With pandemic-related restrictions in the rearview mirror, people are gathering en masse again. Meeting areas, classrooms, lecture halls and entertainment venues are in demand. So are projectors that give the spaces visual punch. Projectors are also essential business tools for organizations embracing work-from-anywhere and hybrid environments. While flat panel monitors have increased in size (think about those monster televisions on sale every Black Friday), projectors are the best way to ensure crisp visuals at 100 inches or more. They are indispensable in large spaces where people in all corners of the room need to see content clearly. They are also important to team collaboration and clear communication when numerous people join a meeting from far-flung locations.
Every organization looks for solutions that get the job done without breaking the bank. Projectors are one of the most cost-effective ways to incorporate visual communication into any setting, indoors or out. Traditional lamp-based projector engines can be an economical choice at first, but laser engines improve long-term performance (brightness fades as bulbs age) and save money over the life of the equipment, a minimum of 10 years of operation if it’s kept on at full brightness for a full workweek. There are additional cost savings in terms of the labor required to maintain lamp-based engines over time. Classic metal halide projection lamps also require more energy to run and have an increased risk of overheating.
Beyond the more traditional use cases for projection systems such as classrooms and meeting spaces, projection solutions offer incredible detail at a scale. They can be used on a variety of projection surfaces and in situations that might be cost-prohibitive. For example, projection mapping with specialized image content software can create visual effects that bring building facades and other large vertical surfaces to life. If you’re curious, check out the amazing installation pieces by artist Craig Walsh, who projects provocative images onto trees.
Training simulators use projectors, too, for immersive experiences that mimic real life. From the entertaining—golf simulators that enable you to visualize fairway details as you step up to the tee box—to the lifesaving, such as pilot flight training simulators, most training systems employ projection technologies.
Projectors vary based on their light source or light engine (lamp vs. laser). They can be sorted by brightness (lumens), picture clarity (resolution), and how far they can project into the space (throw distance). There are a multitude of technologies to consider—LCD, DLP, RGB, LCOS and more. A thorough use-case analysis will illuminate the right solution for any space. Depending on the size of the projection environment, specialized lensing may be used to accommodate very short or very long throw distances. Placement of the projection system can also determine which kind of projector to select.
Unparalleled image quality is Sony’s guiding light. Sony designers and engineers take pride in delivering the highest quality video projectors that are technologically sophisticated yet incredibly simple to operate. The new, ultra-compact VPL-PHZ61/PHZ51 3LCD laser projectors pack all of Sony’s latest projection technologies into a slim and lightweight body that delights audio/visual (AV) teams, integrators and viewers alike:
• AV teams will love the optimized performance thanks to Intelligent Settings V3.0, a sealed light source module, and an all-new dust filtration system with a dust sensor and simple, slide-out filter access.
• Integrators will appreciate installation flexibility with wide +55% vertical lens shift that can project onto ceilings and other tall surfaces, data cloning for multi-projector set up, and 4K 60P input support.
• Viewers will also enjoy amazingly bright and crisp images of up to 7,000 lumens center brightness, with Reality Creation, Reality Text, Bright View and the new Ambiance Light Sensor.
There’s even something to please the budget hawks—with laser phosphor light technology, Sony projectors offer 20,000 hours of use with minimal loss of brightness. They’re more cost-effective in terms of design, and they lower the total cost of ownership over time.