Vivitek Unveils 3D LED Qumi Q5 Pocket Projector

At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Vivitek showed off an early look at their upcoming Qumi Q5, the latest addition to the company's popular line of DLP pocket projectors. Not a lot was revealed about the device but what was divulged was that Qumi Q5 will have a native 1,280 x 800 WXGA resolution as well as a 500 lumen output.

However, that isn't the only thing that this projector has going for it. In addition to the great lumen output, the new LED light source incorporated in the Qumi Q5 provides an estimated 30,000 hours of life as well as a reported 3,500:1 contrast ratio. The Qumi Q5 is also 3D-ready, thanks to Texas Instruments' DLP Link active synching technology. The only thing you need is a pair of active shutter 3D glasses.

There are also a few good connectivity options on the Qumi Q5 as well. Included on the device is HDMI, Universal I/O (24-pin connector for VGA/Component input), an AV mini jack audio-out and a USB slot for expanding your content and memory. You'll also find a built-in 2W speaker as well as 4GB of internal memory, all packed in a pocket projector that only weighs 1.1 pounds.

There are also a few additional options that you can add, like a rechargeable battery pack that gives you up to 4 hours of power ($249) and an all new USB-based WiFi dongle ($99) that will allow you to have web access when paired with the Qumi Q5's built-in web browser. Look for this device when it hits store shelves sometime this summer.

Source: Big Picture Big Sound - Vivitek Readies 3D-Ready Qumi Q5 LED Pocket Projector

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Brookstone Unveils iPhone Case with Built-In Projector

Hearing about a new pico projector for a phone doesn't get tech enthusiasts quite as excited as it used to. However, pico projectors built into a phone case is something entirely different and far more practical than running cables from projector to phone and vice versa. That is why Brookstone, home of everything cool, has just introduced The Pocket Projector Case.

The Pocket Projector Case is a smartphone case with built-in projector and also includes a 2,100mAH battery, as well as a 0.5 watt speaker. Designed specifically for the iPhone 4 (but also conveniently compatible for the iPhone 4S), the phone slides into the case and engages the dock connector. From here you can project anything projectable onto a 50" rectangle on the wall.

50" is optimistic, however, and will require a pretty dark room to be accomplished. Brookstone's projector case also puts out a max of 15 lumens, which is the same amount as Microvision's SHOWWX+ pico projector. If you want an image that is bigger than a small television, you are going to have to turn out the lights. But isn't that kind of the point when you use a projector for entertainment?

The display has a resolution of 640 x 360 and the case's internal battery should keep it going for at least a couple of hours. In addition to that, the device can work as a backup battery for the iPhone within. One thing of interest to point out is that the case has a manual focusing dial, unlike the "infinite focus" of laser projectors. But that is to be expected for the relatively low price of $230.

As it stands, phone projectors do not seem to be quite up to standards in terms of use, though The Pocket Projector Case from Brookstone is definitely a lot easier to use. You can order this device for the above mentioned $230 price now with the actual device shipping on November 21st.

Source: Wired - Pocket Projector: A Magic Lantern in an iPhone Case

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The Problems with Pocket Projectors are Being Solved

Pocket projectors are becoming much more advanced and useful. They are now beginning to feature more lumens, increased resolution, and better battery life. These are definitely some of the reasons why the pocket projector industry is showing rapid growth, which will most likely only continue as the projectors improve even more.

This past spring DisplaySearch reported on the pocket projector market in Pocket Projector Technology and Market Forecast Report. They predicted that by 2018 there would be more than 140 million pocket projectors in use. The company had said that there needed to be some serious improvements in pocket projectors' brightness, resolution, and battery life. Since there have definitely been some improvements in these areas, DisplaySearch feels that by 2018 there will most certainly be pocket projectors that are leaps and bounds ahead of the ones that we see today, and due to their portability and convenience, there will therefore be a great increase in pocket projector sales.

DisplaySearch had already predicted that brightness and battery life would greatly improve from 2009 to 2012. In 2009 the pocket projector only featured a brightness ranging from 5 to 50 lumens. The average device then only had 15 lumens. This year HP released a pocket projector that featured 100 lumens of brightness, but unfortunately, it does not run on batteries. DisplaySearch has said that they believe in 2011 that all pocket projector models will be above 20 lumens, and in 2012 there should be models with 200 lumens.

Battery life has also improved. In 2009 the battery life of pocket projectors ranged from 30 minutes to 2 hours, with the average projector coming in at about an hour. By 2011 DisplaySearch claims that all pocket projectors should feature a battery life of over an hour, and by 2012 there should be models with a battery life of more than four hours.

Some of the newest pocket projectors that have been released show that the devices are definitely moving in the direction that DisplaySearch believes they will. 3M has recently announced two of their newest models, the MPro160 and the MPro180, that feature 30 lumens and two hours of battery life when in standard mode. Both of these devices will be available in January of 2011. These new projectors show significant improvements over some of their previous models. The MPro110, which was released at the very end of 2008, featured only 10 lumens, and the MPro120, which was released in 2009, had only 15 lumens of brightness. The MPro180 not only has improved in the amount of lumens it has, but it also features a 2.4-inch LCD touchscreen, much better resolution, and many other things.

3M is not the only one that has been improving their pocket projectors though. Philips has recently released three new pocket projectors, the PPX 1430, the PPX 1230, and thePPX 1020, in their PicoPix line. All of the projectors feature 400:1 contrast ratio, 20 to 30 lumens of brightness, and 2.5 hours of battery on the 1230 and 1430 models.

All of these advances show that pocket projectors are moving in the right direction. They are featuring more lumens, better resolution, and much longer battery life. It will be great to see how they improve them in the future. Hopefully, it won’t take too long. I guess we’ll just have to see if DisplaySearch is correct that by 2018 more than 140 million pocket projectors will be in use. With the direction that things are going in, it seems like they could definitely be correct.

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