Customer Reviews

Epson Powerlite Home Cinema 1080 Home Theater Projector

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Pros
- Under $3000!
- VERY easy to set up.
- Well-designed, backlit remote.
- ZERO screen-door effect from real viewing distances.
- Relatively bright (even in theater mode).
- Excellent performance.

Cons
- Blacks could be a little deeper.
- No vertical stretch (only an issue if you're looking to do CIH).
- Menu navigation a little sluggish when using a universal remote.

Being the first 1080p projector under $3000, the Epson Home Cinema 1080 arrived with a lot of hype and anticipation. I bought into that hype, and as a result I was among the first to pick up one of these bad boys the day it came out. Prior to the Epson, I had owned two different 720p HD projectors- a Sanyo Z4 and a Panasonic AX-100U. The Sanyo produced a super-sharp, noise-free picture, but I found the visible pixelation too distracting at close viewing distances. The Panasonic doesn't have that problem as it utilizes Smoothscreen technology to reduce screen-door effect, but it also results in a noticeably softer image. The Epson, on the other hand, is capable of projecting a sharp AND pixel-free image (both undoubtedly thanks to the 2 million pixels afforded by 1080p). The Epson also performs surprisingly well out the box, and after a simple calibration I found that it can deliver even more vivid and accurate color. Black level is the one area where I feel this projector is lacking. For deep, DLP-like blacks you would have to shell out another grand or two for a higher-end model like the JVC RS-1. What I did though was paint my own screen, using a special DIY mix designed to boost contrast and improve black level performance, and voila! I'm looking at a beautiful picture with much darker and convincing blacks. Summing up, the Epson is a killer deal, and for under $3000 I honestly couldn't be happier. If you haven't experienced HD front-projection before, I would advise you to go with a 720p model first as prices are tumbling and you can pick up a pretty decent model for around $1000. If you're looking to jump from 720p to the next level, and you watch a lot of HD DVD, Blu-ray, or other high-res HD material, then this is the projector for you. Highly recommended!

I developed a good opinion about this projector from reading the various reviews on the internet, but after I hooked it up and saw a Blu Ray movie on the big screen for the first time, I was blown away by the quality. The image size was larger than expected and playing Xbox 360 games was as lifelike as possible. I had an InFocus 4805 480p projector prior to getting this one, which was a very solid projector, but the Epson produces larger images from the same distance and does HD as well. The only possible disadvantage with this projector is that it lacks keystone correction, which makes the image as straight as possible if the unit is not level. I don't think this is a major negative because the feet on the bottom of the unit are adjustable. This, along with the horizontal and vertical correction buttons make the image straight. They actually do a better job than the keystone correction on my 4805. I would strongly recommend this unit for anyone interested in a budget HD projector. For $[...], you can't go wrong with the Epson 1080.

I've done my fair of research and this is by far the best 1080p projector for the money. I've been using it with my blu-ray player and I highly recommend it. If you have any ambient light in the room and plan on watching it during the day get the "UB" version of this projector instead. It's a little bit more pricey but completely worth it. Even with a grey screen it was hard to watch this projector in my family room during the day without blacking out all the windows.

i have a completely dark basement and am using a 100' diagonal screen. HD movies look really good. The only disappointment is the image looks way to dark during many dark scenes. Ive noticed this with an old Optoma projector I used to own too. Maybe its just the technology. The Epson does have a useful DYNAMIC color setting which will seriously brighten things up but it causes many movies to look to pixilated for my taste.
Using the DYNAMIC mode with my XBOX 360 Elite (HDMI port) however is AWESOME and is highly recommended. Nothing like HALO 3 on a 100' screen. It Brings a tear to my eye. This projector is made for HD video games. Take advantage of the HDMI port!
I do wish dark scenes in certain movies were brighter. But, I'm not willing to throw down more than [...] bucks on a projector, so maybe you get what you pay for.
One final word: Get the BBC series PLANET EARTH on HD. It rocks on this projector!


UPDATE: After only 3 years the projector died. an error message appeared stating that the filter was messed up ...contact service provider. Turns out the service provider (MARDEK COMPUTER INC., MASS....not impressed with their service either) had to send it to epson who told them the optics were broken....not worth fixing.

I paid [...] less then 3 years ago for this....I BABIED THIS PROJECTOR and now the product is useless...another sign of the age we are in.

Economically, we are all being screwed.

I bought this projector to replace a HD projector from Optima that never worked properly. Optima customer support and product quality set a new low, so I decided to try Epson's projector instead.

I bought it in Jan 2009. The first EPSON projector failed in under a year. It's a complicated product and I understand that things can fail. I called EPSON customer support, they walked me through their debugging process, made no excuses and had another projector delivered the following morning. I haven't had a problem since. It is a beautiful projector.

EPSON IS A CLASS ACT. I would definitely buy from them again.

No words for an extraordinary product.
Crispy Image
Quiet
Outstandig & Versatile Optics
Easy switch signals from the control.
HDI / Bluray It's like to be into the movie.

Purchased to upgrade my existing home theater projector and am very happy with my choice. The picture is great for HDTV, DVD and Blu-Ray. Bottom line... EXCELLENT projector!

I bought this projector after agonizing over the decision for a month and convincing the wife to let me pull the trigger. I was replacing a very old VGA quality Sharp projector that I really disliked using because the picture quality was so bad.

I got the new projector and opened it up right away when I got it. This new projector was much smaller than the old one and was pretty light so it was easy to mount up on the ceiling. Being in Denver a mile high up MSL one of the first things I had to do was put the projector in high altitude mode which brings up the only real negative I have with this projector. In high light mode the fan can be very loud. In low mode its tolerable and still produces plenty of light in my theater room.

The picture quality of this projector feeding it a High Def signal is amazing. Discovery Channel and National Geo HD channels are my new best friends and even watching the HD versions of network shows and sports events are eye opening experiences. Even normal def signals look pretty good although obviously fuzzier on a 90" wide screen.

Light others I agree that the blacks could be blacker but really unless you are a big video person you probably won't notice. The color settings out of the box and although I've played with it a bit I'm partially color blnd so I'd probably make it worse. :<)

Very happy with the purchase.

This projector worth every penny for the picture quality you get. It is not well known by public, maybe that is why it is such a bargain.

This Epson projector model: V11H245120 and called "Powerlite Home Cinema 1080" is priced at 2,499.99 on the Epson web store where can be directly purchased.
http://www.epson.com/cgi-bin/Store/consumer/consDetail.jsp?BV_UseBVCookie=yes&infoType=Specs&oid=63068239&category=Products

(And Epson had a promotion with a $300.00 mail-in rebate which expired on 9/30, although I am not sure the current price was the same during the promotion period)

That made me wonder why on Amazon is being offered at higher price 2,636.66 at the time of this writing. If you were about to get this item do a little more research and see what's available online... Sometimes is not worth to go and buy elsewhere on the web or on ebay, and especially from unknown sellers, but here that's not the case! We are talking about getting it directly from the manufacturer and for over $100.00 cheaper... a no-brainer :)

Episodes such as this one make one think that is always worth to do some more comparison shopping, when planning to purchase an expensive items since even Amazon seems not to be able to guarantee a price lower than a product's MRSP .

So even if you are lucky enough and you can afford an extra $100.00 charge without caring too much about it, think about the fact that you have been tricked into buying an overpriced product... that's not too nice is it? You could have got an extended warranty for that for instance :) Well I hope this review will help you avoid making the mistake to purchase an overpriced projector at least and make the most out of your hard-earned money... other than that enjoy the show on your big screen ;D!