Hey guys, hoping you could help me decide on one of these projectors. I'm thinking of making the switch from a 50" plasma tv to a projector, I've never owned one so I'm going to buy from Costco so that I can just easily return if I'm not happy and these are the two projectors that are in my price range.

I've been looking for reviews of the HD200x and can't find any but I'm hoping someone here that owns one or is familiar could tell me which of these is better...... obviously there's an advantage to the optoma since it's 1080p but the epson has a better(advertised at least) contrast ratio and it's $500 cheaper

I would definitely get the Optoma. But you're asking about a projector that hasn't even been reviewed yet.

They're very very close. I have both and have them up to display side by side to figure out which one I prefer. Right now I like the vivid image of the Epson over the Optoma and the fact that I can wall mount it, yet there's the obvious benefit of the Optoma's 1080p resolution. Menu wise, the Epson kills the Optoma, with so many options to tweak the picture the way you want it. The Epson is a lot brighter... much better for ambient light and web surfing with the lights on.

Sharpness and picture quality on SD-DVD there really isn't much difference. The Optoma has a little bit of an edge in this respect as it seems to have more depth, but only noticeable if you are switching back and forth.

In bright mode the Optoma is too noisy for me, The Epson has a more tolerable wooshing sound that is easier to ignore.

OK, after 5 hours of back and forth comparing I have decided that...there is not much difference at all. The Hd200x may have a very very slight contrast advantage and the 720 has a very slight yellow cast(which can be pretty much eliminated with the color settings)

If you want to pay $400 extra for 1080p, get the Optoma. If you want the option of having a much brighter picture(the Optoma at low lamp mode is about the same as the Epson's lowest setting, about 600 lumens I'm guessing) get the Epson. The Optoma on high lamp mode has a very annoying high pitched sound that drives me crazy, forget about using it. The Epson on the other hand, puts out a crazy 1500 lumens in Dynamic mode and has an pretty unnoticeable whooshing sound.

If you're into tweaking your settings, the Optoma will disappoint you. On the other hand if you just want a good picture out of the box, the Optoma is the better choice.

As far as rainbows, I'm very sensitive and I see them with the Optoma but they don't bother me that much. The screen door effect with the Epson is not noticeable watching movies at 12 feet.

OK, after 5 hours of back and forth comparing I have decided that...there is not much difference at all. The Hd200x may have a very very slight contrast advantage and the 720 has a very slight yellow cast(which can be pretty much eliminated with the color settings)

If you want to pay $400 extra for 1080p, get the Optoma. If you want the option of having a much brighter picture(the Optoma at low lamp mode is about the same as the Epson's lowest setting, about 600 lumens I'm guessing) get the Epson. The Optoma on high lamp mode has a very annoying high pitched sound that drives me crazy, forget about using it. The Epson on the other hand, puts out a crazy 1500 lumens in Dynamic mode and has an pretty unnoticeable whooshing sound.

If you're into tweaking your settings, the Optoma will disappoint you. On the other hand if you just want a good picture out of the box, the Optoma is the better choice.

As far as rainbows, I'm very sensitive and I see them with the Optoma but they don't bother me that much. The screen door effect with the Epson is not noticeable watching movies at 12 feet.

oh crap
I forgot about rainbows
that bugged hte hell out of my on my two DLP tvs :(

thanks for the info though

I went from a 56" 1080p dlp to a 50" 720p plasma and could barely notice any difference in detail(at about 6 1/2') so I think it might be best to go with the epson since it's so much cheaper..that $500 savings will buy me a screen for it I guess. also I read that bulbs are cheaper for epson projectors as well so that's always nice

That $500 will buy you a screen and cables online. I picked up an excellent retractable for $165 Canadian with taxes, shipping in. Here's the link to my review

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1158325

Pm me if you want to know where I got it.

is the 720 better than the 800?

a guy locally is selling the HC 800 for $700

is the 720 better than the 800?

a guy locally is selling the HC 800 for $700

Yes. Dynamic Iris and much higher contrast ratio, sharper, brighter. Way more zoom so you can put the 720 anywhere. There's a few other things I can't think of right now.

sorry for bumping the thread
I'm gonna buy one of these tonight and I just wanted to see if anyone else has an opinion on the two

also anyone have pictures of both to compare?