When comparing Sony VPL-HW45ES vs BenQ HT2050A, the Slant community recommends BenQ HT2050A for most people. In the question“What are the best projectors?” BenQ HT2050A is ranked 1st while Sony VPL-HW45ES is ranked 4th. The most important reason people chose BenQ HT2050A is:
The 1.3x zoom lens allows some flexibility in the throw distance. The vertical lens shift on this projector lets you move the image up and down by about 10% of the image size. This is helpful if you happen to install the projector with a small offset.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Very low input lag for gaming
This Sony is great for gaming, since the input lag is measured at 22ms, which is pretty much as low as it gets.
Pro Amazing picture
This Sony has a contrast ratio of 120 000:1 which produces very deep blacks. The dark colors are unusually dark even in ambient light. This also helps with the colors, which are very realistic and deep, creating a bit of a three-dimensional picture feeling. It has 1800 lumens of white brightness and the same amount of color brightness. This balance means that the colors are stunningly precise at every level of brightness.
Pro Very quiet fans
The fans are very quiet, making 22 dB of noise. This is one of the quietest projectors overall.
Pro Long-lasting lamp
It has a lamp-life of 6000 hours, which will last for 6-7 years if you watch a movie a day. Though all lamps lose brightness over time so you might want to replace it earlier. Replacements are available for around $300.
Pro Good for 3D content
The VPL-HW45ES has 3D support. Image quality in both 3D and 2D are the same. Though, just as any other 3D projector, the image brightness suffers in 3D mode due to dark glasses. In addition, it has a built in RF 3D Sync transmitter, providing a wider viewing angle and flexible sitting positioning.
Pro No rainbow artifacts
Like LCD projectors, it barely shows any rainbow artifacts thanks to its three-chip SXRD (brand name for LCoS - liquid crystal on silicon) technology.
Pro Convenient set-up
It has a 1.6x manual zoom lens plus vertical and horizontal lens shift. This makes the projector very versatile when setting it up.
Pro Customization options
It has 8 color presets and one User mode, which are all customizable to your taste.
Pro Easy to set up
The 1.3x zoom lens allows some flexibility in the throw distance. The vertical lens shift on this projector lets you move the image up and down by about 10% of the image size. This is helpful if you happen to install the projector with a small offset.
Pro Bright and detailed picture
The BenQ HT2050 is a bright projector with amazing contrast. Its native resolution of 1920x1080 produces a detailed Full HD picture.
The 2,200 Lumens of brightness on this BenQ is high enough to deal with some ambient light. You can watch movies in daytime with curtains rolled down.
A 15,000:1 contrast ratio means that the white image is 15,000 times brighter than the black image. This gives the projector great black-levels and shadow detail so the dark scenes in movies will look great.
Pro No blur from fast motion
Motion handling is great on the HT2050, as for all the DLP (digital light processing) projectors. In movie scenes with fast motion, the picture won’t get blurry.
Pro Low input lag for gaming
For gamers requiring a low input lag, the HT2050 is the best way to go since it beats most of its competitors with an input lag of only 17ms.
Pro Quiet fans
HT2050 has very quiet fans, almost unnoticeable unless there’s total silence. The fans produce more or less the same noise in both ECO and performance modes.
Cons
Con No built-in speakers
It does not have built-in speakers. Though, it’s a home cinema, so external speakers will create a better movie experience anyways.
Con Rainbow effects
Rainbow effects are an issue for this projector, as is the case for most DLP projectors. They create rainbows on bright objects on dark backgrounds, for example streetlights. Some people don’t notice them, some find them extremely annoying. Luckily, the BenQ proves to show less rainbow artifacts than an average DLP.
Con Expensive replacement lamps
The replacement lamps cost $250. Of all the inexpensive projectors, HT2050 has one of the most expensive replacement lamps.