I went to the What hifi / Best of Stuff show last weekend in London, just to see what was new. One of the most innovative products I saw there was a portable screen made by a company I'd not heard of before - Nuvu.

Their screen packs down into a carrying bag when not in use, and springs open jack-in-the-box fashion when you need it.

I thought it was a nice idea although a show floor isn't the place to do serious quality comparisons so I couldn't say how well it stacked up to the competition.

I put together some words and a photo on a website I write for if anyone's interested.

http://www.coolest-gadgets.com/20051106/nuvu-foldable-projector-screen/

Has anyone else seen them / played with them? Got any comments? (I'm tempted to get one for myself - perhaps I can swing one for long term review ;-))

Marc.

I purchased one without seeing/trying it. It's expensive for what it is, a screen on a flexible steel frame that hangs from the ceiling using magnets. I paid US$600 retail for it. Unfortunately, we haven't been able to fold the screen back into its case. We're told that there's a trick to folding the screen up, and after many frustrating attempts, we haven't found it. And despite the marketing, there is also a trick to hang the screen using the magnets. It's a two person affair that requires a tweaking of the length of the support and the magnets. Because of our problems, we are told that another set of "stronger" magnets are on their way including new instructions on how to fold the screen. We do love the screen from a viewing standpoint. However, we are very disappointed by the magnetic hanging system and the folding of the screen. They aren't as easy to hang and fold as they market themselves to be. As a result, we leave our screen hanging on the wall, which is exactly the reason we didn't purchase a fixed screen. Oh well.

Hi Hekili,

It seems like a pretty good concept. The gain factor is of only 1.0, have you compared it afterwards with any other screen? How well does it stand up to ambient light? How does it copare to a white wall?

I found a video about this screen, it looks pretty cool.

http://www.cinenow.com/uk/play-video-260.html

Our Nuvuscreen replaced an Infocus one that came with our 4805 (Costco bundle). The Nuvuscreen shows more detail than the Infocus screen and is not reflective. The black frame does enhance viewing.

Hi Hekili,

Thaks for the info. By not reflective you mean that it can handle some ambient light?
In the video I sw it seem pretty easy to put away, I guess that goes for the smaller sizes :D

Yes it can handle some light. We purchased the large size (instead of small, medium or extra large). The video must use the small size which would make it similar in size as windshield protectors. Although promised by the distributor, we still haven't received the "stronger" magnets or additional instructions for folding the screen.

I found a video in english + showing a larger screen being unfolded´:
http://www.cinenow.com/uk/play-video-157.html

Hi Heikili,
I was thinking for going with a greywolf, but i really like the concept fo being able to dismount the screen completely.

How about waves on the screen, are there any or is the tensioning ring around enough to avoid them? Is there any creasing in the material if it is sotred?

Thanks,
Alex

Any creases on the screen "hang out" when in use. The material seems lycra-like but I'm told that it is a patented product. We haven't yet been able to fold our screen so we leave it hanging on the wall and that defeats its purpose! We purchased the large screen; maybe it's easier to fold the smaller sizes.

Hi Hekili,

thanks for the info. I found this comment on another forume about the folding process that may help you:

http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=321971

"I got one of these screens recently without having actually seen one other than online - I couldn't find anyone who had one or had seriously reviewed it outside of trade show demonstrations. The Lastolite connection really sold it to me. Bit of a gamble, but so far I'm very happy with it. The layout in my room meant that I just wasn't using my PJ much at all (a Panasonic AE500). This has been the ideal solution to my particular viewing problem, but may not be for others. I can't really give a technical review, but the image on the screen seems just fine to me (just finished watching King Kong on it), at least as good as the screen that came free with the PJ. And bigger. And in a better position in the room.

At the moment I'm using the tripod stand to hold the screen in place. It's much more stable than I expected. The set up with the magnets and cables is ingenious but I've got high ceilings and a short ladder, so I haven't been able to get up there and attach them yet. I'll probably do it just to see how well it works, but the stand is a perfectly acceptable alternative, if a lot less cool. Using the stand, it takes maybe five minutes to set up.

The big question I suppose is about the folding up concept. The screen really pops out of the bag, so you need to be ready for that! First time I looked at it all scrunched up in the bag, it seemed horribly wrinkled and I had a bit of a sinking feeling about the purchase. Within seconds, though, almost all of that had been stretched out. A bit of a ripple at top right and bottom left corners, but they also all but vanished in a very short time. I haven't been aware of any problem while watching movies and you probably know how nuts it can drive you when you see a little imperfection and can't stop looking at it.

Folding the screen back up again was a bit of a comedy performance. Took me about half an hour to do it the first time, mainly because I was being way too tentative about handling it. The screen is more robust than you might think. I nearly gave up and left it leaning against the wall overnight, but I figured my cats would be too tempted by it. Eventually, using a sort of Boston Crab move, I got it to fold up and go back into the bag. Since then, it's not been a problem at all. Just attack it without fear! With two people on it, probably an absolute doddle, taking literally seconds to put away.

As I say, it solves the problem I had with my room and has given me a new lease of life in terms of firing up the projector. Since this might be the only user review knocking around, I ought to say your mileage may vary, but as soon as I saw it online I thought it was exactly what I needed and thus far that's proved to be the case. Hope that helps.

My first post - and I did say it wouldn't be overly technical!"

Anyone else seen these screens?

bump

I'd like to share my experience with a NUVU screen and Stoneaudio UK:

End of August I had ordered an Infocus IN76 projector and I started looking for a projection screen. I really liked the NUVU since it is portable (I don't have much space) and I also really liked the styling and the oval black border around the screen.

So I went ahead and ordered an extra large NUVU screen and stand online from Stoneaudio UK. After a couple of emails and phone calls they finally shipped the screen after a week long delay via FedEx. The whole thing cost 527.40GBP.

Well I received the screen on the 8th of September and I soon as I took it out of its bag I saw that the actual screen surface had several very visible dirt spots over the entire screen area. Furthermore there were several deep creases on the surface and the black border around the screen had become unstuck at certain points due to the apparent mishandling of the screen. This was completely unacceptable for a high end home theater screen.

I immediately contacted Stoneaudio and NUVU. On the same day I received a call back from someone very professional and helpful at NUVU to whom I explained the situation and he seemed eager to help. Over the next few days I sent a couple of emails to Stoneaudio with no reply however. In the mean time the person from NUVU had talked with Stoneaudio and they told him that their distributor had been mishandling the screens. The person from NUVU emailed me and said informing me that they will have a meeting with the distributor which sold the screen to Stoneaudio and will address the problem and request a replacement at their cost. So I stopped trying to get in contact with Stoneaudio and waited for the NUVU-distributor meeting.

Unfortunately the distributor was skipping the meeting with NUVU so I turned again to Stoneadio, which is the retailer and actually responsible. After bombarding them with emails for 2 weeks I finally got a response that I should send the screen back to them for inspection and replacement. Note that UK and EU distance selling regulations state that the retailer must pay for the cost of returning faulty items.

I guess it is a lesson of "Caveat emptor".

Anyway be careful ordering from Stoneadio UK and I will keep you posted on how this thing ends...

Some more photos I took of the screen as soon as I received it.

a few more...

Just an update.

No response from Stoneaudio.

However I just got contacted by the person from NUVU/Lastolite. He finally managed to get in touch with their distributors and has arranged for a replacement screen to be sent to me free of charge. I have to give it to NUVU/Lastolite for caring for their customers and products. Lastolite, the company responsible for NUVU, is a very serious company and their attention to detail can be seen in the way they treat customers.

Btw I was informed that the screen comes with a new type of cloth.

I'll be sure to post an update when I receive the replacement screen as well as my impressions of the new screen material.

Having read this thread, I finally pulled the trigger and bought a Nuvu extra large screen with magnetic hanging system, especially since they now have a U.S. distributor, btx, and there really is no better option other than an extremely expensive ceiling-recessed mount.

The bottom line: We're very happy with the results.

That said, there was a lot of the similar experiences to the posts above - the difference is that we figured out a way to solve all the problems where I can set it up single-handedly in less than 5 minutes and take it down single-handedly and FOLD it in only a few minutes. (Even my wife loves it!)

Here are the problems I experienced and what I did to solve them:

1.) Mounting the magnetic system. There are three pieces to mounting the magnetic disks - the disk itself, a screw, and an anchoring screw that you drill into the drywall. When I did the installation as designed, I found the anchoring screw came out of the drywall too easily, so I replaced it with a drywall anchor.

I also found that the screw supplied with the kit had a head that was too big - as a result, the magnet did not rest flush against the disk. Instead, it wobbled and as a result a lot of its hanging power was lost. I replaced it with a screw with a smaller head (to test, put the screw through the hole in the disk so it lies totally flush, then stick the magnet on. If it wobbles at all, then you need a smaller screw. If it lies totally flat, then you're OK).

Lastly, the directions say to mount the disks X cm apart dependent on your screen size and how far below the ceiling you want the screen. I ignored these as the magnet hanging system is adjustable, instead opting to locate the disks on a spot on the ceiling several inches outside the grommets.

2.) Folding. First, don't follow the directions that describe folding like a taco lengthwise. I tried them, my wife and I tried them, and we both couldn't make them work. What did work was folding the screen in three. To do this, face the screen, grab the left edge of the screen, and fold it over about one-third of the way. Then take the right edge of the screen and fold it over an equal amount. The screen will fold in on itself almost automatically (you shouldn't have to fight it) and you'll end up with three sections of screen approximately the same size and round in shape that lie flat on the ground without sitting on it. We laughed the first time we tried it because the screen practically folded itself when we used this technique. Now I do it singlehandedly.

It's reinvented our movie-watching experience. Material quality is very good, and it's much better than a white wall (even if I had one to use, which I don't). Don't be afraid to take the plunge!

(and Nuvu, don't be afraid to (a) replace the screws; (b) include anchors as an option; and (c) rewrite the directions from scratch!)