Customer Reviews

Epson EX70 3LCD Multimedia Projector, WXGA, 2000 Lumens

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

For starters, let me give you my background. I have long been a fan of projectors for my home theater. For the last three and a half years, I have used the Epson Powerlite S3 which I have been quite happy with in terms of performance. My wife and I installed it on the ceiling, built an 80 inch projector screen using white black-out cloth, and use a switchbox to display everything from DVD's to TV. It has mostly worked flawlessly until it started "bleeding" blue colors across the screen. Recently, I purchased a Playstation 3 and a multimedia computer, and I was wanting something that would display a higher resolution than the 800X600 that the S3 displays. After doing much research, I finally decided on the EX70 as a replacement for the S3.

Though there are not many reviews of this projector and some of them are somewhat negative, I have not been at all disappointed. I took down the S3, I placed the EX70 in the same place overhead mounts, and it projects a crisp 74 inch image onto the screen. The 1280X800 resolution handles a 720p picture from the Playstation with no problems whatsoever. I have spent the last two weeks playing video games (Midnight Club Racing: Los Angeles) watching Blu-Ray movies (Night at the Museum), and watching off-the-air HD signals from my computer. All of these pictures are gorgeous. The colors are rich. The modes that one can choose (such as Gaming mode or Theater mode) actually help to create the mood for the moment. I go home each night from a long day at work, and my wife and I always look forward to trying new modes, adjusting the image, and looking for new ways to utilize the projector (i.e. we plan to buy a DVI to HDMI connector to try with the computer).

Compared to the S3, the picture is brighter, the colors more brilliant, the "screen door" has disappeared (unless you get within three or four feet of the screen), and the number of options have increased (i.e. being able to zoom, having an HDMI input).

So far, I have tested everything but the HDMI (the cable should be shipping soon) and the speakers (I've hooked it up to my surround sound system), and everything works as advertised. The SD card does indeed display picture slideshows with ease. The USB connection, when connected to my computer, displays a signal that rivals the VGA connection, though it doesn't refresh the page as often thereby making motion images a bit jerky. The VGA doubles as a component input if you purchase the right cable.

As far as criticisms, the only concerns I have at this point is the fact that some of the lower quality images (i.e. I've tried an old Nintendo 64 gaming machine with the projector) do not appear as crisp, but I have a feeling that it has nothing to do with the projector and has everything to do with the age of the gaming machine. As well, as another person mentioned, the blacks could be blacker, but when compared to the older technology of the S3, the blacks look quite dark. The auto-keystone correction might be nice if someone uses this projector as a business projector, but for my home theater system, I have turned it off.

For a two year warranty, a bulb that lasts 4,000 on low mode, a $700 or lower price range, no "rainbow effects" as some DLP projectors have, and a bigger than 50 inch HD picture, I have been quite happy with this purchase. I have immensely enjoyed it the last two weeks, and it was worth the upgrade from the older S3 model.

Most of the reviews on this product have been for primarily home use as part of a home theater system, or use as an outdoor projector for summer movies. I think the other reviewers cover its benefits quite well, and as this is not my intended main use for this projector (although summer outdoor movies do sound lovely), I will be focusing on its benefits as a traveling projector.

First off, I would like to be clear that I haven't given this a full trial run on the go, but have been putting it through its paces within my home, based on the different scenarios I might use it for outside the home as a college level teacher. I have been relying on borrowed projectors, or university ones (that come delivered with huge, unwieldy carts), so this one will be reviewed primarily based on what I have found I disliked and liked about other projectors I have used.

Overall, this is a nicely designed projector with clear picture and nice color (you can, additionally, select the picture mode you are using it for and it will adjust accordingly, nice extra benefit). The motor is not too loud, and the weight is not too heavy-- an important factor when you consider you might be carrying up stairs, or a few blocks to your presentation destination-- especially important to me, who parks about a 15+ min trek from my car to my classroom on campus and will most likely be laden with other bags of books and teaching materials. The bag that comes with it is fairly standard, and has nice padding and a generous pocket to keep the cords and manual in. One of my favorite features are the speakers. I have used quite a few projectors that don't have speakers and bought an inexpensive pair of travel speakers to plug into my laptop when utilizing video clips or other media with sound, but found that those travel speakers were not sufficient for my classroom. These speakers will do the job nicely and would be suitable for small to medium sized presentations (think 10-30 people). The fact that they are built in and have additional sound power will be a big plus for me in the future.

There are just a few other things I would like to draw attention to. One is the on/off time and the buttons. This projector has a quick on/off (no warm up/cool down for the bulb), that makes for a quick set up and shut down. In addition, the buttons on top of the machine for the menu, the lamp, and navigating such things as your slide show, are easy to maneuver (unlike some projectors I've used). In contrast to some other projectors I used, this one also allows you to connect a turned on computer to the turned on projector--often they will make you shut down the computer, connect the cords and then restart in order for the projector to read the device-- eliminating this need can save time if you already have your computer on for something else and merely want to move to a larger sharing format on your projector.

Small notes-- Although it mentions use of a USB cord, be aware that is only for pc based computers, for mac users (like myself) you will still need the convertor for the VGA cord. I also tried out the SD slideshow option and can see the potential use for that. It allows you to set the specifications of the slideshow, so that it could essentially (I think) be used for powerpoint presentations that are only using text and stills (no music as far as I can tell right now) without a computer (if converted correctly), or for purely photo based presentations. I myself would love to exploit this possibility as the added weight and burden of the laptop would be nice to eliminate.

Overall, I see great potential for this projector for teachers and/or the business world (this would be ideal if you are self-employed and traveling to different venues to present information or make sales pitches), and also find it easy to use. I can't wait to take it out into the world!

My company is using the EX70 projector in a small conference room. The projector sitting on the conference room table about 10' from the screen. It is used almost exclusively for presentations. The projector works great for this application.

The USB connection works great on several laptops running Windows. The required software seems to install over the usb cable from the projector it's self. After giving your approval, you are up an running. Over the USB, the mouse and keyboard response is somewhat slower than when using the VGA port. This is not a problem fo r our application. We have a Linux workstation plugged into the VGA port. It works good. Switching between the USB and VGA during a meeting requires an adjustment with the manual zoom to achieve best fit on the screen.

The projector is quiet on the low light (long bulb life) setting and noticeably nosier in the high light mode. In our small room, the low light mode works fine even when the room's lights are on. I suspect projecting a greater distance might require the high light mode.

The adjustable foot to tilt the projector is too short for the angle we are needing. I needed to put a 3/8" block on the table to set the foot on to get what I needed. This is more a problem with our conference room set up than the projector.

For the price, this is a perfect projector for our application. The USB connection makes it easy for any presenter to connect.

Used this projector in a basement remodel. I already have a substantial home theater setup in another room and was looking for a projector, to make a game/movie lounge for my kids to hang out in, that would not be overly expensive.

I got the EX70 for $619 (local store wanted $799). I have an XBOX360 connected by HDMI and a PS2 connected through composite. Both platforms look great for games and movies. I didn't even buy a screen, I just painted the projection wall white. Set up was easy, the remote is intuitive and the built in speaker is even usable-not theater quality of course but functional. I added a Pioneer V918 ($240) and a Yamaha 5.1 speaker set ($129) and so for slightly under $1000, I have a 93 inch screen capable of 720p HD, 5 speakers, a sub, and an HDMI switching 100 watt/channel receiver.

Update**** Pioneer would not pass the HDMI signal to this projector from either an XBOX 360 or a Motorola U-verse receiver so it is being returned. Not the projector's fault. HDMI (HDCP) is the single worst plague unleashed on the AV world ever. How do you call it a standard when half the stuff you hook up will not work?

I bought this last night as my first projector and am VERY pleased with it. I am using it for home theater applications, not for business. The image is BRIGHT and clear, even with the windows open. I have watched a few movies on it so far and have been overwhelmingly suprised. I am projecting from about 10' away onto a cream colored wall, at a screen size of around 80" diag. With my computer run through this projector, text is very clear and easily read. Pictures are bright and colorfull. Video is smooth and sharp. All in all, I was worried about the purchase of this unit because of not finding much for reviews, but do not be afraid. This will easily give you a 150" screen at full 720P quality.

I handed this product off to my wife, who is a graphic artist and long time computer user and long time projector user, but who has never used a projector with a computer. A few minutes after she started she was downstairs saying "you've got to see this!!!" and proceeded to give me a very complete tour of the many features of this unit. We were both impressed. She has a long list of ideas for what to do with it.


With MacOS, setup was as easy as plugging in the video and USB cables. The Mac detected the projector as another monitor and it simply worked.


The remote and the unit have a nice array of adjustments, the keystone adjustment is very handy as the projection surface is rarely parallel to the projector's axis.

Brightness and image quality are impressive. We tested both photos and videos, the images were clear, even from center to edge, and no sign of pixelation.

Back in the day, I was traveling for work and teaching classes with a projector. The units were very expensive and required and absolutely dark room to be visible, plus required a computer engineer to make them work (and I'm a computer engineer). Today we have easy setup, bright clear images, and a lot less money. Impressive progress!

I'll write a longer review after we've put more miles on this.

Our last projector died, so we replaced it with the Epson EX70. We use our projector for movies, HDTV and video games and have become accustomed to a crisp picture and beautiful colors. This unit, however, has a very soft picture with no depth, color or crisp lines. I have since found out that it is a "Screen door effect" common on LCD projectors. Also, The black lines on the top and bottom (which each projector has) are so washed out that they appear a bluish color even in a completely darkened room. One of our tests was to put in the Dark Knight blu-ray disc. It looked awful. Guitar Hero on the PS3 was our second test. Again, the blacks were blue and the colors all washed out. No matter how many adjustments we tried (color, saturation, contrast, brightness) we could not get a satisfactory picture. Unfortunately we'll be returning this unit and purchasing a DLP projector.

On the plus side, the unit is nice looking, lightweight and has an easy to use remote. Perfect for presentations and the office or classroom setting. But for movies and video games, not at all what we were hoping for.

I am using the EX70 in a home theater. I have it ceiling mounted, approximately 13' from the projection surface, throwing a roughly 112" diagonal image. The projection surface is a custom painted wall, and the room has modest ambient light. The image from any of my sources (DirecTV SD and HD, HTPC via DVI/HDMI, LG Blu Ray player, Netflix streaming) is stunning. It's very bright and crisp. Even with all of the room lights on and the blinds open in full daylight, it is very watchable. Dimming the room makes the image incredibly vivid. Given the low cost of this projector, the brightness, contrast and clarity are exceptional. I'm using the projector in low power mode. There is no need for the brighter mode in my application, and the projector is quieter in the low power mode.

The EX70 has numerous modes for aspect ratio (16:10, 16:9, 4:3, native, auto, etc), color/contrast enhancement (sports, theater, text, presentation, etc.) The included remote is simple to use, although I am controlling the projector with a Harmony remote that integrates all of my equipment. Another handy feature: Direct power on. You can set the projector to turn on when power is present at the outlet. I have it powered from a switched outlet on the back of my AV receiver. This simplifies things for casual users.

The good:
- 720p/1080i produces excellent image quality
- Very bright
- Quiet
- Long lamp life
- Low replacement lamp cost
- HDMI, VGA, S-video, USB
- Good remote with easy to use menus
- Useful configuration choices, particularly the flexible aspect ratios
- Built in speaker with decent sound, for presentations or plain-old TV watching where high-end sound isn't important

Drawbacks :
- It's not 1080p
- It doesn't have RGB component inputs (you can use an adapter on the VGA connector).
- While you can drive this unit from a PC via USB, it's inferior to VGA or HDMI (USB image quality is good, but can lag).

The first day my wife watched TV from this projector, she said: "There is one problem with this projector: I can't stop watching!"

Ok, a little background on myself, this is my first projector, and I am thrilled with it!

I am in the middle of a basement remodel and needed a big screen tv for movies. Then I came across this projector and realized that might work out better. And it does.

The first two weeks I had this projector my kids hooked it up to their Playstation and had it project onto a white painting tarp. Even on the low quality surface of the tarp, it was still a very good picture.

I had been searching around for a projector screen and found some 130 inch screen material with a 1.2 gain on an online auction site. Well the material arrived and I hung it up, and the playstation was now so much clearer.

So now its time to hook it to the DVD player to test the picture. We loaded Casino Royale, and I set the projector up on a table and watched the opening scenes. Even at a projected size of 95 inches the picture was remarkably clear and crisp. With the surround sound system hooked up it really felt like we were in a theater watching the show. Except we did not have any popcorn at $8.00 a bag and the floor wasn't sticky.

The final location of the projector will be further back, mounted to the ceiling, giving a screen size of about 110 to 120 inches. I will submit an update once that has been completed.

A few things I like about this projector are all the connections. HDMI, computer (component video), audio, video, S-video, two types of USB, and even an SD port to slide in your cameras memory card for slide shows. Everything I attached seemed to be plug and play and I did not have to pick up the manual even once.

Two things that I did notice, the lens sits down in the base and it looks like it needs to be moved up, but it does not, that is the design. The second thing is that the cooling fans suck in air right through the area around the lens and that seems to make the dust accumulate on the lens. Not much of an issue, I just have to clean the lens every now and again.

Overall I am very pleased with this projector and look forward to years of home theater experiences.

I am delighted overall with the projector; it is very easy to set up and use, and I especially like being able to plug in a "thumb" drive to show my presentations without having to set up the computer as well. The only downside (and that may be because I'm still learning to use it) is the out-of-sync with the audio and video from a DVD showing. I bought a separate y-audio cable and that helps when using the projector speakers but voice deliveries still are not sync'd enough to eliminate that annoyance. Also, there are minute hesitations from time to time--again may be operator error or some problem in my computer. Looking forward to getting better acquainted with the projector and thus more experienced in its use.