Epson MegaPlex MG-850HD 720p HD 3LCD Portable Digital Dock Projector and Speaker Combo for iPod, iPhone and iPad

by Epson

Product Features

• Built-in dock for Apple devices with two stereo speakers
• Project digital content from Apple devices
• Project HD images up to 12X size of a 40-inch screen
• Connects to smartphones, PCs and more
• Ultra Bright Images - up to 2800 lumens

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Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Easy HD Entertainment, Anywhere

Delivering 2800 lumens of color brightness (color light output) and 2800 lumens of white brightness, the MegaPlex 850HD Easy Home Theater 3LCD Projector uses 3LCD, 3-chip technology for brilliant images with true-to-life color. Ultra bright, HD performance lets you project vibrant, colorful images for big-screen movie nights, pool parties, camp outs and more. Share your favorite content anywhere in ways you never imagined. The MegaPlex 850HD super sizes HD movies, games, TV shows, sporting events, family slide shows and more. Connect your Apple or Android smartphone, tablet, gaming console, PC or other device. Or, place your Apple device in the built-in dock. Just connect and project — on a sheet, a wall, the garage door or a big screen — wherever. MegaPlex even features built-in stereo speakers for lifelike sound. Use your device’s touchscreen or the projector remote control to easily access various functions. From your living room to your backyard block party, now it’s easier than ever to take fun home entertainment anywhere.

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One measurement of brightness is not enough — look for both high color brightness and high white brightness. The MegaPlex 850HD has:

• Color Brightness – 2800 lumens (color light output)
• White Brightness – 2800 lumens (white light output)
• Ultra bright, HD performance — HD, 720 p resolution to display large images from your digital devices in crystal-clear detail and brilliant color
• Take it anywhere — lightweight; easy setup; includes HDMI, USB Plug ‘n Play and a built-in dock for Apple devices to instantly project audio and video

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Amazing color brightness for brilliant image quality

With today’s high-definition content, you want your movies to appear with show-stopping quality in both darkened home theaters and brighter environments. One brightness measurement (lumens) is not enough. Look for both high color brightness and high white brightness to have a truly impressive image.

High color brightness also enables an even better image for larger screen sizes and for a larger variety of screen materials. Without sufficient color brightness, images may be muddy, soft and lose detail, even in a dark room. If not provided, be sure to ask for a projector’s color brightness specification. Get consistent, true-to-life color with Epson projectors, whether you’re watching movies, playing video games, or watching a family slideshow.

Advanced 3LCD technology

Up to three times brighter colors

All 3LCD projectors have 3 chips

25% lower power consumption for lower energy costs

20 years of road-tested reliability

A projector for every situation

Epson offers a wide range of high-quality projectors to meet almost any need. Built with image quality and reliability in mind, Epson projectors enhance communication and inspire collaboration, while offering a low total cost of ownership. From ultraportable projectors designed for educational settings to boardroom-ready business projectors, Epson has a model that’s perfect for you.

Super-size your HD movies, games and more

Brilliant, awe-inspiring projection lets you display HD content from virtually any digital device with stunning clarity and color, up to 300-inches, the equivalent of twenty-five 60-inch images. Project larger-than-life movies, games and more on your garage door, the kids’ bedroom wall, or a screen. The possibilities are endless.

Versatile connectivity

Plug in your smartphone, PC, gaming console or other digital device and share your favorite content. Use your Nintendo Wii, Microsoft Xbox, Sony Playstation, PC, Mac, TV receiver, DVD player, Android, smartphone and more (cables not included). Or, use the built-in dock to play content from your iPhone, iPad or iPod for instant home entertainment, anywhere.

HDMI input for high-quality, high-definition video

• Get both audio and brilliant HD video content with just one cable
• Compatible with the latest laptops, Blu-ray and media players

Content at your fingertips

Whether you use the projector remote control, the control pad of your digital device, or the touchscreen on your docked Apple device, the MegaPlex 850HD makes it easy to instantly share your movies, games and more.

Built-in, big sound from a go-anywhere projector

The MegaPlex 850HD’s two built-in 10 W stereo speakers deliver lifelike sound for your music, movies and games. Enjoy karaoke nights, audio files and more (includes mic input).

Easy USB Plug ‘n Play instant setup

Epson’s innovative USB connectivity enables instant setup for both audio and video right from your computer. Forget about complicated computer key sequences and controls. Just plug in a standard USB cable and let the show begin.

PC-free slideshows

• Just plug your USB memory device into the USB port and you are ready to display your favorite photos from your drive
• Compatible with the following file formats: JPG/BMP/GIF/PNG/FSE/SIT
• Create a slideshow using files on the USB drive

Key Features

• Color Brightness – 2800 lumens
• White Brightness – 2800 lumens
• Delivers high-definition content — HD, 720 p resolution to display large images with amazing clarity and detail
• Super-size content from entertainment devices — easily enlarge movies, games and more (up to 25 x a 60" TV screen)
• Maximum flexibility — works with virtually any device; includes HDMI plus other audio/video connections
• Built-in dock for instant home entertainment — perfect for your Apple iPod, iPhone and iPad; also charges devices while docked
• Lifelike sound — two built-in 10 W stereo speakers; includes mic input; perfect for karaoke nights
• Lightweight, go-anywhere design — integrated handle makes it easy to take camping, on vacation, to the living room, basement or even your backyard (electrical outlet required)
• Share your favorite music — can be used as a speaker dock without displaying video
• USB Plug ‘n Play instant setup — instantly projects audio and video from a PC or Mac via a USB connection
• PC-free slide shows — plug your USB memory device into the USB port and let the show begin
• Dimensions (W x D x H) — Including feet: 13.4" x 11.5" x 5.1", Excluding feet: 13.4" x 11.5" x 4.6" and Weight 8.6 lb
• Recyclable product
• Epson America, Inc. is a SmartWay Transport Partner

What's in the Box

• MegaPlex MG-850HD Projector
• Power cord
• Remote control and AA batteries
• CD ROM with user guides
• iPad docking bracket

Accessories

• Genuine Epson lamp (V13H010L67)
• Replacement air filter set (V13H134A37)
• Remote control (1556256)

Product Description

MegaPlex MG-850HD, 2800 lumens. Get ready to super-size your digital lifestyle with the MegaPlex MG-850HD portable digital dock projector and speaker combo. This revolutionary product reinvents how you share presentations, slideshows, high-def movies, audio and more. The easy-to-use MegaPlex MG-850HD lets you project multimedia content from your digital device, from the boardroom to the media room. Place your Apple device in the built-in dock or connect your smartphone, tablet, gaming console or PC. Remarkable resolution and bright output (2800 lumens of color and white light output) ensure vivid content, even when it's enlarged to a 100-inch image. Add in the built-in stereo speakers and portable design and the MegaPlex MG-850HD is sure to transform how you collaborate and interact, whether at work or at home. Simply connect, project and play.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

45 of 46 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Versatile portable theater October 26, 2011

By Michael McKee TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

I've spent that last couple hours playing with the projector and am impressed. I wanted a projector for photo club presentations that would give us a better color accuracy than our aging unit. This does. The auto color setting is quite good, if a bit strong on yellow. By running a color calibrator (ColorMunki Photo - Monitor, Printer & Projector Profiler), I was able to get very nice color accuracy. Obviously, a projector won't have the gamut (color range) of a good monitor, but this MegaPlex MG-850 is a huge improvement and more than good enough for our needs.

There are a couple bonuses that come with the projector. One is built in speakers that are actually loud enough to be heard in a meeting room. The amplifier in the unit will over-drive the speakers so you'll need to balance volume and clarity, but within a reasonable range it does pretty well, for meeting use. I'd say it's the equivalent of a $40-50 set of external computer audio monitors. For home theater use, you will probably want to connect it to a higher quality system.

Connectivity is the other special feature. I plugged in my iPod Touch and ran a photo slideshow with music. It just worked. There's a slide-out tray that has an iPod/iPad/iPhone jack. The tray easily holds my wife's iPad with no strain.

Next, I connected my laptop with a USB cable. Again, it just worked. I then tried it from a HDMI cable, then a RGB cable. All worked off my MacBook. No problem with Apple products that I can see. It also supports composite cables, which I used from our DVD player. There are the expected audio out ports too. It will also show photos or video off a USB thumb drive. That will greatly simplify letting members share their photos at club meetings.

One unexpected bonus is a microphone port. I plugged in an old Sony mic that was laying around in my attic, and it turned the unit into a portable PA system. I guess you could also use it for karaoke, (Shudder) as the microphone works over music playing through the projector.

There is no video cable included with the unit. With all the connection possibilities that the projector offers, that's not surprising. Which would you include? Anyway, that's just a heads up thing.

The included remote works fine. The projector has a number of projection modes that alter the lamp intensity. With a maximum of 2800 lumens, it will work nicely in a normal room with the lights on, but probably not a brightly sunlit room. That's not a problem we see often in the Pacific Northwest. In default mode, the projector will adjust intensity for ambient light. Nice.

Refresh seems fine for action video viewing. Contrast is excellent. As I mentioned earlier, color is very good. Fan noise is about average. There's an angle adjustment, that should work if you can't get quite 90 degrees to a screen, and a mode that is supposed to color correct for displaying on a green chalk board. I didn't test that.

The unit is large by modern standards, coming in about the size of 10-12 year old unit. It's bulky, but not quite as heavy as the old projectors. There's no way you're going to get this in a briefcase. It has a built-in handle but no case. You'll have to carry the remote and power cord separately.

I'm more than pleased with the projector. We'll probably be hosting movie nights at our place. ;-)

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great picture quality November 20, 2011

By Quoad Toad VINE™ VOICE

Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

The Epson MegaPlex is the first projector I have owned. I have used several at the office for work and was always disappointed with the results. I wish my office would update its equipment with one of these.

The MegaPlex is very easy to set up. I didn't have to refer to the documentation. I just plugged it into my Asus Transformer (tablet) and it immediately worked. The first thing I did was view some of my favorite Youtube videos to get a feel for the basics of this machine. The videos looked nice projected onto my white wall despite the poor picture quality of most Youtube videos.

Next, I ran a slide show of my pictures. I had to adjust the brightness a little since some of my pictures were dark. Adjusting the brightness fixed the issue and my pictures looked great. Again, it was fun to see my pictures up on such a huge screen. I can't wait to show off my next vacation pictures this way.

The MegaPlex seems to work with a variety of electronics that have HDMI outputs. I don't have an iThing of any sort, so I wasn't able to test that function. However, my Asus Transformer was able to output 720p with the MegaPlex and the picture looked nice. When I plugged my Asus into the MegaPlex, the MegaPlex took over the sound. The MegaPlex has decent speakers for a projector. The speaker is on the back of the MegaPlex, so you probably won't want to use it as your main speaker if you connect this to a TV and watch movies, but it works well for Youtube videos and such.

The controls on the unit make it easy to size the image to your liking. You can make the image large or small depending on the amount of viewing space you have available. For now, I have been using my wall and making the image as large as possible. The picture looks great, but I recommended a reflective screen instead of just projecting the image onto a wall. A wall works well in the interim though or if you want to bring this to a friend's place.

The build quality of the MegaPlex is above average. The plastic casing seems sturdy. The remote feels solid. My one complaint is that the cover to the HDMI and component ports is not attached. You have to take the cover off to access the ports, but it seems like something that will be easy to lose. I would rather the cover have slid up or at least remained connected with a wire. The iThing dock is more streamlined. The dock is concealed within the system and if you push on it, it slides out. This is much prettier than the HDMI/component dock.

Overall, I definitely recommend this item. It's fun to use and the picture quality is great.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Myriad of hookups, fairly portable, overall very good image quality. December 16, 2011

By AverageGuyShopper

Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

I was excited to get this projector and test it out by itself, but also in comparison to my older BenQ PB8230 ceiling mounted projector. Epson is a well known projector brand name (and printers too) with a reputation for good quality projector products. There are a couple of easily found reviews that I found on the web, including a PC editor's choice designation. I've had the projector roughly two months now.

The Box and Build quality:
The projector came packed well in styrofoam and a neat cardboard liftout handle. Extras came in a sealed cardboard box. The projector itself is all plastic with a side carrying handle that snaps shut when not needed. The sliding lens cap is built into the projector. The unit is "portable" and light with a convenient carry handle but you would need a pretty large and padded backpack to carry this thing around in a bag. My only complaint with the build quality is that they use a pliable plastic mesh over the speakers. It would have been better to use a metal grill for durability and true protection of the speakers, but it's a minor point. The remote is slim and has nice illuminated buttons.

The connections:
Well, first off, if you have Apple products, you're going to love this projector with it's easy to use rear pop out port. Apple stuff fits easily, and the projector comes with a tape on stand to help stabilize iPads. Obviously, if you're going to use Apple products, this thing cannot be mounted upside down like home theater projectors are mounted or else your Apple device might enjoy a nice trip from the ceiling to the floor. From the specs, you can read what connections are available. Standing out is the option to use a USB port (type A and B are both accepted). This is incredibly handy if you want to merely carry around a USB thumb drive. However, I tried hooking up my Canon S95 camera via USB, and it would not work, but that's okay since the camera links fine with HDMI hookup. I will confess that I was curious why a SD card slot is not available with all these other options for connection so handy. For those with OLDER laptops, the VGA cable port is also very good as older laptops do not typically have HDMI ports. Given a choice though, you are better off with the HDMI cable since it is lighter/more compact and can also transmit sound.

Customer support:
A unique PIN is given to you to call Epson LIVE tech support and bypass the traditional phone tree. This courtesy is free under warranty and is an example of a company dedicated to customer support. I can't count how many times someone comes in with a laptop yet is not able to get the projector to sync up and the whole room has to cram together to peer at a 14" laptop screen. After using this projector for two months, though, I don't see how you cannot get a good link unless the laptop itself doesn't have the right drivers.

Picture quality:
It's great. I tried the projector on two surfaces, my incredibly white painted house walls and a Sharp projector screen, I tried many sizes of of the screen, different angles, and of course source material using my camera, laptops, and PS3. Regular DVDs looked fine as well as Blurays. You can customize the tint and such in the menu, but the picture quality was excellent out of the box for both surfaces. Ideally the room will be a little darkened when using a projector, but even with open windows letting in lots of light, the images are easily seen. I will concur there is a bias towards yellow, but some ways, it looks even better, depending on your baseline color. If you are unhappy with the color accuracy, you can easily drop into the menu for extensive calibration of the colors. But like I said, if you don't have time, or this is a public-use projector, then the pictures still look great without any additional setup. You do have to set your expectations in that a Bluray disc using this projector's 91" 720 screen size is not even close to a 55" 1080 Sony NX LED TV - hey it's 91" of real estate that I was quite satisfied to watch. Now using it as an exaggerated computer monitor via HDMI was not so great. In that regard I felt that the sharpness of the icons was really lacking, and preferred my older BenQ.

Overall:
I think the value proposition in this projector is really quite good. And while this is not minisized, it's still very easily portable. While you could easily and happily use this as a dedicated home entertainment projector, I'm more inclined to laud it's well-rounded nature and would recommend it especially for wide-range public use, like a school classroom or a conference room tool, especially with it's wide assortment of hookups. If you are looking to put a projector for home theater use, consider upgrading to a 1080p, even 3D, projector.