When comparing Sony VPL-HW45ES vs Epson Home Cinema 2040, the Slant community recommends Epson Home Cinema 2040 for most people. In the question“What are the best projectors?” Epson Home Cinema 2040 is ranked 3rd while Sony VPL-HW45ES is ranked 4th. The most important reason people chose Epson Home Cinema 2040 is:
Epson 2040 has a native resolution of 1920x1080 and is capable of playing full HD 1080p content. The Detail Clarity Processor (also used in expensive Epsons) adds more detail and makes the picture look even higher in resolution than it is. The 2040 also has a dynamic iris installed for slightly improving the black levels when watching movies at night.
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 Very good picture
Epson 2040 has a native resolution of 1920x1080 and is capable of playing full HD 1080p content. The Detail Clarity Processor (also used in expensive Epsons) adds more detail and makes the picture look even higher in resolution than it is. The 2040 also has a dynamic iris installed for slightly improving the black levels when watching movies at night.
Pro Great 3D experience
Many inexpensive projectors struggle with 3D performance due to low brightness. With brightness of 2200 lumens, Epson 2040 is the brightest under $1000 pick for watching 3D content. The 3D image is also high contrast (for detailed dark scenes) and rich in color.
Pro Low fan-noise
This Epson has rather low fan noise of 29 dB in Eco-Mode. Since the projector produces great brightness in Eco-Mode, the performance mode does not have to be used too often.
Pro Good lamp life and cheap replacement lamps
The lamp life is 4000 hours in performance mode and 7000 hours in Eco-Mode. In addition to a very decent lamp life, the replacement lamps are extremely cheap. They cost only $79.
Pro Low input lags for gaming
The 2040 measures an input lag of only 24.6 ms, making it a great pick for gamers.
Pro No rainbow artifacts
Since it is a 3LCD projector, there are no visible rainbow artifacts.
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 Complicated setup
This projector has a slight negative throw offset. The bottom edge of the image is around 5% of the total image height below the center of the lens. If you mount it to the ceiling, you will probably need an extension tube for the projector.
Con Not a movie room projector
Black levels and contrast are not the strongest side for this Epson. If you have created a special movie room with ambient light blocked out, then you should probably purchase a more expensive projector as well. This projector is meant for watching movies in a room with ambient light (a family room). In this case, black levels and contrast are meaningless factors - they will not make much difference in the picture quality.
Con Noisy fans in performance mode
In performance mode the fan noise goes up to 37 dB, being the loudest among its closest competitors.
Con A blurry picture or extra input lags
LCD projectors have motion blur problems during fast movie scenes. Although the frame interpolation technology (analyzes and adds frames to the video) on the 2040 helps take care of the motion blur issue, this technology adds some input lag, so it can't be used while gaming.