Infocus IN72-IN74-IN76 - Page 11

i have a hc3000 and the "extra bars" do not extend over the frame on my 110" carada screen, i have never noticed them. i think people are making too big of a deal over this.

muncey

ok I guess it isnt as bad as I thought.

you meant "narrower than"?
if it is wider than the border then we need a bigger border :-)

Bob, I think I can speak for all of us here - "That would be great. Thank you".

In may '04 I took everyone's advice to stop reading this forum obsessively AFTER you get the HT done and hang your projector. My SP 5700 has been a lot of fun over almost two years-not without some hiccups, but my dealer and mostly IF customer service have kept me very happy. I am an IF fanboy of sorts. Having started with an X1 in 2003.

The 5700 is too loud. A very discounted Sharp DT300 is about to be hung by a neighbor and its obsenely quiet compared to my 5700 (though not as bright). Next door neighbor did a Sony HS50 right after I did my 5700-again, really, really quiet. So I hope they've learned how to get these things as quiet as the competition.

It looks like they've worked to keep the brightness-my favorite feature. The bright picture does not detract from movie viewing in my room, and it really adds to football type get togethers. I need almost no calibration, whereas my HS50 neighbor needed lots. This is also a superb feature of these PJs.

The dealer only strategy costs IF sales, unfortunately. My dealer was not local, but did a great job of working through my questions & concerns. And his price was competitive with the "market" for 576p projectors at that time. Notice both friends/neighbors wouldn't consider buying anywhere but the internet. I'm not sure what the answer is, but I expect that IF is going to have to start allowing more public price comeptition-which is the problem. A Click & Buy price is what people expect now. "Call or email for Best price" gets passed over.

The 5700 had a very long throw for an IF PJ. I expect these new ones to be more like the 7200 and 7205. Meaning I'd be back in the attic and have holes to patch. Maybe enough to keep me on the sideline if the 76 is as good as it sounds.

I shouldn't have come back. Upgraditis is a terible thing.......

Welcome back rlundy... Your wallet is in trouble now

Sound and sealed optics were two things I was definitely interested in when comparing projectors when it was time for me to upgrade.... The Infocus X1 was noisy compared to other friends' setups.... One of the reasons why I overlooked the Infocus X3 when it was time for me to upgrade to a higher quality 4:3 projector compared to the competition; namely the Sharp XR-10X.... that and of course; the Sharp had PICTURE SHIFT!

I really did want to buy another Infocus projector... Heck I still own the "Mandarax" mount which only works with Infocus projectors... (Of course; I don't think it will work with these new upgraded models...)

Bob - I just wanted to thank you again for taking time out of your busy day to answer our questions. I think we all realize that it's not something you have to do, but rather choose to do, and we very much appreciate it.

The final question I have is really a non-specific one, and please feel free to disregard any or all of it if you wish:

Is there anything you'd like to tell us about these projectors that maybe no one would think to ask about? Perhaps an internal design feature that you're particularly proud of, or a new bit of firmware functionality that you think is cool? Also, since we're all AV geeks and would probably find it very interesting, are there any anecdotal stories about their development that you'd like to share?

Thats is interesting, but I've never heard that before. I cannot say I ever remember any review, specifications list or anybody saying that. But, I do know that 4x is not what I thought they were, and its always been reported in what I did read, that it was 5x. The information I saw they give to dealers said 5x also, unless I am dreaming.

Even the infocus site still lists the SP7200 at 5x.

http://www.infocus.com/service/sp720...site_region=1&

I've always like the Screenplay line, even though I see rainbows somewhat quicker than some brands. I assumed it was because they are usually more bright, or just one of those things.

Well, the 7200 in its original specification had a 5x colorwheel. However, 5x did not work with our lamp flicker reduction circuit and it was changed to 4x shortly before shipping. I think that the change may not have made it into all of the marketing literature in time, and since then the various platforms may have simply built upon the old information. I don't know exactly what happened, this is just my speculation.

The IN76 is replacing the SP5000 at the low end of our 720p offerings. The SP7205 and SP7210 are step ups in terms of on the wall performance (via their 7-segment color wheels, Zeiss optics, and extra brightness) and connectivity.

Bob, does this apply to just the IN72, or does it include the IN74 and IN76 as well ?

Well, thats quite a long string of bad information, isn't it? Of course does it really matter whether its 4x or 5x, since everyone is mostly happy with the performance? I guess not but those PJ's have always been quoted having a 5x color wheel, until now.

So, since you are comparing the IN76 with the SP5000. thats means Infocus will come out with another 720P sometime later this year, after the 7205 & 7210 are slowly faded out, thats my guess.

The IN76 has to be a step from the LCD SP5000 though, even if thats what its replacing.

Bob,

How would you compare the quietness of the IN76 to the 7205 and 7210, since the latter two don't benefit from the new design?

Thank you,
George

The visibility of the rainbow effect is proportional to the brightness of the image. I suggest that if you have trouble with the rainbows you see on your SP4805 then you need to go to a larger image when you upgrade to the IN76 to get the image down to the same brightness or less than what you currently have. The good news is that you can do that because the pixels are smaller with the IN76 720p display and the lens throw is wider from the same distance as the SP4805. The screen calculators will tell you what your current brightness is off of the screen in foot lamberts - just make sure that the new projector is no brighter than your old one.

1080p (in pretty much all conceivable flavors) support is included in HDMI 1.1. The new line of projectors have HDMI receivers that are designed for the HDMI 1.1 standard.

It will 1:1 pixel map to a 1280x768 source (digital or analog) with no problem. You will only get the center 1280x720 part of the image, however.

As Bill Cosby once said, I don't know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.

I will put it this way. The IN76, in its noisiest high power mode, is quieter than the SP7205 in its quietest low power mode. The color wheel noise is also much lower.

Sorry, that would be the IN72. The IN74 and IN76, which share the same lens, have a tighter focus tolerance and a sharper image, partly due to the fact that the 720p DLP device has smaller pixels and requires it.

Re: The IN74

Why is this PJ only sold through Pro shops so to speak? I think 576P is enough for me to watch a 106" image from thirteen feet without seeing SDE. I like to support the local B&M but if they aren't discounting the PJ at all, I will likely consider a 720P LCD as the price is so close. OTOH, maybe the IN76 will be down to around $2,000 by the fall?

Greg

The things I am most proud of with this platform are the refinements. Many of the team members are the same as the ones who worked on the SP4805 and the production line is in the same building, and everyone is impressed that we have gone from a business projector slightly modified for home use to a full-fledged no-complaints home theater product. Every system and subsystem have been improved for home users. We made a list of all the complaints and suggestions and implemented everything we could and still have a value product. This is our first grounds up platform designed specifically for home use, and we took that task seriously.

The biggest single difference from a performance standpoint between the new line and the old X1/X2/SP48xx platform is the airflow design. The new design provides for minimal light leakage and minimal escaping of noise, while improving maintenance with a screen-less, non-outgassing lamp enclosure. The new design allowed us to put all of the connectors in the back where they belong and not worry about vents there. It also got rid of all light leaks out the front and cleaned up the look of the product tremendously.

Right now the design team, located on two continents, is working night and day crossing the "t"s and dotting the "i"s in preparation for mass production. I'm writing these responses in between optical tests on our pre-production units and I think I am a little bit too close to the project right now to really give you anything anecdotal that wouldn't read like a pessimistic story (engineers are paid pessimists you know). Ask me again in a month or so.

Bob,

From what I've read so far, other than the digital image shifting feature, it really sounds like you guys have pretty much covered all the bases and thrown in an extra feature or two nobody expected (gotta love that flashlight remote) .

Your team has to be pretty excited to see how the reception from the early adapters turns out for the Play Big series. Will Infocus be sending out any preproduction units to select media outlets for reviews any time soon ?

Bob, thank you for the explanation.

The information I read that's available for dealers said there will be a "EX" on the end of the model number. So, unless me an the dealer didin't exactly understand, which I think we did, the INxx line will be available through other outlets. The "EX" will supposely give dealers something to say its "different"........ Which I doubt will make a dealer all that happy.

A quick Froogle shows numerous sites with the IN76 for sale at very competitive prices. Obviously it's not out yet, but is it safe to assume that the street price will be around these numbers when it's finally released? As in do the dealers already know what their margins will be and have decided on these prices?

One more thing, i know there's been lots of talk in this thread about various types of lens and digital shift to maximize the positioning of the projector, but real simply, will there be any type of shift at all, or will it be a matter of positioning the projector in the exact center of the screen? I plan on positioning the projector in the center anyway, but not having to be that extra inch or so perfect is always handy.

I imagine this is in part because you are not using the controller that is needed to implement it. However did you look at the possiblity of implementing BC and decide it was not worth it or was it not an option because of the controller you decided to use?

Thanks
Peter

Kras,

Is this a practice that Infocus has already been doing, or is this something new for these newer models? What kind of performance enhancements?

I personnally bought my 4805 online (although they are an authorized dealer) because the three local B & M shops I tried were bad for different reasons. The one shop didn't carry the lower Infocus models in stock, but could order me one if I really wanted. However, they had a nice Runco model that I'd be better off with. The other shop tried showing me the 7200 as if it were the 4805. Whether or not it was intentional didn't matter to me, the fact that the sales staff was so unknowledgeable was what bothered me. The third shop had that "A $1500 projector? Why don't you go to Wal-Mart and buy a tv or something" elitist type attitude. I guess the point of all this is did I miss out on some features by not dealing with either of those shops?

And on another topic, will you be getting any of these models and provide us with one of your reviews?

George

yes