It’s hard to believe that pico projectors have only been around for a little over a year. The evolution of these devices has grown so much in a short amount of time. Two of the new directions that pico projectors are taking are the use of laser display technology or being integrated into other devices like cell phones. The latest models that fit these new trends are the AAXA Technologies L1 projector and the LG eXpo projector phone. Recently, a writer from New York Times got the opportunity to review both of these projectors to see exactly where the pico projector market is going.

The LG eXpo was the world’s first cell phone projector to be released by a major manufacturer. The company has kept the specifications about the projector to themselves since the phone was unveiled. The only information we know is that it uses DLP display technology and comes with 5 ANSI lumens and a 480 x 320 resolution. The main problem that the writer had with the projector is that it isn’t technically part of the phone. Instead it is an accessory that you have to pay $180 extra in order to get. The writer was not impressed with the phone or the projector and stated that he often got frustrated trying to use the device. The projector was not very bright and by attaching it, the phone automatically disables the digital camera. This means that if you like the use the camera then you will be constantly attaching and detaching the projector.

Fortunately, the writer had a much better experience with the L1. This projector features 20 ANSI lumens, a 2000:1 contrast ratio, and SVGA (800 x 600) resolution. The writer noticed three distinct advantages to this projector. First being the added brightness, followed by a more color saturated display and a wide range of hues. The third is the most important in that it will never go out of focus. They also liked the fact that the projector can support almost any source, including composite, s-video, and RGB.

The final statement that the writer made was, “Both of these new pico products — the LG Expo and the Aaxa — are right on schedule. They’re advances in a device evolution that’s just getting under way. But one thing’s for sure: pico projectors have a very bright, high-resolution future.”

[via New York Times]

Christie is a global leader in digital cinema. Today they announced that Great Escapes Theaters recently purchased 174 digital projectors for their theaters. The theater chain is the 14th largest in North America and has installed Christie projectors in the past for the premier of Avatar. The company plans to finish the installation and have the new projectors installed before the summer movie rush. “Thanks to its successful expansion strategy, Great Escapes has quickly become an important player in the exhibition industry,” said Craig Sholder, Vice-President, Entertainment Solutions, Christie. “Because the new Christie Solaria series of digital projectors are upgradeable to 4K digital cinema, Great Escapes is ensuring that its audiences will continue to enjoy the latest generation of quality, cutting-edge entertainment upon which it has built its reputation.”

[via Christie]

Samsung has not released a lot of information about their most recent pocket projector, the H03. However recently, the writers from Tech Radar got to see this model at the recent European conference. They were able to find out that the H03 features 30 ANSI lumens and has a LED lamp system that can last up to 30000 hours. The projector can come in white or black and weighs less than half a pound. Samsung also designed this projector to be ideal for business applications in that it has an internal battery that lasts up to 2 hours and it has a microSD card slot so you can leave your laptop at home. One feature that this projector has that others don’t is that it comes with all the Microsoft office programs installed, which means you can display your documents, spreadsheets, and PowerPoint presentations as you originally intend to. Other connections for the H03 include a USB, RGB, and a composite. Unfortunately though, Samsung has not released any information on when the H03 will be available. But some reports suspect that it will be released sometime in the spring.

[via Tech Radar]

Earlier this month, AAXA Technologies announced their first ever laser pico projector, the L1. At that time the company was only accepting preorders for the device, but now it has been discovered that the L1 is now being shipped. The L1 is one of the most advanced pico projectors to date. It features 20 ANSI lumens, a 2000:1 contrast ratio, and SVGA (800 x 600) resolution. The only other laser projector on the market, at this time, is Microvision’s SHOW WX projector and the L1 outperforms it in brightness and resolution. The L1 also comes with a wide connection panel that includes USB, VGA, composite, and a headphone jack. Laser display technology is far superior to the conventional LED lamp system because it generates a better contrast and it is a lot more compact. The major advantage to the technology is that it will never go out of focus. The L1 is available now through the company’s website and through select online retailers. The retail price is just under $600.

[via Pico Projector Info]

The home owners of this theater like to have things customized. Virtually everything in their home is custom, especially the theater. They contacted the designers from Audio Impact to help create a personalized theater. Everything including the design, woodwork, even the chairs were created specifically for this theater. The owners decided to use a Sony Qualia 004 projector to beam onto the acoustically transparent screen. The projector features 1600 ANSI lumens, a 3000:1 contrast ratio, and full HD (1920 x 1080) resolution. The designers integrated the entire speaker system into the walls and behind the screen. The best feature about the theater though is how it is hidden from sight. The only entrance is a secret door that is connected to the owner’s living room. The door looks exactly like the living room’s walls and only pushing at the right spot will reveal the door and the theater.

[via Electronic House]

Do you have a dead laptop lying around? Well you can turn that dead laptop into something useable again. Recently, the writers from Life Hacker found a handy book called “62 Projects to Make with a Dead Computer.” One of the projects listed includes turning it into a digital projector. In order to do this project you will need to dismantle the screen portion of your laptop. However, make sure that the LCD panel is still connected to the other section of the laptop. Then you place the display panel onto an overhead projector. The overhead projector now acts as a light source and the focus lens. To prevent the display panel from cracking due to heat, you will want to keep the panel elevated from the class and you will want to add some sort of cooling fan to blow away the hot air. The entire project will probably cost you about $150, depending on what parts you use.

[via Life Hacker]

JVC’s latest home theater projector is the DLA-HD950. This model features 900 ANSI lumens, a 50000:1 contrast ratio, and HD (1920 x 1080) resolution. Today, the writers from Trusted Reviews released their experience with the projector. The writers first mention that this projector is not an entry-level design, but is actually the mid-level model. One design feature that they like is that the lens is mounted on the inside of the projector instead of sticking out. This prevents the lens from being accidentally damaged. The writers admit that some of the features included could confuse anyone who doesn’t know what they are doing. However, even though it might be complicated, the DLA-HD950 definitely provides an excellent image quality. The writers could not find any problems with the projector or at least none big enough to point out. Their final verdict was, “The HD950 might only be slightly better than its predecessor. But when that predecessor was as superb as the HD750, even the HD950’s gentle evolution is enough to make it the benchmark product in its price range.”

[via Trusted Reviews]

Epson is proud to announce today that it recently shipped its 60 millionth 3LCD projector. This event is a milestone in the company’s 20 year history with 3LCD display technology. Epson has announced that part of their success is with the expansion of digital projector use. Originally, projectors were only used for business presentations, but now the market has expanded to include classrooms, auditoriums, advertising, places of worship, large-venues, and many more fields. The projector has also changed from its original 4:3 aspect ratio and has included widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio and a wider still 16:10 ratio. These two ratios were spread with the spread of widescreen PC displays, digital broadcasts, and HD video players. Epson plans to continue to support the growing range of projector applications by combining its cutting-edge liquid crystal, high-aperture ratio, and other original technologies to expand and enhance its HTPS lineup with panels that further raise the performance of 3LCD projectors.

[via Epson]

Ray Display’s Ray projector is one of the many pico projectors on the market today. This device features 10 ANSI lumens and a VGA (640 x 480) resolution. Today, the company has announced that has reduced the MSRP from $229 to only $199. This makes the projector a little more affordable and able to compete with other projectors that are entering the market. The Ray is strictly an entertainment projector and comes with only a composite connection. It can display up to a 73” display from less than 10 feet away and comes with an internal battery that can last up to 2 hours.

[via Pico Projector Info]

Do you feel that your life is so important that everyone should see it? Then you might be interested in this concept design from William Gerwin. These stylish headphones come with a 10.1 megapixel digital camera on one side and a pico projector on the other. The device will record every minute of your life and via wireless connection, post the video or pictures onto a waiting website. The projector is there so that if you want to replay an event for a party or friends you just look at the wall and turn the projector on. In addition to the wireless capabilities, the headphones also have P2P capabilities, which means it will automatically back up any video or pictures onto your computer.

[via Yanko Designs]