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Poll: What's stopping you from getting a projector?

Price, complexity, brightness, space -- why don't you have a projector?

Geoffrey Morrison Contributor
Geoffrey Morrison is a writer/photographer about tech and travel for CNET, The New York Times, and other web and print publications. He's also the Editor-at-Large for The Wirecutter. He has written for Sound&Vision magazine, Home Theater magazine, and was the Editor-in-Chief of Home Entertainment magazine. He is NIST and ISF trained, and has a degree in Television/Radio from Ithaca College. His bestselling novel, Undersea, and its sequel, Undersea Atrophia, are available in paperback and digitally on Amazon. He spends most of the year as a digital nomad, living and working while traveling around the world. You can follow his travels at BaldNomad.com and on his YouTube channel.
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Geoffrey Morrison
2 min read
Benq

I've had a projector as my main display for more than 10 years. I don't for a second believe they're for everyone. However, I do believe that more people could enjoy projectors than currently do.

From other articles I've written on CNET, though, there's a lot of push-back and negativity with projectors, and I'd like to find out why.

Why do I care? Well, of all the products I review and write about, by far the one I think is coolest is the projector. I could never go back to "regular" TVs. Yet, they remain a tiny percentage of the video market.

One of the common complaints is cost, . The is only $1,000, and a fantastic projector for the price. With an inexpensive screen (there are lots of options for a couple hundred dollars), or even a wall, it can produce a much larger image than any TV.

Of course, then there's the additional costs of replacement lamps, which can run you a few hundred dollars every few years. I consider this the "cost of awesome" with projectors (though I can't wait for LED projectors to drop in price).

I don't accept the need for a receiver as a negative, as I don't understand anyone who still uses TV speakers. I can understand not wanting or needing a big screen, but crappy sound? Baffling.

That could be part of the complexity complaint, given that it's a multipiece system: projector, screen, audio. I can see that being intimidating for those who have only ever had just the TV.

Space is another concern. You need a big, flat wall for a screen, and certain rooms just don't support it. Fair enough.

Light is, certainly, the biggest issue. Even with today's and ambient-light-rejecting screens, they can't compete with sunlight. Shades and curtains certainly work, but I understand that some people don't want to watch TV in the dark all the time.

So I guess my question is, if you like the idea of a projector, what's preventing you from getting one. Please vote in the poll, but I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments. What's holding you back? What would change your mind?

Got a question for Geoff? Send him an e-mail! If it's witty, amusing, and/or a good question, you may just see it in a post just like this one. No, he won't tell you which TV to buy. Yes, he'll probably truncate and/or clean up your e-mail. You can also send him a message on Twitter: @TechWriterGeoff.