are not translucent, but reflective. Thanks to this, you can achieve excellent contrast (as in DLP) combined with bright, high-quality colours without the "rainbow effect" (as in LCD). The main drawback of this technology is the impressive cost, which is why it is used mainly in premium projectors.

The maximum resolution is closely related to both the overall picture quality and the screen size. The higher the resolution of the projector, the clearer the image details become, especially when viewing the picture on a large screen.

For the vast majority of tasks, a resolution ranging from HD (1280x720) to Full HD (1920x1080) is usually enough. If the projector will be used to play modern games, you should choose a model with a resolution from Quad HD (2560x1440) to 4K (3840×2160) and even 8K (7680x4320).

Of course, the screen size itself should be taken into account. The fact is that on a 40-50″ projection surface there will not be much difference between Quad HD and 4K formats. A high-resolution picture will be able to express itself on a really big screen.

Image formats supported by the projector.

In this case, format means the aspect ratio of the image. The general rule in this case is that the projector must support the same format in which the original content is recorded. Otherwise, the image will either be stretched in height or width, or with black stripes on the sides or top-bottom. Specifically, the formats can be divided into three main categories:

— Traditional, or rectangular. Classic formats in which the height of the picture is not much less than the width. The most popular options are 4:3, widely used in analogue TV, and 5:4, common in computer technology. Traditional formats are well suited for presentations, working with documents and graphics, and other similar tasks.

— Widescreen — formats in which the frame width is significantly (more than 1.5 times) greater than the height. The most popular of these standards are 16:9 and 16:10. These aspect ratios are well suited for games and movies; in particular, most high-definition content (HD 720p and above) is recorded in widescreen format.

— Extra wide. The formats are even wider than the widescreen ones described above — for example, 21:9. Mainly used in cinematography.

It is worth noting that many modern projectors are able to work with several types of formats at once — for example, with classic 4:3 and...wide-angle 16:9.