1080p - No 3D - PJ for $1500

I had the same basic question (1080P, no 3D, under $1,500). My research led me to the Mitsubishi HC4000. I haven't bought one yet, but am going to, unless something better for my needs comes out in the next 2 months or so, which I doubt. Currently the HC4000 is running about $1,200 online...would be nice if it dropped a little bit in the next couple of months.

That might be another alternative for you consider. For my needs, I don't game on the PJ screen (I use my computer). My use will be 75% BR movies and 25% HDTV. Gaming on the PJ typically means there is some ambient light in the room. The HC4000 is not the brightest PJ out there in this price range, however.

Check out this "8 1080P Projectors $1,500 Shootout." I found it very helpful.
http://www.projectorcentral.com/home...80p_review.htm

I went with the AR100U because I need the lens shift capabilities, which the Mitsu doesn't have. If you plan to use it with some ambient light in the room, I've read that the AR100 excels at that, even though mine will mostly be in a darkened room on low-power & cinema modes.

Similar boat to all you guys as far as the price range and don't really care to get 3D. For me it's down to these two:

BenQ W6000 - $1399
LG CF181D - $1599 w/ free bulb

Both of these were higher end models (relatively speaking to the PJs listed by the OP) from a couple years ago. I get the impression the 2D PQ would exceed the 2D PQ of the current batch of entry-level $1500ish 3D-capable projectors. All personal opinion/preference of course.

I also need lens shift as a pre-req for my new build, and these seem to be about the only non-3LCD models with lens shift in this price range. I've only ever had DLP projectors and am worried I won't be happy with the image these entry level 1080p 3LCDs (PT-AR100 and Epson 8350) put out.

Good luck! Let us know what you decide. I've still got two months to hold out and either find the best deal or change my mind another 50 times.

The Mits HC4000 was $899 from Electronics Expo through Ebay yesterday - FYI.

I would definitely have been all over it if not for no lens shift and a HUGE offset that just won't work in my future room.

THANK YOU, SIR!!! I had no clue. I haven't bought it yet (thankfully) but have decided that it's "the one" for me. I will keep an eye on EBay. I wonder if they are an authorized reseller? I'm not spending $900 and not having a warranty. I'll check. THANKS for the tip!!

No idea if they are an authorized reseller or not, but that should be easy enough to find out. It does appear to still be $999 at their regular website. This was posted the other day in the Projector Found Deals forum here on AVS.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1400464

I just checked their website; they say they are an authorized reseller for every product they sell. I emailed them and asked anyway, just to be sure. The website shows OOS for the HC4000. If they happened to find one and offered it for the $900 EBay price I'd buy it today. Thanks again for the heads up on the EBay price, MarcSparks.

All projectors that I know of have zoom capability. What I did when I first got into the projector world was calculate the approximate top and bottom of the image at the throw distance I would have. Some of it was also just holding the projector by hand, getting it close to level, to see where the image fell on the wall, which determined how high I would mount it.

After mounting the projector, I went through the fine tuning process of getting it perfectly leveled such that I had a straight and square image on the wall. THAT result then showed me what size screen frame I needed to make, and the area of my wall that I needed to paint with screen paint mixture.

I dunno, maybe I did some of that a little backwards from what others have done, but it worked well for me.