Dangbei Mars Professional 4K Laser Projector Evaluate: Premium Expertise in an Reasonably priced Bundle

Whereas many individuals had lower the wire when it got here to TV subscriptions, some have even fully lower out TVs from their residing rooms. After all, that doesn’t imply they now not watch issues on screens bigger than their telephones and laptops, simply that they’ve chosen to embrace the extra versatile and liberating setup of getting a house projector as an alternative. There are some compromises to be made, significantly in terms of the projected picture’s brightness and value. As you may count on, the higher the efficiency, the upper the worth tag. There are, nevertheless, exceptions to that rule, however it isn’t simple to identify them at a look. The Dangbei Mars Professional simply catches your consideration, although, so we took it for a check drive to test if it’s actually value greater than what its price ticket would appear to counsel.

Designer: Dangbei

Aesthetics

Proper off the bat, you might already inform that the Dangbei Mars Professional isn’t your run-of-the-mill laser projector. The place even probably the most fashionable of its type come briefly rectangular containers, the Mars Professional arrives in a extra cubical form. This does imply you’ll have to take note of its peak when setting it up, however that shouldn’t be an excessive amount of of a difficulty because it isn’t a short-throw projector. You’ll more than likely set it up someplace in the course of the room, whether or not on a desk or hanging from the ceiling.

Regardless of its price range price ticket, the Mars Professional instantly impresses with its design and construct high quality. The field is generally constructed from steel, with a serving of black piano glass on the highest and on the entrance. Dangbei covers these surfaces with a plastic sheet for defense, however there are holes for the laser gentle and entrance sensors to have an unobscured path. The perimeters and again of the projector are plagued by holes, each for air flow and speaker output. The ports are all lined up neatly on the again for straightforward entry, leaving no pointless visible breaks on different sides.

All-in-all, the Dangbei Mars Professional positively stands up there with dearer projectors in terms of visible attraction. The shiny surfaces and small air flow holes give it a extra refined aptitude in comparison with the everyday slats and clearly plastic chassis of dearer choices. The Mars Professional already wins on this division, however, fortuitously, it isn’t only a fairly face both.

Ergonomics

Not like a cellular system or laptop computer, you gained’t be dealing with projectors immediately that usually. In reality, you won’t need to do this with the Mars Professional anyway, at the very least not repeatedly. Coming at round 10 lbs, it isn’t precisely the lightest in its group, so that you’ll seldom need to carry it across the room. Its weight can be one thing crucial to contemplate when you plan to hold it from the ceiling or place it on high of a tripod mount.

As talked about, you gained’t be interacting immediately with the projector anyway. Apart from the ports on the again, the one different interactive ingredient is the touch-sensitive energy button on the highest. This isn’t a typical push button, so there’s no have to press exhausting on it. The world is clearly indicated by a lightweight halo that provides it a futuristic vibe. The middle of this circle additionally has a sensor that detects the quantity of ambient gentle within the room to robotically modify the projector’s brightness.

All different controls for the projector will probably be executed by means of the included distant management, which is a little bit of a combined bag. It’s easy sufficient to make use of with only a few buttons, although there are further buttons for mouse mode and a fast menu on the facet. The construct high quality, nevertheless, is so-so. Whereas the projector is generally manufactured from steel and glass, its distant is a very plastic affair. That is perhaps for the most effective, contemplating how typically you’re prone to drop it, however it does sharply distinction with the premium high quality of the Mars Professional.

Efficiency

The place this Dangbei projector actually shines, virtually actually, is in its projected picture. Utilizing ALPD or Superior Laser Phosphor Show know-how, the projector boasts a brightness of 3200 ANSI lumens, which is a most brightness that solely dearer projectors may even promise. It additionally helps native 4K UHD decision and HDR10+ in addition to HLG, placing it on par with many TVs. The query is whether or not it might probably rival a 4K TV in observe. The reply is a convincing sure after which some.

The Mars Professional’s output is vivid, crisp, and vibrant, particularly in darkish settings. Admittedly, it’ll wrestle when there’s direct daylight, however that’s additionally on par with pricier projectors. The projector helps a plethora of applied sciences and options that can be utilized for several types of content material, like MEMC smoothing and even 3D, although the latter is a hit-or-miss sort of factor. It additionally has a Sport Mode that reduces latency right down to 20ms, however extra discerning avid gamers won’t be too happy with precise efficiency. Backside line, the projector performs admirably, particularly beneath managed lighting, which could come as a shock when you think about how rather more reasonably priced it’s in comparison with equal 4K projectors.

The premium expertise doesn’t cease at picture high quality, although. The Dangbei Mars Professional has a few clever options that nearly make it work like magic, robotically adjusting its settings relying on the state of affairs. Autofocus is just about a given as of late, however automated keystone correction positively upgrades the expertise so that you just don’t have to fret concerning the angle of the projector in opposition to a wall or display screen. There’s additionally impediment avoidance, the place it shrinks the projected show to keep away from lamps, vases, or different furnishings. If it detects that there’s one thing immediately in entrance of or close to the lens, it’ll scale back the brightness to keep away from hurting your eyes. All of those work robotically like magic, although you may need to do some fine-tuning if the main focus or keystone continues to be a bit off to your tastes.

Like every projector, the Mars Professional generates warmth, so it has each vents and followers to maintain issues cool. Cool air is sucked into the fitting facet of the field whereas the new air is pushed out from the left, one thing you may want to bear in mind when contemplating the place to put the projector. Happily, the Mars Professional’s followers by no means get loud throughout its operation, and it positively doesn’t overpower the built-in audio system. The one time the followers turn into very audible is if you activate Auto Mud Cleansing mode, the place it runs at full blast to get these particles out.

The Mars Professional boasts two 10W audio system with Dolby Digital Plus and DTS Studio Encompass. That’s sufficient energy to fill a small room, and the audio high quality doesn’t get distorted even at larger volumes. Whereas the audio system are adequate for many instances, it does lack a little bit of substance that audiophiles will probably be in search of. Happily, you may treatment that by connecting your favourite sound system, however the built-in audio system will do nicely in a pinch.

Issues get a bit much less very best in terms of the system operating on the projector, which is a really outdated, personalized Android 9 model. The Mars Professional positively has the {hardware} to run extra refined software program with its quad-core MT9669 CPU, 4GB of RAM, and 128GB of inside storage, however Dangbei opted to favor a extra simplified consumer expertise. It does have the essential apps and streaming providers pre-installed, however you’ll should scour the Web for something that’s not obtainable on Dangbei’s app retailer. There’s no Google Play, in fact, although it is perhaps attainable to put in it manually. After all, you may plug in another content material supply, together with a Google TV dongle, when you so want. The one limitation in its number of ports is USB-C, which is a little bit bit disappointing on this time and age.

Sustainability

The Dangbei Mars Professional projector is your typical client electronics product, which mainly means it has your typical elements that damage the atmosphere in the long term. It does rating a little bit higher due to its use of a steel chassis somewhat as an alternative of plastic. There are glass components as nicely, however the plastic masking on these nullifies that benefit.

By way of longevity, Dangbei solely offers a one-year guarantee off the bat, however you may need choices to purchase further years relying on the place you’re shopping for it from. Laser projectors are admittedly short-lived merchandise, even with the marketed 25,000 hours of lamp life. Sadly, they aren’t trivial to restore both, particularly if the product is coming from one other area of the world. Elements and providers will probably be an enormous consideration for many who are a bit extra aware of how a lot use they need to squeeze out of a projector.

Worth

If it hasn’t been that clear but, the Dangbei Mars Professional 4K projector is true up there with different 4K projectors. The 3200 lumens brightness, clever correction and configuration choices, and general efficiency all mark it as a premium product. The kicker is that it isn’t priced like one, promoting for less than $1,699 (or $1,799 from Amazon).

Admittedly, that’s a big determine, however provided that you’re taking it in isolation. A “common” 4K laser projector with the identical characteristic set or efficiency simply prices virtually double that quantity. Conversely, projectors with that price ticket typically have too many compromises, particularly when it comes to image high quality. You’ll even have to contemplate that 4K UHD TVs value simply as a lot, and also you’ll be hard-pressed to search out one that may be capable of cowl the identical 100-inch most area as this projector can.

Verdict

Selecting client electronics is usually a case of selecting compromises, whether or not it’s in efficiency, high quality, or value. Hardly ever will you discover a gem that hits all three with little or no compromise. When one does pop up, it’s not exhausting to grasp why the Web could be abuzz about one thing so uncommon and virtually unbelievable. The Dangbei Mars Professional 4 Laser Projector is certainly one such uncommon creature. Not solely does it ship on its guarantees, it really appears to be like good doing so, making that price ticket a lot sweeter for anybody planning a TV-free leisure setup at residence.