Full HD Projectors : Sony VPL-HW15
3. Sony VPL-HW15
Our Settings
All of the settings below assume that you have the projector in cinema mode. The color temperature is 3. We then applied the following custom settings: Red -3, Blue -17, Green +1.
We adjusted the gamma correction. The default setting of 4 is too pale, so we changed it to 3 to get closer to the ideal gamma curve. With this setting, it's slightly below our target much closer.
In advanced mode, we chose the lowest black level and the normal color space. Detail level 15. To accentuate the depth of solid black areas, try reducing the brightness to 45 to wipe out snowstorms.
To go even further, the RCP 'Real Color Processing' menu allows you to individually control the levels of red, yellow, green, cyan, blue and magenta on screen. You can adjust them based on image whose colors you know very well or according to your own preferences. Be careful not go too far though!
Fresh off Sony's production lines, the new VPL-HW15 replaces the VPL-HW10. It still uses Sony'S SXRD LCD system, with three panels in total, one for each primary color, and is in the mid- to high-end range of the manufacturer's 1080p range of projectors, coming in behind the VPL-VW85.
Handling
Sony has preserved the general look and feel of the VPL-HW10 on its successor, the VPL-HW15. From the outside, nothing has changed and the glossy black plastic body is just as physically imposing as its predecessor. It's an interesting choice of materials, as if you hang it from the ceiling, the projector will reflect ambient light sources.
The area where we found the most improvement was the power consumption of the projector while on standby. From 5.7 W on the VPL-HW10, it fell to just 0.1 W here, an tremendous improvment!
The remote control has also seen some radical changes. It's now noticeably bigger with more shortcuts and is very easy to use. Lens-shift, zoom and focus are all manual though, and can't be controlled with the remote control, which would have been more convenient. It's very quiet while operating, producing just 25 dB in eco mode.
- BRAVIA VPL-HW15 LCOS...
Image Quality
We found black levels of 0.88 cd/m². That's twice as dark as a Mitsubishi HC6500, but three times lighter than the Sanyo PLV-Z3000. The latter has a brightness of 159 cd/m² while the Sony reaches 706 cd/m². Sony comes out on top with a contrast ration of 802:1, compared to 568:1 for the Sanyo projector and 248:1 for the Mitsubishi.
Why is this result so interesting? With such a bright image, Sony is hoping to move the projector out of darkened rooms dedicated to Home Cinema sessions and into sitting rooms for more general-purpose use. For instance, watching a sports game in the evening without having to draw the curtains.
The amount of noise in videos is relatively high and similar to the Mitsubishi model, but that's a lot more than is produced by the PLV-Z3000, our reference in this area. To reduce it, you need to go into the advanced menu and choosing the MPEG NR setting. Don't hesitate to increase the size of the projected image to reduce the amount of snowy pixels if there are too many of them. Be careful though, as that can blur some areas of the frame and you will lose detail. It's up to you to find a reasonable compromise without overdoing things.
The management of high light levels is good and there is plenty of white even in the lightest parts of the frame. That's not what happens on the Mitsubishi HC6500 and the HC5500 which both end up burning out white areas.
Remember, we always pick out details like this to give you a good idea of the differences between one model and the next. However, the image produced by Full HD projectors in this price is always excellent overall.
What about Motionflow?
A very popular feature on the latest televisions, and already available on some projectors like the Optoma HD82 and the Panasonic PT-A3000E, there's no system to improve the fluidity of moving objects by calculating the intermediate frames here. Is that something that it's worth tackling Sony for? Keep in mind that these filters often make movies look too much like 'video', rather than film, but it's easy to get used to them and so it would have been good to at least have the option.
A real defect or a problem with our sample?
There's one small problem to look at before we finish. When we displayed a completely black frame, we noticed light leaking in the corners. In the top right, there was a green tinge and it was red at the top left. We think that this fault is linked to the advanced preview that we were testing, and hopefully it won't be present on the final versions that go on sale. That's why our final score for this product doesn't take this into consideration.
| Sony VPL-HW15 | |
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With a better remote control, better color temperature, brightness and energy consumption of just 0.1 W in standby. These are just some of the reasons to prefer the VPL-HW15 to its predecessor, the VPL-HW10. As a downside, it doesn't have Motionflow or a motorized zoom, and the blacks are relatively weak.
Its called a spellchecker and you might want to consider using it...
Seriously...you're going to release a projector article and not do a cost/performance page? The Optoma ($999) is rated at 3 stars while the Sony ($2999) is rated at 5 stars. I would certainly hope that the extra $2K buys something....
As it is with all technology, the Optoma is a tradeoff between cost and features. I have it, and I enjoy it. If I had $3K would I have bought the Sony? Maybe...but there ought to have been some consideration of the entire set of offerings with some kind of price to performance ratio. The article lays out features and some opinions well, but does a poor job of actually reviewing the relative value of each projector.
Seriously...you're going to release a projector article and not do a cost/performance page? The Optoma ($999) is rated at 3 stars while the Sony ($2999) is rated at 5 stars. I would certainly hope that the extra $2K buys something....As it is with all technology, the Optoma is a tradeoff between cost and features. I have it, and I enjoy it. If I had $3K would I have bought the Sony? Maybe...but there ought to have been some consideration of the entire set of offerings with some kind of price to performance ratio. The article lays out features and some opinions well, but does a poor job of actually reviewing the relative value of each projector.
I think what you're saying is that these two projectors are not comparable--they are in entirely different categories. This is absolutely true. We will be adding all new projectors to this list so eventually the entire product category will be there. Right now, these two projectors are not meant to be compared directly.
Thanks,
Rachel Rosmarin, Editor of Tom's Guide
Its called a spellchecker and you might want to consider using it...
I appreciate the suggestion but it would be even more helpful if you pointed out specific errors. That way we can fix them.
http://diyprojectorkits.com
1080P projectors for under a grand anyone?
I bought a projector years ago. Few cans of beer and Its all HD from then on.
Save that good money and spend it on beer.
Stay away from Sony. I had one and it was fine...until I had a problem. I called for assistance and they told me to give them my credit card and they would give me a number and address to send it to. Then they would inform me after they have it how much it will cost to fix. So, give me your money and after I have it in my possession and you have paid for the shipping to me I'll tell you how much I want to fix it and oh...btw...you also have to pay shipping and handling to get it back whether we do anything to it or now.
So, I bought a Panasonic. DTV fried it...they promptly sent me another one. I've had it for almost two years now and love it! Sony's customer service is really, really bad...research it. For some reason they have this arrogance based on how good their product used to be....years ago. Their competition is spanking them. I think they are spending too much time crying about someone making a copy of their movies, IMHO.
Oh, and as far as LCD vs. DLP. My wife and I were looking at some $20K DLP's before we bought the Panasonic. We both walked out of the viewing room with a headache. DLP causes what I think they call a "rainbow" effect to which some people...such as my wife and I are sensitive. Other than that, it gives GREAT blacks and color. Watch a DLP before buying one. Yes, I know, they have new technology..blah...blah..blah. The $20K one we were looking at almost two years ago was the latest and greatest. The more affordable one's are now using the same technology. I haven't looked at DLP's recently, but I'd be surprised if they improved that much.
Just try before you buy...if possible. Unless you are over sensitive....it's very hard to go wrong either route.
In this case - where there are only a couple of projectors reviewed - it might make sense for the author to suggest that there are a couple EXCELLENT sites on the net where prospective buyers can read reviews on many models.
I've been running a Panasonic AE700U since around 2004 - bulletproof as long as you keep her power clean (toasted one bulb at 900 hours - lightning storm and no surge supression - my bad). By all means look at the Sony, but also consider the Panasonic AE3000 & AE4000's ... or the Epson 8000 series... or any of a number of other top shelf 1080p displays in the 1k-4k price range.
One thing to keep in mind with projectors... you do tend to get what you pay for.
$2000 on a bulb can get you another projector
Well, technically the Sony uses a different kind of LCD technology called LCoS. I'm not too sure if that model uses that technology, probably does, but there are a few differences between LCoS and regular LCDs like the one in Panny AE3000 and Mits 6500.
There are pros and cons on each. LCD PJs are by far the most popular because they are the most cost-effective PJs. They have a moderate to good lens shifting and are generally good for 90 to 120 inch screens. The lens shift allows a more flexible placement of the PJ and are better for rooms that does not require you to place the PJ on the center of the screen. The newer LCDs provide good blacks and great color reproduction.
DLPs has come a long way, but they have the least flexible lens shifting range, so basically, the PJ has to be nearly at the center of the screen (horizontally). The rainbow effect has been minimized, but some can still see it. They have very good color and black reproduction though.
LCoS are an advanced LCD that I think only Sanyo and Sony offers it. They have excellent lens shifting options, good image quality, and black levels. But the PJs itself tend to be bigger than LCDs counterpart. So some Sony PJs can be 1.5x to 2.0x bigger than other LCDs PJ.
So...in a sense, don't go with DLPS if your room won't permit it because it's not very friendly with lens shift. You can't go wrong with LCD PJs, but if you want the best performance, LCoS is probably the way to go. But I'd recommend a Sanyo not...Sony.
And lets not forget that the PJ is only half the cost. If you already spending 3-5k on a PJ, you might as well choke up another 2k for a screen like a Da-Lite, AND since the PJ does not come with speaker, you have to get AVR and a speaker set. And yes a dedicated screen and kick-ass sound system will make a very big difference.
I appreciate the suggestion but it would be even more helpful if you pointed out specific errors. That way we can fix them.
"an tremendous improvment"
Sanyo PLV-Z700, a wonderful piece of technology and it only cost $1200 after rebate. I regularly play my games on my 106" screen from my PC in the other room, it's far cheaper than any good 55" LCD/Plasma as well and looks better than my Hitachi Ultravision 42" Plasma!
The biggest issue with many LCD-based projectors is that over time the LCD panels start to degrade from the brightness and heat of the lamp and you get color shifts (usually going towards yellow or green or looking washed out.) I've owned an Optoma HD70 DLP2 projector for nearly three years and haven't had any problems with (no probems with the "rainbow" effect.) I had no problem ceiling mounting it. It's still on the original lamp after nearly 7000 hours which is very impressive since it's only rated for 2000-3000 hours. Also the replacement lamps are more resonably priced at $250 compared to $300-400 from many other manufacturer's. From my own experience and the reviews on most of Optoma's projectors, I recommend their products.
Anyone thinking of buying one of these might want to hold off for a little while yet.
The biggest problem these things have is that all of them require a very expensive projector lamp bulb that has only a few thousand hours of life and maximum longevity depends on properly handling the cool down cycle after using the unit.
There is just hitting the high- end business market a new technology projector using high-output LED bulbs that not only don't require this cool-down cycle (they don't get very warm), but that use far less power, and have a lifespan in the 60,000 hour range.
I have been watching for this for a while. Being the owner of an older home that was built in 1927 (very much pre-TV without an open wall space in the right spot), I have been wanting to maximize my space usage by having a projector unit verses a large (even if it is flat) monitor.
I want to be able to have the screen up (above the faux fireplace when not using it) and then bring it down for a big enough PC monitor to actually surf the web from my chair (being able to actually read what is on the screen from 12 feet away), having the whole movie theater experience when I want it, and still having room for 15 or so people to sit and chat in what is a modest sized room is my goal and a projector would do the trick - but, I don't want to have to spend $200 to $400 every year or so to replace the bulbs.
As soon as the LED projector price gets down to around $2500 (they are about $20K right now) or less, I'll buy.
We purchased a Panasonic PT-AE3000 this summer, quite frankly the picture is nothing short of spectacular. Projectors have advanced in leaps and bounds in the last few years and what you get now for the price is amazing. There's nothing better than watching a 1080p blu-ray on a 120 inch screen. Stack 4 60" TV's together and you can only imagine the picture you get, its as close to a movie theater as you can get (sometimes better considering its conveniently located in your house
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As for the bulb life, our previous projector had a life of 3,000 hours and last us 6 years before the bulb went this summer. After 6 years it was so obsolete we bought a new projector instead.
I assume the same will happen with our current projector, 6 years from now 1080p will probably be old school.
We currently have a 32" flat panel (maybe 40 inches is about the biggest standing or wall unit we can comfortably place in our room - our type of bungalows have lots of wall sconces, built in picture framing, coved ceilings, and not much in the way of significant flat wall space).
We are using it an average of 6 hours a day both as a TV and as a monitor for our living room PC (my wife likes to play arcade games for hours at a time). At that rate Invelm, I imagine we'd only make it for a year and a half, maybe 2 years so the bulb cost seems a bit high. I want one but, I'll wait for the LED prices to come down.
I've had an Optoma HD70 for three or so years now and it's gone back three times.
1 The first time due to it automatically switching itself off. They said dust.
2 Same thing. They said dust
I plugged it into a UPS to avoid any electrical problems and purchased a air cleaning thingy job
3 - The colour wheel failed and ended up with everything looking techno.
This week, two months after sending it away to have the colour wheel replaced, it's started switching itself off again. Is it me? Do I have evil dust in my home?
It's mounted around 2/3 metres from the ground, tilted forward.
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I
P.s. Remeber people, tech sites probably get perks so the Sony gets 5 stars
Every technology has its pros and cons. LCD has problem with fast moving film, 120hz looks kinda freakish. They have very bright contrast and can have very saturated colors. Plasma, well, I'll have to admit that they have superior picture quality (Best plasma > Best LCD), but they will suck up electricity like crazy. A 1080p 58inch plasma will suck up around 700-800 watts, so you'll have to put the energy cost into perspective also.
Yes PJs do have a limited lamp life, but the good news is that it is replacable. The downside is, the PJ is only half the cost of a good "theatrical" system. AVR and speakers, plus a good screen are the other half of the cost. AND depending on how bright a PJ you buy, you'll mostly watch it in the basement or in a cave.
True LED flat panels like a Sony XBR8 or Samsung flagship 950 model are probably the best IMO, BUT very costly.