Pico Projectors. Any Good Uses for One?

I've got this AAXA projector on the way to my house for review, and wondered what the real market for similar devices might be. My shipment was delayed as they upgraded the battery and packaging, but I'll have a review on my blog by next weekend.

It doesn't have it's own little screen, but will play/display MP4/MP3/WMA/OGG/WAV/AVI/WMV/SMV/BMP/JPG/GIF/TXT content stored locally. 12 lumens LCD lamp. Rated for 30,000 hours. Projects from 7" to 50". 640 x 480.

Given the low price, do you believe these will find a real market? Are they a short lived gimmick? Do YOU want one?

I got the iPod cable with mine. Hoping to watch a movie from it on my ceiling. In two pockets I can carry family movie night so long as there's a white wall to project onto.

All opinions welcome.

Thanks for your reply, Robert. I'll have to check out the Walmart version as well.

I got a few ideas from my coworkers today. One woman who has a gymnastic daughter liked the idea of having one for entertaining the young athletes "girls" with movies or film of past meets. This happens when they room together while at out-of-town meets. Previously they have gathered around the small screen of a portable DVD player.

With the potential of a 50" view (in a very dark room) I'm reconsidering my plans to make a home theater in the spacious attic, and may convert a spare closet into a mini-theater instead.

It's on the UPS truck for delivery right now. They usually show up around noon.

Anyone else with an interest? With prices around $250 these projectors seem like they should create their own market. And then there is the feature growth potential. Next year's models will have lens shift or keystone correction. I see LEDs getting brighter. I see batteries getting better. The future is bright and well projected.

I've got my initial review up on my blog now. Many photos. Have a look and tell me what you think. So far I'm impressed. I just need a screen. My house doesn't have any white walls. Testing to this point has been on a textured ceiling.

The photo of the nextar projector on the Walmart.com site looks exactly like the AAXA . Yet the specs look like they are for a totally different device. Even the dimensions don't agree. The image, however, is cleary the same product as every vent hole and option is in the exact same place. I wouldn't trust the Walmart page. Their specs mention a tripod mount and there is none on my AAXA.

I've already got a Sanyo PLV-1080HD for home use. The AAXA I bought just to evaluate, but I might set up a single person theater using a comfortable lounge chair, decent screen, an ipod Touch and the AAXA. All in a spare closet, eventually.

I'm looking for a simply 18" or so portable desktop projection screen that could be set up on a converence or cafe table yet folded to fit in a briefcase. Something mainly to demonstrate the AAXA with.

At the moment the specs for all the Pico projectors look the same, and with at best 12 lumens you don't get a very large useful image unless the room is very dark. I see a potential though, as the portability (pocketability) of the technology is seductive.

We spent a year trying to find an affordable laptop to power a projector where I work, but thinking small ended up using a Sansa View to drive the projector. In testing it's composite video output handled photos and video better than the VGA output of two netbooks we evaluated. The Projector is a small but powerfull Dell model, but it is still far from pocketable.

Samsung will be bring out a cell phone and seperate PMP with projector onboard later this year. Once the "market" comes up with a nice screen that is also pocketable, the tradition of dragging a laptop and bulky projector to conferences may fade away. Or at least limiting projected presentations to large venues will go away.

I see individuals sitting in my university food court with a notebook PC open for study or entertainment. Now imagine a front/rear projection screen pulling diagonally up out of the center of each table. Now everyone seated there can enjoy a Youtube video from your iPhone, photos of that party last night, etc. The personal technology becomes social, and still fits in your pocket.

I don't think anyone expects a Pico to replace home theater or data projectors. That's what this thread is about... Are they a gimmick that will fade away quickly, or will they be the new device that eventually everyone will want?

I'm just wondering what the "killer" app for them will be. I predict a few clever uses will be found though, because these projectors are cheap enough and portable enough to be experimented with. The roadblocks I see are:

- screen. At least in my house the availability of a projection surface is not common. I can make one easy enough, but it won't be as portable as the P1 is.

- tripod/support of the projector. The nextar adds I've seen imply it comes with a little tripod. My AAXA doesn't have anything that looks like a mounting point on it. Even a little adjuster foot that would prop up the front of the projector would be nice, followed by some keystone adjustment or lens shift capablity.

You're right, Brown Rad. We make a yearly trip out to an ancient farmhouse for a large family reunion. Electricity, but no TV, VHS, DVD or other electronic entertainment for the evenings. Plenty of white sheets though. Bring the projector with an iPod cable and there will be a couple dozen relatives with an iPod and content to share on a big (50") screen. I'll recommend taking along some reasonable self-powered speakers to plug into the headphone jack though.

I wish they had packaged a tripod with the AAXA. With no tripod mount it's a pain to use. Looks like the Nextar tripod was custom made for it. I'm sure it would fit the AAXA. Anyone know where to get one just like it?

I couldn't find anywhere to buy the tripod that comes with the nextar, so I made my own mounting platform.
I've written it up in my blog. Tell me what you think.

4D

Thanks, Robert. I've also built a little screen which I'll write up sometime next week.

I've got several coworkers who own iPod Touch's. Every one of them instantly saw the value in having a portable mini projector, as they've all experienced moments when a Youtube or personal video, or even a photo wanted to be shared with others, and the little screen meant only one or two at a time could see.

The little speaker in the AAXA is worthless. It seems to have gotten worse since the first time I used it. As such, headphones are highly recommended. But if you want a VERY portable and versatile speaker to go along the little Samsung BS300 is a good solution. It works with a patch cord included, but also has bluetooth for any bluetooth capable player you might have. It will even work as a speaker phone if you pair it with a bluetooth capable cell phone.