HC3 or H31 - decision help

Dont just take in to acount the lumen output, besides most of the companies dont really give accurate decriptions of there actual light output anyway, listen to the owners on this thread. Trust me. Ive seen the h31 in action and it is sweet. I havent seen the h3. One thing you want to look at is the contrast of the projector. I think its very important. Have you ever looked at a cheap lcd tv and it looks like your looking at a washed out foggy picture when it shows a dark scene? It had very low or poor contrast levels. H31 is 1:3000 contrast ratio, which is very good (at the price it is at) 1200$ I think. The better the contrast the more realistic the picture is going to look. In general most dlp pj have better contrast than lcd. That is starting to change though. The ae700 is 1:2000cr and the z3 is also around 1:2000cr I believe. The new sony hs51 is 6000 cr (contrast ratio) but is also around 3000$ on the streets or net. It really depends on how much you want to spend. I think the z3 and ae700 are around 2000$ and under (someone correct me if im wrong) Resolution is also pretty important. 1280x720 or 720p is great but 720p on dlp is kinda expensive right now (might change next year though) ae700 z3 and sony hs51 are all 720p This being your first pj is great because no matter what you get ur going to love. My first pj was a sony cpj-100 and I loved it !!!! But now that Ive been through quite a few pj's I know it really wasnt that great - low resolution low lumen, bad contrast, man I didnt care though it was sweet, anyway read up on some of the owners review and see what you think of the different pjs. But the h31 is sweet especially for your first pj I dont think youll regret that purchase (youll prob get like 2-3 years out of it before you get the upgrade bug) but hey then you can sell it on ebay and put it toward your new one (projector technology is moving super fast and always will ) and the process goes on and on. jeff