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The hardest thing with some pieces of kit is not getting them to work but giving them back. We’re absolutely smitten with the Optoma HD82, the latest high end picture beamer from the top–end projector people. Read our full Optoma HD82 review to see just why it’s so good.
First the stats – this machine delivers 1080p content but also has one of the best ANSI contrast ratios in its class. You get something between 600 and 700:1. A caveat here though – always be wary of these figures as manufacturers do not seem to have a shared methodology for measuring contrast.
That aside, the images that this projector delivers are fantastic. We tried it out with the new Blu-ray version of Close Encounters of a Third Kind so there were plenty of flashing lights. Next House of Flying Daggers for its action scenes. This is when the projector’s PureMotion engine kicks in. It inserts extra frames to ensure smooth viewing, so you actually end up with a 48Hz refresh rate. However, we didn’t notice any of the colour wheeling you sometimes get in DLP projectors.
So a machine of this stature has got to be a pain to set up right? Well no. From unboxing to movie watching took ten minutes and that included waiting by the microwave for popcorn. Simply connect the Blu-ray player up to one of the HD82’s two HDMI ports and we were away. You also have the option of DVI-D, a VGA input, (which will take SCART feeds thanks to an included adaptor), component video, S-Video and composite video inputs. For those who have a proper cinema set-up waiting at home, this machine also offers two 12V trigger outputs for things like motorised screens.
Read our BenQ Joybee GP1 projector review
Focusing is easy thanks to a silver ring around the lens aperture. You also have vertical and horizontal shirt, which you can operate using one of the two remotes included (the smaller is a back up in case you lose the larger one down the back of the sofa – how thoughtful Optoma!).
The HD82 has a projection distance of 1.50-12.5m and is designed to project from either a coffee table or from a ceiling mount. The latter option would probably be best seeing as this beast is 490×372x194mm and weighs 8.4kg although it performed perfectly well from the table we plonked it on.
Finally – as with all home cinema projectors – you need to consider the lamp life. Optoma has this one down at 3000 hours, but it will then cost you £309 +VAT to replace (or cheaper if you trawl online). This isn’t much really considering you the quality you’re getting, plus the fact that having paid £2499 for this marvelous machine, you’ll want as much usage out of it as possible.
