Sanyo PLC-XL51/3M MPro110 Projectors

Two products arrived at my house for review this month. One was in a large 20-pound box, the other was a small one-pound carton. I'd expected the big box. It held a high-end, short-throw LCD projector from Sanyo. But what was in the little box? Being rather simple at heart, surprises excite me. I tore it open. There was an AC adapter, a couple short cables, and a 4.5 x 2 inch rectangular gadget. What was it? A pocket-sized digital camera, maybe? Utterly stumped, I did what many men do in desperate situations: I picked up the manual.

A palm-sized projector? Sure enough, it was the 3M MPro110, the first “micro-projector.”

Powered by either a lithium-ion, cell phone-style battery or the AC adapter, this teeny projector accepts either VGA output from computer displays or composite video from DVD players, VCRs, or portable devices like a Flip Video or video-capable phone. It doesn't handle audio, so you'll have to cover that through your source devices. Plug them in, slide on the power switch, and the MPro110 will project a 3:4 aspect-ratio image that 3M claims is viewable in a darkened area at up to 50 inches diagonal. Things would get a bit shaky if you held the tiny projector in your hand, so luckily, there's a tripod screw mount.

Of course, radical miniaturization doesn't come without trade-offs. If you can imagine a projector that's basically illuminated by an LED flashlight, then you can also imagine how dim a 10-lumen image looks when spread over 12 square feet. While arguably ample, it's not exactly eye-popping. The input connectors are smaller, too, and more delicate. The MPro110 has an adapter with a standard VGA connector on one end and a much tinier connector on the projector end. That connector was intermittent from the start, causing me to utter an expletive or three as I connected the projector to six different computers, adjusted screen resolutions, and watched the display cut in and out. No presenter wants that kind of red-faced hassle. I was also disappointed with the focus wheel, which had a really tentative feel.

Fortunately, the video input worked fine. I plugged it into my satellite box and it performed beautifully, even as I moved it around. Other promising positives? The 3M MPro110 never gets hot enough to require a fan and is silent.

I'm hopeful that handheld projectors will continue to improve. The big question is whether you'll actually need one. 3M's site offers some ideas on the MPro110's appeal to niche users.

And now the big box: the Sanyo PLC-XL51 Ultra Short-Throw LCD projector. Ultra Short-Throw? That means it'll toss up a big image even when placed right next to the projection surface. How close? The PLC-XL51 projects a crisp 80-inch diagonal image when placed just three inches in front of your screen or whiteboard. At 2700 lumens, it was so bright, users might choose the low-power setting and extend their lamp life.

The advantage of short-throw projection: presenters stay out of the projector beam and cast no shadows, so it's a good, though pricey, choice for use with interactive whiteboards.

The PLC-XL51 offers easy setup for a high-end projector. It will work from a variety of mounting positions and placed above or below a screen. I opted to just set it on a small cart below a whiteboard. I simply turned it on, focused it, zoomed it to the right size, and it was ready for action. Though the projector provides fine control of keystoning and other elements, it was good to go, right out of its big box.

There is one caution with short-throw projectors: Since they project from an extreme angle, the image easily distorts when your projection surface isn't perfectly flat. I initially used a pull-down screen, but every disturbance from circulating air sent exaggerated waves of distortion across the projected image. I switched to a whiteboard, but found that even it wasn't perfectly flat; a small bump in it bent a portion of my image, which I could not correct. Bottom line: before you invest in a short throw projector, make sure you've got a perfectly flat surface to use it with.

The takeaway in this Tale of Two Boxes? There are more projector options to be aware of than ever.

View the video version of Jeff's review here.