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Epson Moviemate 85HD: lens shift and other topics

post #1 of 8
3/26/11 at 9:40pm
Thread Starter 
Been looking at the Moviemate 85HD for a week or so now, and it seems very versatile. I'm new to projectors and think this might be a good way to go just to get started and have some fun without having to worry too much about the complexities of ceiling mounts, etcetera..

However, been reading some of the little info I've found on this board about the Moviemate (in this thread: http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1285444) and I realized that it doesn't have any lens shift. Since I've not had a projector before, I don't know how big of a deal this really is--I was planning on just putting it on a coffee table and having it shoot across the room onto a pull-down screen. (probably a Da-Lite 120")

So my main question is--is the lack of lens shift going to make this difficult? Will I need to raise it up onto a shelf at a certain exact height to get it to work right? Or is there still some versatility in how I use it?



I'd welcome any other feedback about the Moviemate 85HD as well, related to this topic or not.

Thanks!
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post #2 of 8
3/26/11 at 10:49pm
I'm newish to the digital projector area myself as well. I work with them at the theater, but recently bought an Epson 8350 for home. I haven't set mine up yet but have tested out the picture by shooting it onto my bedroom curtains. Just from that one experience I'm glad i joined the ranks. The lens shift though comes in handy and for the little extra cash i would recommend going the 8350 instead of the Moviemate. The picture quality is better plus you have that added flexibility with the lens shift up and down, side to side.
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post #3 of 8
3/27/11 at 5:49am
Thread Starter 
Looks like the 8350 has some fantastic specs and picture quality compared to the 85HD, though at a first glance it looks like it may be a bit more than I was hoping to spend, and lacks the versatility I liked in the Moviemate (no built in dvd player, speakers, usb ports, etcetera).

If I am almost exclusively going to be watching standard dvd format movies (no blu-ray or HD content), is the image quality upgrade going to do me much good anyway?

Thanks for the thoughts!
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post #4 of 8
3/27/11 at 7:18am
Thread Starter 
If I do choose to go with the Moviemate 85HD, how do I figure out how high I would have to mount it in order to get the picture right? Would it have to be aligned with the exact center of the screen (vertically speaking?).

I noticed that it does have vertical digital keystone capabilities, but I also read that this distorts the picture some, which I'd like to avoid.
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post #5 of 8
3/28/11 at 8:07pm
Thread Starter 
anyone have any thoughts on this? Thanks in advance!
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post #6 of 8
4/8/11 at 7:07pm
The Moviemate 72 has lens shift. It's gotten a good review here:

http://www.projectorreviews.com/epson/moviemate-72/

I just saw a Moviemate 62 at Fry's about an hour ago. PQ wasn't bad at all. That's saying a lot coming from a DLP fan. The 72 and 85 should offer even better picture quality.
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post #7 of 8
4/9/11 at 7:14am
I took a look at the MM 85 manual, and it doesn't specify what the offset is, and it has automatic vertical keystone correction. Undoubtedly this is to make it easy to setup for the casual movie viewer.

Since you'll primarily be using the DVD player, the output is always scaled up from 720x480 to 1280x800, so, you won't technically be losing resolution. Most people don't notice the effects of keystone on video material. It's more evident when you're looking at a computer desktop.

Between the MM 72 and the 85, even though the 72 has lens shift, I'd go with the 85 for these reasons.

- Twice as bright ( 2500 lumen vs 1200 )
- Three times the on/off contrast ( 3000:1 vs 1000:1 )
- Much smaller ( 13.2" x 9.4" x 5.4" (W x D x H) vs. 19.8" x 14.2" x 12.9"
- Current model vs. 4 year old discontinued model.

Although I don't have one, I think that all-in-one's are a great way to try out front projection. If you really get hooked, then you can always upgrade to a 'proper' HT projector in the future. If you don't, you're not out a lot of cash, and have a neat little gizmo that's easy to carry around and setup ( cottage / friends / back yard movies / etc. ).

Jonathan
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post #8 of 8
5/2/11 at 2:49pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks much for the replies, especially your comments, Jonathan. I've been mulling over this for a few weeks, but I think I'm going to go ahead and get the 85.
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