Super confused and need some help with choosing the right projector for my home theatre

rekbones said:

First off if you want "native" 4K your in the wrong forum as they start at $4K with Sony and JVC your only options. As for "true" 4K the term is made up by manufactures as your into the 1080p imagers with some form of pixel shifting projectors. Epson uses a 2x shift with 3 1080p LCD imagers so only displays 1/2 the number of 4k pixels but most won't notice at standard viewing distances since resolution is the least important factor in the UHD format. Most XPR DLP projectors use a single DLP shifted 4x to display the full 4K and a few have a bigger chip that is a 2x shift. The Epson 5050ub is the best replacement for your 5025ub as it will have at least as good or more likely a little better contrast. The LG 810 one of the latest 4x DLP with laser may be right for you also but poorer contrast and still a few growing pains. JVC of course is the king of contrast but new MSRP is way above this forum. Screen size, AR, throw distance, placement limitations and viewing distance would help for other recommendations. Note upgrading to 4K requires every other component to be compatible so expect a sizeable investment in everything else especially HDMI cables.

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Avner321 said:

Thanks for your great answer rekbones. Highly appriciated.
One sum-up question: When upgrading from 5025 to 5050ub I will actually get a significant and noticeable upgrade in resolution when using 4K videos, given the caveats you mentioned, or the difference will be subtle?
Thanks!

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rekbones said:

From what I have read from those that have upgraded from the 1080p 5000 series to the 5050ub the majority say its a big improvement. Like I said resolution is the LEAST important factor in the UHD format with the Higher Bandwidth the most important with WCG and HDR somewhere in between. Screen size vs viewing distance is a big factor and is info you haven't provided. The UHD format from good sources like a BR player can be fairly impressive but don't expect night and day from streaming UHD content.

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Avner321 said:

And thanks rekbones. I am debating between Epson 5050ub and Optoma UHD50X (which cost exactly 50%).
Dark home theatre room, 2x1.5m white screen, projector distance 3m viewing distance 3m. Watching mainly Netflix and downloaded content (potentially 2160) from a PC.

Trying to answer the question is the upgrade or 1500$ or 3000$ going to make a noticeable impact.

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rekbones said:

Two completely different projectors. Is the 5050ub going to be twice as good in PQ of course not but it is what you need to pay for "contrast". 2m x 1.5m is a 98" diag 4:3 if my math is correct with a viewing distance of well over 12'. Wrong AR screen as you should have a 16:9 with zero benefit from 4K resolution with such a small screen at that viewing distance unless you have the eyes of a hawk with just streaming content I would keep what you have if its functioning OK. Loss of contrast with the Optoma would be a digression with little benefit from the UHD streaming content. If the 5025 is failing there might be better options but it's your money and with screen sizes that small a flat screen TV starts to look more promising.

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