My Retired parents will be using this. Sometimes it will have some ambient light. They will likely use it at least four hours a day and at times quite a bit more. The panny ax220u is what I was leaning toward. It also has the auto brightness adjustment which would be good. Some are saying it may not hold up to heavy use and even the manual says this according to them. I'm looking for an LCD. I also would like the projector to need as little attention as possible on a daily basis. I'll send it in for cleaning on occassion if necessary although I'd prefer not to. One that automatically turns on and off would be good and the auto brightness adjustment would be nice, although it appears not many have this. Thanks in advance

My Retired parents will be using this. Sometimes it will have some ambient light. They will likely use it at least four hours a day and at times quite a bit more. The panny ax220u is what I was leaning toward. It also has the auto brightness adjustment which would be good. Some are saying it may not hold up to heavy use and even the manual says this according to them. I'm guessing DLP does better, but the Rainbow effect worries me and my mother is a good candidate for being succeptable. I also would like the projector to need as little attention as possible on a daily basis. One that automatically turns on and off would be good and the auto brightness adjustment would be nice, although it appears not many have this. Thanks in advance

How do you know your mother is a good candidate for being succeptable to rainbows?

I don't enjoy being challenged on this, but I'll respond. Smells and certain lights bother her. She seems sensitive to many things. I'd rather not spend a lot of money on something and after three months she starts complaining and I own an expensive brick. If you want to personally offer me a free insurance policy then I'll risk it.

It sounds like you might be challenged judging by that response...

You're cutting your options in half by ruling out DLP based on "knowing your mother". Why not take her to a brick and mortar store and have her look at some DLP's? You said in your original post you want a projector that requires "As little attention as possible". That's DLP. No cleaning filters, no worrying about dust blobs.

EDIT: I actually re-wrote my first response several times to make it as friendly as possible. Try being a little less defensive next time.

TF, are you my mommy?

TF, are you my mommy?

:o

You may have a point. It seems like there is always someone who wants to argue on a forum and your question may have felt like one of those when it wasn't. Is there not an LCD which will hold up under heavy use. I could bare sending it in once a year or so if I had to. I really don't want to risk the rainbow effect. Some people in my experience don't notice it until they are tired and already not feeling well. Going to a store once doesn't satisfy me as to whether or not a person will have trouble.

It sounds like you might be challenged judging by that response...

You're cutting your options in half by ruling out DLP based on "knowing your mother". Why not take her to a brick and mortar store and have her look at some DLP's? You said in your original post you want a projector that requires "As little attention as possible". That's DLP. No cleaning filters, no worrying about dust blobs.

EDIT: I actually re-wrote my first response several times to make it as friendly as possible. Try being a little less defensive next time.


I narrowed the question in response to yours. Thanks for the help!!!

Is there not an LCD which will hold up under heavy use.

There is, but not for consumer, and definitely not anywhere near the AX200U price point.

You may have a point. It seems like there is always someone who wants to argue on a forum and your question may have felt like one of those when it wasn't. Is there not an LCD which will hold up under heavy use. I could bare sending it in once a year or so if I had to. I really don't want to risk the rainbow effect. Some people in my experience don't notice it until they are tired and already not feeling well. Going to a store once doesn't satisfy me as to whether or not a person will have trouble.

To be honest, since your parents likely aren't AV critics, I would go with a Sanyo projector. You'll have a 3 year warranty and Sanyo will pay for overnight shipping to and from them if the unit requires service, so if they need repair they'll have limited down time and won't have to pay shipping charges. If you go that route just make sure they maintain the projector properly so you won't be denied a warranty repair for mis-use.

TF ghost,

I had thought about Sanyo. Do their panels tend to hold up to heavy use? Thanks

TF ghost,

I had thought about Sanyo. Do their panels tend to hold up to heavy use? Thanks

Probably not more than any other LCD manufacturer, but you'd have a 3 year warranty. As long as you make sure the filters are cleaned every 100hrs (or less) they'll replace any burned polarizers, LCD panels, etc. assuming it's under warranty. Any other manufacturer with a 3 year warranty will work as well.

On the note about online forums, yes, I'm typically on the defensive as well because the internet is full of *ss clowns with chips on their shoulders, but I've realized most of the AVS Forum members do not fit that bill. This is the most courteous, helpful and intelligent group of people I've ever seen on an internet forum.

I've not been here in a long time, but I do seem to remember it being pretty good about that.

I know some people speak of organic and inorganic panels. Does one hold up to extended use better than the other?

Nearly all the LCD panels used in LCD projectors are the same make and model anyway - the "D" series by Epson. So in terms of panel burn-out, you're not going to see much if any difference from manufacturer to manufacturer.

dasbin,

I didn't know that. Thanks, Is a brighter lamp therefore going to burn up the panel more quickly?

dasbin,

I didn't know that. Thanks, Is a brighter lamp therefore going to burn up the panel more quickly?

It shouldn't. If LCD panel longevity is your goal you may want to look into a DIY preventative measure. Although I don't have a link to it there's a forum member in a Sharp thread that added an external fan to his PJ and measured the difference in temperature. It was significant, and should extend the life of the PJ.

Personally I think a LCD flat panel is a more appropriate choice for this application. Don't take this as someone trying to start an argument. I own 3 pjs so I don't have a bias against pjs. For your parents, does the bigger picture outweigh risks of dust blob, early bulb failure, polarizers/panels issues, etc ...

You may be right. However, I can do maintenance since I'm by there at least once to twice a week. My concern is it be easy to operate. I do want it to last though. Are LCD projectors simply not going to last that long with heavy use?

You may be right. However, I can do maintenance since I'm by there at least once to twice a week. My concern is it be easy to operate. I do want it to last though. Are LCD projectors simply not going to last that long with heavy use?

My parents are AV challenged. They have a 60" Pioneer Kuro 1080P plasma, Onkyo 805 AVR, old Pioneer SD DVD player and a Panasonic 5 disc DVD player used only for CD's. They have a universal remote. One of the idiot proof ones that if the stuff does not work it tells you what buttons to push to automatically correct the problem. Brother bought and programed the remote. I hate it. The remote is programed for one button push if you want to watch a movie, watch TV or listen to a CD. I still get a call about once a week to trouble shoot problems. Many times the problem is as simple as the HD cable box is not turned on. I would hate to think how much time and trouble it would be if they had a projector.

My brother and I kid around that they need cell phones with only two buttons, one to answer and one to hang up. If your parents are like mine good luck.

Added
HT systems are not new to them. They have had one for over ten years. I just upgraded their equipment last year.

Why would a projector be so much more difficult? Can't many be set up so it mainly needs to be turned on and off and the brightness adjusted. I would do everything else to set it up and adjust it.

Why would a projector be so much more difficult? Can't many be set up so it mainly needs to be turned on and off and the brightness adjusted. I would do everything else to set it up and adjust it.

It sounds so simple to us, but some how my parents are able to mess it up. Even when it is set up for one button push operation. An example: a button gets pushed by accident when the remote was not aimed at the components. Some of the equipment receives the signal and settings change, but not all of them. Now they are lost and they some times hit other buttons making it worse. Now I agree that some of this could be eliminated if you can find the discrete codes for the equipment. That way you could have one button that turns on a device and another that turns it off, rather than one button that cycles on or off. Their system is set up about as simple and foolproof as posable (other than discrete codes) and I still get a lot of calls for simple problems.

I understand what your saying. Can a projector be set up so turning on and off without pressing other buttons will do the job? Thanks

Your parents do realize that projectors do not have tuners, right? They would have to connect it to a set top box (cable, satellite, or TiVo) to watch television.

I understand what your saying. Can a projector be set up so turning on and off without pressing other buttons will do the job? Thanks

With a programable remote that accepts macros you can do just about anything as long as you can get the discrete codes for the equipment you want to control. For a cheap and easy to use programable remote I like Sony. Sony does not tell you this but you can place a macro on any key on a Sony remote. It is easy to piggy back a second function on to any key.

If you are fast you can program three or four functions onto any key. I use a third programable remote placing macros on both and then load both of those macros onto the remote I want to program. This way I have been able to place macros with five or six button punches on any one key. I have small macros on keys that most people use for only one function. It works great and makes my system very user friendly. I can hand my remote to anybody and I just tell them if they want to watch TV hit TV if they want to watch a movie hit DVD.

I have my system set up so that you use one remote for everything. When you punch the TV button on the remote the TV and AVR automatically turn on, the AVR changes over to the TV input and the TV goes to the correct input. Now when you want to watch a DVD you punch the DVD button on the remote and the DVD is turned on, the input on the AVR is changed over and the input of the TV is changed to DVD. Here is why you need discrete codes. You finish watching a movie so you punch the TV button again on the remote, now you only want the AVR input changed and the TV input changed. If you do not use discrete codes the AVR and TV will turn off since most AVR's and TV's use one button for on and off and the TV will go to the next input. You need the discrete code for "on" only so that the AVR and TV do not turn off each time the "TV" button is pushed and so that the correct Tv input is selected each time.

Here is the last problem that I had to solve for my parents. My mother called and said the movie that she rented would not play in her DVD player. I went over and found the problem was she had not selected what version (theatrical or extended) of the movie she wanted to watch. She was not used to doing that. We usually burn a copy of our movies and loan that copy to her. Those movies are pop in and they automatically play, no selections. Now I will have to say I might not have as many problems if my parents used their system full time. They spend the winter in Florida so they do not use this system for several months at a time.

As I said you can set it up so that it is very user friendly, but I would still expect some problems to crop up. Especially since most projectors do not automatically adjust their brightness. Your parents may not be AV challenged as much as mine are.:) Mine are in their 70's.

Your parents do realize that projectors do not have tuners, right? They would have to connect it to a set top box (cable, satellite, or TiVo) to watch television.

I will be setting this up and it will be connected to a high def cable box and surround sound and before long maybe Blue Ray. They watch DVD's only when I get them and start them. They do cable all other times.

With a programable remote that accepts macros you can do just about anything as long as you can get the discrete codes for the equipment you want to control. For a cheap and easy to use programable remote I like Sony. Sony does not tell you this but you can place a macro on any key on a Sony remote. It is easy to piggy back a second function on to any key.

If you are fast you can program three or four functions onto any key. I use a third programable remote placing macros on both and then load both of those macros onto the remote I want to program. This way I have been able to place macros with five or six button punches on any one key. I have small macros on keys that most people use for only one function. It works great and makes my system very user friendly. I can hand my remote to anybody and I just tell them if they want to watch TV hit TV if they want to watch a movie hit DVD.

I have my system set up so that you use one remote for everything. When you punch the TV button on the remote the TV and AVR automatically turn on and the AVR changes over to the TV input. Now when you want to watch a DVD you punch the DVD button on the remote and the DVD is turned on, the input on the AVR is changed over and the input of the TV is changed to DVD. Here is why you need discrete codes. You finish watching a movie so you punch the TV button again on the remote, now you only want the AVR input changed and the TV input changed. If you do not use discrete codes the AVR and TV will turn off since most AVR's and TV's use one button for on and off. You need the discrete code for "on" only so that the AVR and TV do not turn off each time the "TV" button is pushed.

Here is the last problem that I had to solve for my parents. My mother called and said the movie that she rented would not play in her DVD player. I went over and found the problem was she had not selected what version (theatrical or extended) of the movie she wanted to watch. She was not used to doing that. We usually burn a copy of our movies and loan that copy to her. Those movies are pop in and they automatically play, no selections. Now I will have to say I might not have as many problems if my parents used their system full time. They spend the winter in Florida so they do not use this system for several months at a time.

As I said you can set it up so that it is very user friendly, but I would still expect some problems to crop up. Especially since most projectors do not automatically adjust their brightness. Your parents may not be AV challenged as much as mine are.:) Mine are in their 70's.




Thanks for that explanation. Are the discreet codes hard to get? They may be able to do it without them, but it would be nice to have them. They do pretty good now with a cable box and TV with surround and an all in one cox cable remote. I thought I could add the projector and once set up it wouldn't be all that different from the present set up. The projector would simply take the place of the TV. That's one reason I was looking at the ax200u which would auto adjust the brightness. I'm concerned it won't hold up to heavy use though.

Thanks for that explanation. Are the discreet codes hard to get? They may be able to do it without them, but it would be nice to have them. They do pretty good now with a cable box and TV with surround and an all in one cox cable remote. I thought I could add the projector and once set up it wouldn't be all that different from the present set up. The projector would simply take the place of the TV. That's one reason I was looking at the ax200u which would auto adjust the brightness. I'm concerned it won't hold up to heavy use though.

Do searches on this site for discrete codes and for info on universal remotes. One of the best sites for remote information. The Sony RM-VL600 is a great cheap hard button remote. I use a touch screen AV-3000.

www.remotecentral.com/

There are some guys that use their projectors as TV's. I do watch TV and movies with my projector, but not full time. For full time use you might be better off with a DLP since it has less maintenance. An Optoma HD65 might be a good one to look at. It is bright and it has a three year warranty. You just need to be able to work with the restrictions that you are stuck with when using entry level DLP's (lack of lens shift and lack of zoom). The lens shift can be compensated for if the projector has keystone, but you do not want to use a lot of keystone correction.

Here is an excerpt from the review of the RM-VL600 regarding mini macros and why this is such a great remote for $25.00.

"Micro macros - still hanging around!
The RM-VL600's packaging is rather vague on exactly what sort of learning capabilities the remote features. Recent Sony models have advertised that they can learn codes up to 500kHz in frequency and 250-bits in length, far more than average remotes that classically top out at 50kHz and 20 or 30 bits. But despite the absence of technical specifications it would appear that the RM-VL600 does in fact include the same capabilities as previous models - which is great news since that means it's "micro macro" capable!
"Micro macros?" you might say, "Isn't that sort of redundant?"

No doubt this isn't something that you'll see advertised on any of Sony's boxes (although one of their high-end LCD models did turn this into an official capability), but "micro macros" is the process - or some might call art - of capturing more than one command on a single button. You see, most infrared signals require only 8 to 24 bits worth of space, while the RM-VL600 supports codes up to 250-bits long. So, with practice, it's possible to learn four or more commands onto any of the remote's buttons - and those commands don't need to be for the same device or even brand of device. "Micros" are an especially handy way to put favorite channel macros on otherwise unused keys."

I use a VL600 in my second system and I was surprised at it's capabilities. My main system is pretty complicated and yet I know that I could have used this cheap remote to operate my main system just about as well as I do now with the touch screen.