Sanyo PLV Z4 - LCD projector - 1000 ANSI lumens - 1280 x 720 - w

by Sanyo

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 12 x 15 x 5 inches ; 11 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 18.2 pounds
• ASIN: B000BS3JO0
• Item model number: PLV-Z4
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #155,801 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: February 9, 2006

Product Description

SANYO enjoys a well-deserved leadership position in the LCD projector industry. Over the past several years company's breakthroughs in LCD technology have helped lead a tremendous surge in the growth of this industry. Even so, SANYO is continuously striving to meet the challenges and demands of an ever-changing world.SANYO is at the forefront of expanding the possibilities of LCD projectors through the use of advance digital technology. Most SANYO projectors today employ digital technology in a variety of features including digital interfacing (Digital Visual Interface, High-Definition Serial Digital Interface), digital keystone correction, digital progressive scanning, and digital realized interpolation technology. SANYO offers the widest range of projector models in the industry, which means it's a virtual certainty that there will be a SANYO projector to fit the needs of any presenter in any situation. Each category of SANYO projectors contains models that rank at the top of their respective class in terms of brightness, features and versatility.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent projector at a great price!, September 11, 2006

By 

John M. Mccarthy (Rhode Island, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sanyo PLV Z4 - LCD projector - 1000 ANSI lumens - 1280 x 720 - w (Electronics)

I purchased the Sanyo PLV Z4 LCD projector for my home theater which is in my newly-refinished basement. I had originally considered purchasing a big screen (55"-60") HDTV; however, when I looked in to the prices of the major brands (Sony, Panasonic, Toshiba, etc.), I found them to be cost prohibitive.

I switched my focus to an LCD projector, and I began to research the major brands (Optoma, InFocus, NEC, etc.). Two specs came to mind- brightness and contrast ratio. The Sanyo PLV Z4 provides good brightness (1000 lumens-better than some, worse than others) and an excellent contrast ratio (9000:1). This high contrast ratio is what convinced me to purchase the Sanyo PLV Z4. Plus, since I bought it from an authorized vendor ($1600 on Ebay), it came with a free screen and a free replacement lamp (a $500 value).

My Sanyo PLV Z4 is hooked up to a switch box ($60 on Ebay) via a 20' HDMI cable (required for Hi-Def projection), which then splits and goes to my HD cable box and upconverting Oppo DVD player ($200 on Ebay). When I watch my beloved Red Sox lose to the Yankees in HD, you can practically see the tears in the eyes of the Fenway Faithful.

The audio is provided by a Harmon-Kardon AVR 635 receiver and is hooked up to a 5.1 speaker setup with a 10" Velodyne subwoofer. I installed a 106" (diagonal) 2.5 gain glass beaded Da-Lite pull-down screen at the other end of the basement, and it feels like I am at the movies.

Two films my wife and I saw recently, "The Island" and "The Lost City" looked and sounded fantastic on this system. "The Island," which has many special audio and visual effects, looked fantastic. "The Lost City," which is Andy Garcia's ode to pre-Castro Cuba, is filled with the sounds of Cuban jazz. The film looked great on the projection screen, and sounded better through the Harmon-Kardon receiver and vintage JBL speakers.

The Sanyo PLV Z4 provides an excellent picture and has two unique and useful features. First, it has an automatic cover that closes over the lens when the projector is shut down. Second, it has a side-to side picture adjustment to help place the picture just where you want it. This feature was critical when I intalled this projector, since it is mounted to a beam which is offset from the center of the ceiling in my basement.

If you consider the cost of a big screen HDTV ($3000 for a 46" Sony- which is less than 1/2 the size of my screen), add on the home theater ($2000), you are in for $5000. My system's picture is twice the size, and the sound is excellent. Admittedly, setup is a bit complicated, but you only have to do it once, and there is plenty of help available online.

Now, when I want to go to the movies, all I have to do is go downstairs.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing deal, great quality, superb service, June 5, 2009

By 

Andy "Andy" (MN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sanyo PLV Z4 - LCD projector - 1000 ANSI lumens - 1280 x 720 - w (Electronics)

I purchased my PLV-Z4 from another online retailer and I have been absolutely pleased with the performance and bulb life. I've been running it for almost 3 years now and my only issue was that the lamp ballast blew out, but because of their 3 year warranty, I had it out and back within a week at no charge.

I would recommend this projector to ANYONE, as long as they have a viewing room that tolerates the 1000 lumens - it's not a sunlight or ambient light friendly lumen level, but it's awesome in a dark theatre...=)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Have the biggest TV of all your friends!, February 3, 2007

By 

Y. Kezala "Blamo" (Cali) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sanyo PLV Z4 - LCD projector - 1000 ANSI lumens - 1280 x 720 - w (Electronics)

I've owned a Z4 for about a year now and am still blown away by it. How can you not love a crystal clear 9' across picture? I have about 700 hours on the original bulb and it's still going strong. Here's some things you'll want to consider before buying a front projector, though:

- You MUST be able to control the lighting in the room a front projector is used in. You don't need a dedicated theater room like a basement or anything. I use mine in my living room and the drapes are enough. Just keep in mind that you won't be able to watch in a fully illuminated room like you can with a traditional television set. The darker the room, the better the picture. Ambient light is a huge factor.

- Your picture will only be as good as the signal you put into it. You'll want to invest in component cables(if not better). I used a composite cable at first. There's a huge difference with this big of a picture. Cost didn't sound like a big deal to me, until I realized I'd need 25' of component cable to go from the source to the projector. Painful, but worth it. Also, take a look at your DVD/Cable service. Again, your picture is only as good as it's input.

That said, I love this thing. There're a few concessions to be made with this setup, but I think it's worth it. A screen this size combined with a kicking audio system is truly an experience!