At it's price point yes, but the contrast will be very low regardless. Anyone reputable got numbers? I'm guessing native 700:1, dynamic maybe 2000:1 ?
As for
sophisticated glass optics... I can tell you now, the plastic lenses on a 10 year old jvc are far better than this, it's not even close. Touting 'all glass optics' doesn't mean anything if the glass elements are made on the cheap and arranged the same way. They, like all the others, are just on the same bandwagon, trying wow you with fancy terms. Those small bk7 elements can be produced for a couple of bucks each and coated for the same!
I think it's a good projector for the money I really do, but it doesn't compete with anything more expensive, like the 5700, or step up again to the Epson 6050. I've had all 3 side by side. It's not meant to anyway hence the pricing. I don't know what other $1500 dlp machines are there to compete with it anyway? optoma?
With regards to test patterns, yes obviously we don't watch them. I look at test patters as like a doctor for the projector, it will show what's wrong with it in some areas. They should always be used. But you can see the CA during movies, it's not hard to miss at most times.
The problem is though, if those CA problems were not there, you don't realise how much BETTER the image would be. That's why people buy projectors with good optics, like the LK models and the more expensive Sony's and now this new Epson 6050.
Let's just keep this within the realms of reality eh
Quote:
Originally Posted by
sage11x
I’m not sure if your comment is serious? At it’s price the HT3550 has better contrast and color than any of it’s 4K competition. I would easily recommend the HT3550 over any similarly priced 4K projector if image quality is the primary concern. The HT3550 uses some fairly sophisticated all glass optics for such an affordable projector. The HT3550’s performance is largely tied to the use of those optics (go back and look at last years 4K DLPs and you’ll see how far color/contrast performance has come). But there are limits to what you can achieve at such a budget price and the CA the HT3550 exhibits is evidence of that.
If someone offered something close to what the BenQ is offering at this price with absolutely perfect optics (doubtful that would be possible as even $5000 projectors struggle with optics but still) then I would recommend that. But the competition isn’t even close. Personally, I don’t find the CA egregious enough of an issue to disregard all the things the HT3550 does right.
Look, I’ve been around the forum a LONG time. I’ve owned and been around a lot of displays from CRT through the various rear projection techs all the way through LCD/Plasma and now front projection. I’ve learned that all displays— all products— have their pros and cons. If you go looking for things to complain about chances are you’ll find them. We evaluate a display’s performance based on test patterns but at the end of the day we don’t WATCH test patterns. It’s important to weigh test results with real life performance. Subacabra was sure his projector had no CA— until he went looking for it. He has never seen it in actual content and it hasn’t impacted his enjoyment of the projector’s image quality. At what point is that thing we’re picking at a nit?

Again, I’m not saying anyone should accept something they find bothersome. But if you don’t notice it unless you have a test pattern up with your nose pressed against the screen looking for it is it really an issue?