PROJECTION TERMINOLGY

PROJECTOR CATAGORIES

Ultraportable
under 10 pounds in weight

Portable
10 to 25 pounds in weight

Fixed
25 pounds and heavier

TYPES OF TERMINOLOGY

LCD
Liquid Crystal Display technology allows each individual pixel to act as a shutter to light passing through it. There are two main types of glass used in LCD projectors:

Amorphous silicon LCD panels range from 3 inches to 12 inches diagonally and are commonly used as display screens for notebook computers.

Polysilicon chips are much smaller (typically 1.5 inches diagonally) and because of their small size, make it possible to design very bright projectors in a smaller case.

DLP
Digital Light Processing Technology features hundreds of thousands of digital light-switch mirrors that reflect beams of light to create and project the entire picture. These mirrors turn on or off hundreds of times per second to enhance detailed images. DLP picture elements ensure straight lines and sharp edges.

D-ILA
Direct-Drive Image Light Amplifier technology features light from a xenon lamp reflecting off the D-ILA device and passes through the projection lens creating a high-quality image on the screen. The high pixel density of D-ILA provides outstanding light collection efficiency resulting in both higher brightness and higher resolution than conventional LCD projectors.

TYPES OF LAMPS

Halogen Lamp
Used in most low and medium priced projectors, halogen lamps last about 40 hours with a consistent output throughout their life.

Metal Halide Lamp
Used in most medium and all high end portable projectors, metal halide typically have a half-life of 700-750 hours. They lose intensity slowly as they are used and are only half as bright at their half-life. The cost of these bulbs is usually between $300 and $600 in price.

Xenon Arc Lamp
The same light source used in motion picture projectors, produces pure, white illumination to ensure color accuracy and saturation. Lamps have a stable color over their 1000 hour life.

RESOLUTION

Compressed
When a projector can accept a higher resolution signal and condenses the information down to fit its true resolution.

Native
The resolution a projector is intended to function at. Also known as True Resolution

OTHER TERMS

Keystoning
Occurs when you project at an angle to the screen - The image may appear larger at the top or bottom depending on the angle. Some projectors will correct for this problem with "Keystone Correction", or lens shift.

Lumens (ANSI)
The measurement of light output designed by the American National Standards Institute.

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