I've been contemplating an upgrade from my Dell 2300MP (XGA) to a native 720p PJ. I believe I can get between $500 and $600 for my Dell on Ebay, so the upgrade to the HD1000U would be about $300 to $400, but I'd be starting with a fresh bulb, wheras I have about 900 hours on the Dell. So if I called that $100, the upgrade would be $200, to $300.

So the big diff is obviously the 720p. I mainly use the PJ for movies from my HTPC, which scales everything to 720p through component, and my XBox 360, which I have setup for 720p output via component. I did the math, and if I'm correct, my XGA PJ has to scale the 720p input to about 576 horizontal lines, effectively losing 20% of the original resolution, and of course losing quality in the scaling.

Contrast ratio of the Mits is 2500:1, whereas the Dell is 2000:1. But I'm willing to bet the contrast of the Mits is even better than the numbers show.

The biggest con of the upgrade is that the Dell is rated at 2300 lumens, and the Mits is rated at 1500. I have great light control, but I do have a pool table in an adjacent room that spills some light over, and I do often have people playing pool while the PJ is on.

I had a theory about the brightness though, and hopefully someone can confirm or deny if this is accurate: I assume since the Dell is essentially blocking about 20% of the light due to the letterboxing, I can effectively reduce the brightness of the Dell to about 1800 lumens when displaying a 720p source. Is that an accurate assessment?

If I missed any critical parameters, please let me know! Any opinions would be greatly appreciated!

Well, it doesn't look like anyone's interested in helpin a brotha out! :(

Can someone at least verify my theory on brightness (above)?

Can anyone who has upgraded from an XGA to a 720p tell me how much noticable difference there is in the resolution (displaying 720p source)? I watch HD content on my XGA and it seems like a huge upgrade from a 480p DVD. And as clear as the HD content is now, I can't imaginge that the increase to 720p can make as much difference, even though it's even more of a resolution increase!

Comments?

I had a 2300mp too and just bought a HD1000u. There is no comparison! I used to think the picture on my 2300 was great... I didn’t know what I was missing. Brighter, sharper, better colors, just better in every conceivable way. Trust me, take the plunge and you will have no regrets.

For sure esp. if you can get some decent coin on your Dell back. File in no-brainer.

I had a 2300mp too and just bought a HD1000u. There is no comparison! I used to think the picture on my 2300 was great... I didn’t know what I was missing. Brighter, sharper, better colors, just better in every conceivable way. Trust me, take the plunge and you will have no regrets.

Thanks Bill, just what I was looking for!

You say the Mits is actually brighter?? I wouldn't expect that! I mean I was hoping it would be close, but I didn't think there was any way it would actually be brighter. The projection calculator at projectorcentral.com shows the acceptable ambient light at almost 6 times as high for the Dell at my screen size / throw distance. Not really a big concern, though, since I do have the light control.