Panasonic PT-AE7000 vs Epson PowerLite 5010

Hey, I don't own either of these projectors but I am trying to decide between the two units as well.

I don't know if you've gone over to look at the Panny 7000 owners thread to do some research, but it seems like there are a few problems going on.
The biggest 2 being-
1) 3D Ghosting
2) Flickering

Now there have been rumors that the flickering issues might be able to be fixed via firmware.

As for the 3D Ghosting, they are doing a lot of tests in the owners thread to find out what the problem is. Right now the theory is temperature. If you pop in a 3D movie and start watching it right away there seems to be a significant amount of ghosting.
However if you put in a 3D movie and leave it paused for 10-15 minutes it reduces the crosstalk a great deal.
This is also dependent on pictures settings as well. It needs to be on Eco Lamp mode, Normal picture, etc. I highly suggest you head over to the owners thread and read up if you haven't already.

When the Panny is 'warmed up' the 3D seems to work like a charm. Something to keep in mind is there are people who claim that their 3D has no ghosting what so ever. Some people might be more sensitive to it than others so who knows for sure.

The Epson's have less picture settings/features while in 3D mode. And also have pretty bad lag from what I've read. So if your a gamer that might be something to test out.
To be honest I haven't really dug into researching Epsons quite yet.

Anyway just thought Id share what Ive learned so far. Hopefully some owners will come in and be more informative than I have been.

But if the Panasonic is having technical problems with 3D...well....

For me there are pros and cons to both

Panasonic-
Pros
1) Lens shift - Really was looking forward to this feature
2) Reportedly better 3D due to the auto Iris and more picture controls
3) Has less lag than the Epson, which as a gamer is pretty important
4) I have a friend who has a 3D Panny Plasma, so that would cut down on the amount of 3D glasses Id have to buy
Cons
1) Screen flickering that *might* be able to be fixed via firmware
2) Ghosting in 3D possibly due to poor temperature control
3) Non uniform colors across the screen (Ive only seen 2 people complain about that personally)

Epson
Pros
1) Very bright- Brighter in eco mode than Panny is in normal mode. Should mean a longer bulb life. Also you can drive bigger screens.
2) Split Picture- Not something I'd use as much as Panny's Lens Shift I think but still pretty cool
3) Cheaper! The cost of the projector is cheaper as well as the cost of bulbs.
Cons
1) People seem to think the Auto Iris in 2D and fans while in 3D mode are too noisy.
2) Bad input lag. I've seen someone say it was around 100ms lag Make sure to test out games on this thing to see if you can deal with it. (if you are a gamer)
3) No Auto Iris and Less picture controls in 3D. - The Auto Iris part doesn't bug me that much, but only having 2 different picture modes kinda does.
4) Poor pixel alignment/ Convergence - Still reading up on this part. Like I said before I haven't dug into researching the Epson all that much yet.


These are all my personal takes on the projectors. Your pro and con list might be different.
I'm kinda surprised no owners have stopped by to help yet.

I have been debating between the 6010 and 7000. Just remember you put gaming down. Also, it's not mentioned, but from what I remember the 6010 is loud in 3D mode.

Most places I've seen the 6010 at have it for 1000 more than the other projectors Ive been looking at, which is a bit out of my budget for projector shopping. Which is why I haven't considered it

My friend bought the Panny AE7000, about a week later I bought my Epson 5010, he came over to watch Transformer Dark of the Moon in 3D, well he's returning his Panny AE7000 and eat the 15% restocking fee just to get the same Epson 5010 as my.

I guess it really depends on how much you watch 3D. You'll definitely lose contrast with the auto-iris disabled (specifically deep blacks), but on the other hand, 3D requires maximum light output. My dealer recommends the 6010, probably because he sells them. He's convinced me that the extra $700 is well spent for the extra years warranty, two pairs of glasses ($200), extra bulb ($300), anamorphic lens support and a ceiling mount ($50). The latter two mean nothing to me as I have a 16:9 screen and already have a chief ceiling mount.

But I own a DLP now and I've been told that DLP has a "pop" that LCD does not have (my dealer does not have an LCD demo). So I'm thinking about the BenQ W7000, but that seems to have some issues.

As far as noise in 3D while playing game, well i don't see any. I played a little bit of Need for Speed Shift with my Race simulated chair looking at 120" Stewart Studiotek screen. Looks great but input lag is retarded.
if you play a lot games, I wouldn't pick either. I highly recommend getting the better choice for gaming like BenQ W 7000. Or even better yet get the Optoma GT700, it's cheap and does great job even though it's only 720P.

It's one of the best for gaming and more expensive than the Panny or Epson. It really come down to how much game you are playing and is it worth the extra couple hundred bucks to get faster input.


Lag time for gaming test/measurement

Ben Q W7000:

50 MS w/ No FI or DI

80 MS with DI on, but FI off.

200 MS with DI on and FI on.


JVC RS 45:

80 MS with no FI


Epson 5010:

80 MS with no FI


Sony HW30:

30 MS with 'Gaming Mode' preset

65 MS with no FI

70-80 MS with FI on low, medium or High

Has there been a lag test done with the Panny? I've heard that its around 30-40MS but haven't seen anything concrete.

Try this: it's from projector central

"RESULTS: The fastest projector we have in house at the moment is the Panasonic AR100U, which clocks in at a screaming fast 1.5 frame delay. Right on its heels is the Mitsubishi HC7800, at 2.0 frames lag time. Next in line were the Acer H9500 and Panasonic AE7000, both of which measured 2.5 frames in their game modes. The BenQ W7000 comes in at 3.0 frames. And bringing up the rear is the Epson Home Cinema 5010, with a pokey 5.5 frame delay in its fastest mode.

Frame interpolation systems slow things down on all models as you would expect. With these feature on their low settings, the Acer 9500 and the BenQ W7000 dropped to a sluggish 9 frame delay. (Hey, you just don't use frame interp while gaming). The Epson 5010 dropped to 8.5 frames and the Mitsubishi dropped to 5 frames. The Panasonic AE7000 was least affected by frame interpolation, dropping from 2.5 in game mode to 4.0 in Cinema with FI on low."

yeah Panny have that issues even with movies. I posted in another thread. My buddy bought the Panny A7000 about a week before i got my Epson 5010. He came over and we watch Transformer Dark of the Moon in 3D. The next day he call his vendor and return his projector, they charge him 15% restocking fee. lol Now he got the Epson 5010E with wireless video.

Consensus appears to be that 7000 is better for gaming and has more features, but 5010 has better image.

The BenQ 7000 just dropped $300 at a forum sponsor, but owners have been sending them back up to three time for firmware upgrades. Optoma HD33 same thing. Acer is silent (but deadly).