Sony VPL-VW350ES review: 4K projector actually shows the difference, for a price

"No Good Deed" is no good movie, but it delivers the sharpest picture quality experience I've ever seen from a Hollywood film in CNET's test lab. When I compared the 4K version to the Blu-ray, using Sony's new VPL-VW350ES 4K projector and a couple of high-end 1080p projectors, I finally saw the big, clearly visible difference 4K TV makers have advertised for years.

7.8

Sony VPL-VW350ES

$2,800 at Amazon

The Good

With the best 4K content the Sony VPL-VW350ES 4K projector delivers images more detailed than any of its competitors in this price range. It exhibited outstanding picture quality overall, with very good light output and black levels, superb color accuracy and best-in-class video processing. Setup options are comprehensive, operation is whisper-quiet and its styling is sleek and modern.

The Bad

With most 4K current sources and all 1080p material, its resolution advantage over 1080p projectors is negligible. Its black levels are lighter, for worse overall contrast, than JVC's comparable D-ILA projectors. Despite its low cost compared to other 4K projectors, it's still very expensive.

The Bottom Line

The $10,000 Sony VPL-VW350ES is the least expensive true 4K projector available, and it finally delivers on the promise of 4K resolution.

All it took was a $10,000 projector paired with a $700 dedicated 4K media player, seen on a 120-inch diagonal screen from 9 feet away. Those aren't the kind of dollars and dimensions most people have in their living rooms, which is why we've been saying ( for years) that 4K is basically a waste at normal screen sizes and seating distances.

But if you can afford it, hoo boy. The Sony VPL-VW350ES is actually the least expensive 4K projector yet at $10,000, and Sony is still the only mainstream projector maker to bring true 4K resolution to market. Its principal competition comes from JVC and Epson, whose DLA-X700R and LS10000 projectors I compared directly with the Sony. Both are 1080p projectors that make do with faux 4K enhancements that, from what I saw, are best left disabled anyway.

Nonetheless the JVC is arguably a better performer with 1080p material thanks to its superior contrast, and it costs significantly less than the Sony. And the majority of actual 4K content showed little to no improvement compared with good old Blu-ray. The VPL-VW350ES proves one thing, however: with the right material and a big enough screen seen from close enough, 4K resolution is actually worthwhile.

Editors' Note May 4, 2015: This review was updated to add 3D test results. No other changes were made.

Design

The VPL-VW350ES' pleasingly symmetrical, no-nonsense exterior is mostly rectangular in shape but for distinctive rounded edges along the top and a slight bow to the front and rear. The predominant finish is a textured matte charcoal gray tinged to blend into a dark home theater ceiling, complemented by glossy black around the lens.

Prominent vents flank the lens, which is encircled by a thin iris of silver crenelations that contrasts with the black to make the VW350ES appear even more cyclopean than other projectors. The inputs and controls are discreetly mounted on the right and left sides, respectively, along the bottom of the body.

This is a big projector at 18.25 inches wide by 7.7 inches high by 19.5 deep and weighing 31 pounds. It's around the same size as the JVC X700R, albeit not quite as colossal as Epson's LS10000.

Sony's clicker is roomy and easy to use. It offers dedicated keys for each of the nine picture modes, as well as shortcuts to many of the most important adjustments. Rockers for brightness, contrast and sharpness are available too, and every key is fully backlit. I wish Sony had a "hide" or "video mute" button to quickly douse the image, much like JVC, but otherwise I have few complaints.

The menus are relatively clear and simple for a projector, with a logical nesting layout. I'd appreciate on-screen explanations of the various items, but their omission isn't a major misstep in a high-end projector.

During operation the VW350ES was basically silent on my ceiling mount, and engaging the "High" cooling mode barely increased its noise level. Fan noise is not an issue with this projector.

Features

Much like JVC's D-ILA, Sony's SXRD technology is a brand name for LCoS (liquid crystal on silicon) three-chip projection tech. So far SXRD is the only mainstream projection technology to bring true 4K resolution to market. The closest the others have come is with JVC's e-Shift and Epson's "4K Enhancement Technology" on select models, and in my testing neither offers much improvement over standard 1080p.

The VPL-VW350ES is Sony's least expensive 4K projector so far. It is basically a de-featured version of the VPL-VW600ES , which remains in Sony's lineup at 15 grand. Saving $5,000 loses you the 600's advanced iris, which likely means the VW350ES lacks some of the 600ES's contrast and punch.The 350ES is also rated slightly dimmer, at 1,500 vs. 1,700 lumens.

Nearly every 4K TV has a native pixel resolution of 3,840x2,160, but Sony 4K SXRD projectors' native resolution is 4,096x2,160. That difference points to the Sony projector's heritage in the cinema. In practicality the slightly wider aspect ratio (17:9) and higher pixel count make little difference, and according to my 4K test patterns the projector correctly scales incoming 3,840x2,160 sources (such as those from Sony's FMP-X10 4K media player ) to a 1:1 ratio -- preserving every pixel of their native sharpness -- in the default Normal aspect ratio setting.

Unlike many projectors, including much less-expensive ones, the VPL-VW350ES still requires you to spend extra for the privilege of watching 3D. The RF emitter is built-in, but you'll have to buy Sony or third-party glasses separately. The unit complies with the full-HD 3D standard, so you can pair it with any glasses that also comply, down to the $20 Samsungs.

It's worth noting that Sony touts no support for HDR, expanded color gamuts or other newfangled 4K/UHD advancements on this projector. Such extras are available in numerous 2015 TVs, and I expect the next generation of projectors to incorporate some of them as well--although the peak light output requirements of HDR, in particular, seem difficult to affordably achieve with current projector technology.

Setup: Thanks to the four independently adjustable legs, and power zoom, focus and lens shift, setup was easy. The generous lens shift should accommodate numerous installations, in particular tricky ceilings, without having to resort to complex extended mounts. Focus was extremely sharp everywhere on the screen, a testament to Sony's excellent lens.

The VW350ES can work with anamorphic lenses (both 1.24x and 1.32x) but it lacks the multiple lens memories of a JVC's projectors and step-up Sonys, for example, so it's not as convenient to use with ultra-wide (2.35:1) screens. As I expect from a three-chip projector in this range, there is a panel alignment control, which I didn't need to use since there were no panel alignment issues on my sample.

Picture settings: Sony errs on the side of relative simplicity among high-end projectors, but there's still plenty to choose from. A total of nine adjustable picture mode are available for each of the two inputs.

Sony's Reality Creation processing adjustment includes a great new extra labeled "Test." It allows you to toggle between an unprocessed image and one that's affected by whatever "Resolution" and "Noise Filtering" value you set using those sliders, allowing you to easily evaluate the effects. As usual for high-quality sources (4K in particular) I preferred to leave Reality Creation turned off, but for lower-quality sources it can be a real boon. There's also a MotionFlow control that handles various smoothing and motion handling modes, from extreme Soap Opera Effect to true 24p film cadence.

Sony's Cinema Black Pro settings allow you to choose toggle a Contrast Enhancer on or off -- it's just processing, since the VW350ES lacks a mechanical iris whether dynamic or static -- and choose between high and low lamp settings. We stuck with Low since the unit has plenty of light output for a dark room and 120-inch, but for larger screens and situations with some ambient light, High might come in handy.

There are four color temperature presets and five custom color temperature memories, but true to Sony form, none of them allows 10-point adjustment, just two-point. Gamma is also likewise reliant on presets, with a total of 11 different choices. I did appreciate the inclusion of a color management system, however, and it worked relatively well.

Connectivity: Both of the two HDMI inputs can handle input resolutions up to 4K at 60 frames per second (4:2:0 chroma subsampling only), so they qualify as HDMI 2.0. Only the HDMI 2 input offers HDCP 2.2 compliance, however, so if you have a device that requires it -- like Sony's FMP-X10 4K media player, for example -- you can only use that one input.

I expect forthcoming 4K Blu-ray players will also require HDCP 2.2 connections, so it would be nice if both inputs supported it, but that isn't the case. On the other hand, most high-end projection installations utilize a single long HDMI cable as an umbilical between a single HDMI port on the projector and an HDMI switching device, like an AV receiver, it's not a deal breaker. Some new high-end AV devices, such as Sony's ES line, offer multiple HDMI inputs and an HDMI output with HDCP 2.2. I'm sure Sony would be happy to sell you one to go with your new projector.

Some projectors at this level, like Epson's LS10000, also include analog video inputs and RGB PC inputs, but their omission on the Sony isn't a big deal in our book.

Beyond the two HDMI the projector also includes a USB port (for software updates only) an Ethernet/Lan port (for control only), two remote triggers, an IR remote port, an RS-232 serial remote port.

Picture quality

The VPL-VW350ES delivers an amazing picture. The best-performing projector we've ever reviewed is still JVC's DLA-X700R thanks to its stellar contrast ratio, anchored by inky-deep black levels. The Sony VPL-VW350ES comes extremely close to its overall picture quality, such that both deserved a 10 in my book. I still prefer the JVC's contrast to the Sony's slightly more accurate color and shadow detail (and, with certain 4K sources, extra resolution) but I can certainly see how some viewers might disagree.

Aside from the lighter black levels I could find almost nothing wrong with the Sony's performance compared with its peers. From color accuracy to gamma to video processing, all was top-notch and as good as I expected from a projector this expensive.

As always with my projector tests I used a 120-inch diagonal Stewart Filmscreen StudioTek 130 G3 screen. For comparisons I used my lab's custom two-shelf ceiling mount in conjunction with a floor stand that allowed me to compare all three projectors calibrated to 22fL on the same screen by sending the same source (for 1080p testing) or different sources (for 4K testing) and alternately block light from each. This method has disadvantages compared with the side-by-side testing I do for TVs, but it's as effective as I can get without getting CNET to spring for three screens (and the space to set them up). Maybe next year.

4K sources testing

The number of 4K sources is steadily growing, and for this review I was fortunate to have the best one currently available on-hand: Sony's own FMP-X10 media player, loaded up with a variety of shorts and full-length movies. The majority of my 4K testing was performed with the X10.

Most of its 4K videos looked spectacular, but the most visually impressive to me was "The Official 2014 FIFA World Cup Film." The documentary mixes slow shots of Brazil and its fans with soccer football highlights from the games. All of it looked breathtaking, but the game footage in particular was superb. This is one of the few pieces of content I've seen in 4K/60, and the faster frame rate lent the games a visceral immediacy that, combined with the huge, sharp image and highly saturated (some might say oversaturated) colors, was a visual feast. The wide crowd shots, the carnivale costumes, the faces of the players and of course the blades of green (too green?) grass and the flying balls, all of it looked unbelievably good.

Unfortunately there's no 1080p Blu-ray version I know of, so to isolate the impact of 4K resolution itself I turned to Hollywood films. For my resolution comparisons I sat about 9 feet from my 120-inch screen, which is basically the front row of a very large home theater. At that distance the huge image was exceedingly immersive, and sitting any closer verged on being uncomfortable for me. Closer distances also exposed the 1080p projectors' pixel structure (the screen door effect) in brighter areas, but at the distance I chose the 1080p grid of pixels was invisible. I connected the Sony projector to the Sony 4K player directly, and connected the JVC and Epson projectors to an Oppo Blu-ray player playing the corresponding Blu-ray disc at 1080p.

I started with "After Earth" not because I'm a masochist, but because it's one of the newer films available from the X10's 4K service, and was shot using Sony's own F65 digital camera. I was a bit surprised to see that, even with such a large image from relatively close, it was difficult to discern a difference.

In most scenes I couldn't tell the 4K projector from the 1080p units in terms of detail. Yes, other picture quality characteristics like black level/contrast, color and gamma were more obvious. But in terms of actual resolution, the differences I noticed were very subtle and only visible in select scenes. For example, during Cypher's bout with the painkiller in Chapter 5 (35:25), the pores on and stubble in the extreme closeup of his face looked just a bit sharper on the 4K projector.

Other scenes I checked, for example the interior of the wrecked ship at the beginning of Chapter 4, the plants and rocks and the face of Kitai in Chapter 5, and the trees, field and undergrowth in Chapter 6, all appeared basically identical in detail between the three projectors. If I was shown these scenes in blind test, I would have to guess which was the 4K version.

I compared scenes from a few other films from Sony's 4K player as well, namely "Elysium," "Fury," "The Amazing Spider-Man" and "Lawrence of Arabia," and none of them showed an eye-opening increase in detail and sharpness compared to the Blu-ray versions.

Looking closely I did notice something slightly sharper in some scenes, for example scuffs on the robot and the droplets and pores in Max's face from Chapter 4 of "Elysium," or the faces and uniforms as well as the tank exterior, from Chapter 3 of "Fury," or the hair and harness of the camel from Chapter 6 of "Lawrence." In every case it was quite subtle however, and in most scenes I couldn't easily discern differences.

I had the highest hopes for "Lawrence" but 4K didn't really deliver a noticeable improvement. Perhaps it's because the Blu-ray restoration is so good, or maybe the 4K version on the Sony X10 could be better, but whatever the reason it was tough to tell the two apart, despite looking hard at multiple scenes. Among all the films I watched "Lawrence" does have the most film grain, and "Fury" is pretty grainy, too. I wouldn't be surprised if that contributed to the less than massive improvement to those films when seen in 4K.

Among all the films I sampled on the Sony player I saw the biggest differences in "No Good Deed," another terrible movie shot on the F65. Most scenes looked noticeably sharper in 4K than on the 1080p Blu-ray version. During the parole hearing in Chapter 1, for example, I saw a bit more detail in Colin's face, as well as in the the rich pattern of the jacket of the outspoken parole board member. In Chapter 2 the house of Teri showed a bit more detail too. Certain scenes showed less of a difference, but in most that I compared, I could tell. The JVC looked better than the Epson in most scenes for detail, but both lagged a bit behind the 4K Sony.

Again, however the Blu-ray still looked great in terms of detail and I doubt most viewers would find anything "soft" about its image from any of these projectors, even at 120 inches seen from nine feet away. After while of comparing both, however, I learned to look for the telltale clarity of the 4K version, and on the huge screen from my close seat it truly looked even more spectacular.

In terms of resolution the 4K version of "No Good Deed" from the Sony FMP-X10 is the best-looking Hollywood film I've seen in my lab, and makes me excited to see how good 4K Blu-ray will look -- given a suitably large screen and close seat, of course.

I did run into a strange issue with the X10 and the VW350ES. At times with film sources (3,840x2,160/24p) I'd notice unnatural judder and when I checked the projector's info screen, it indicated it was receiving a 3840x2160/60p signal. The issue persisted no matter which of the two MotionFlow settings (Off or Inpulse) I tried. I assume there's some kind of HDMI handshake or EDID issue between the two units, but either way it was annoying. Stopping and restarting the film was usually enough to get the projector to revert to the correct 24p display. I have a query in to Sony about this issue.

I didn't test 4K gaming or any 4K streaming sources for this review. With the 4K TVs I've reviewed in the past, 4K streams from Netflix and Amazon, for example, look as good as the Blu-ray at best, and often look worse. Games and other PC sources can look great in 4K, however, and obviously gaming on a huge screen at 4K is pretty much the epitome of friggin' awesome. I hope to explore that aspect of 4K more in the future.

One quick note on 4K gaming with this projector: while the VW350ES' input lag reduction circuit performed very well with 1080p sources (see below), I was not able to measure input lag in 4K since my Bodnar lag tester only puts out 1080p. So I don't know whether 4K gamers with this projector will experience the same low-lag performance as they would gaming in 1080p.

1080p sources testing

The remainder of my tests with the Sony VPL-VW350ES were conducted as normal with high-def sources, typically 1080p Blu-rays and my usual array of test pattern generators.

Black level and white level: The Sony got nice and deep, but it couldn't match the depth of black delivered by the JVC. During "After Earth" as the ship cruises through space, for example, the black of the letterbox bars and the void itself appeared deeper and inkier on the JVC compared with the Sony. Meanwhile the Epson looked about as good as the Sony, although if I had to choose between them for black level I'd pick the Epson. According to my meter the Sony also measured the lightest black, with the JVC by far the winner.

Shadow detail was impressive on the VW350ES, and after calibration it hit my target gamma very well. In dark scenes, such as the dim interior of the crashed ship, I saw slightly more detail in the Sony than on the JVC, while the Epson was about as good as the Sony.

The Sony can get somewhat brighter than the JVC but it's no light cannon -- and that's fine for the dedicated, light-controlled theaters for which these projectors are designed. With a full-screen white pattern in the brightest default picture modes (Bright TV/Bright Cinema) the Sony VW350ES measured 36.5 fL. Compare that to the JVC (32.7 in Stage) and the Epson LS10000 (52.5 in Dynamic). The Epson is quite a bit brighter than the others but its Dynamic mode is exceedingly, sickeningly green, a trick many projector makers use to increase brightness (the Epson's brightest mode with decent color is LIving Room at 28 fL). The JVC's Stage mode is also quite green, so between the three, I'd still pick the Sony if I was worried about light output and wanted to get good color.

In lumens, a measurement that eliminates the variable of my screen, those measurements work out to 1199 for the Sony, 1074 for the JVC and 1725 for the Epson in Dynamic mode (920 in Living Room). Thanks to Chris Heinonen for the lumens calculator.

Color accuracy: Speaking of good color, the Sony has it in spades. Our measurements both before calibration pegged Reference as the best mode of the bunch, but its color temperature was off significantly. After calibration--something I highly recommend with any projector this expensive -- it was nearly perfect, with all color measurements coming in below the nominal threshold of perception (DeltaE 2000 < 3).

In program material skin tones, natural objects and shadows all looked appropriately realistic, and as good or better than the other two projectors. On the "Samsara" Blu-ray, for example, the green of the jungle around temples and the tones of the monks' and prison guards' faces looked natural and realistic. All three projectors were exceedingly accurate but the Sony had the best measurements, and to my eye produced the most accurate color by a nose over the JVC, and a bit more over the Epson.

Video processing: The VW350ES did very well in this category. Its MotionFlow options are extensive and varied enough that even film buffs might want to try one or two aside from Off (for HD sources, that is; only Off and Impulse are available with 4K sources). Three of the modes, Off, TrueCinema and Impulse, kept proper 1080p/24 film cadence according to my "I Am Legend" test. Between the three I'd use TrueCinema for most film-based (24p) material since I'm sensitive the the occasional flicker of Impulse, but some viewers might like its more "old-timey cinema" effect.

The Smooth High and Smooth Low modes are basically two strengths of Soap Opera Effect, and unlike the three with proper cadence they do deliver 600 lines of motion resolution. If you're the kind of viewer who's very sensitive to blurring you might want to check out the last mode, called Combination. It manages the same motion resolution as the Smooth modes but with a less smoothing.

Sony has always been a leader in reducing input lag (maybe it's the company's heritage in gaming) and the VW350ES is a great example. With the Input Lag Reduction setting engaged I measured about 36.5ms lag, lower than the JVC and the Epson, and any other projector we've tested aside from the BenQ W1070 at 33.7ms. If you disable that mode on the Sony, lag nearly triples to 122ms.

The upconversion of HD sources to the Sony's 4K resolution was superb, but as usual it didn't add any extra detail I could discern. I compared all three projectors using the "Samsara" Blu-ray at 1080p and it looked equally (spectacularly) sharp and detailed during select scenes, such as the face of the Himalayan woman and the monks' Mandala in Chapter 5, and the jewelry and visages of the yellow-clad dancers from Chapter 29. Flipping back and forth between the three projectors, if I had to pick one as the sharpest I'd choose the Sony, but the difference was so minuscule that I doubt I could guess correctly with any consistency.

Bright lighting: With cheaper projectors we test how the image looks with some light in the room (usually pretty bad), but in this projector's case that's a waste of time. If you're spending $10K on a projector this good and you're watching in a room with any light at all, you're doing it wrong.

3D: [updated May 4, 2015] When this review was originally published I was unable to test 3D because none of the 3D glasses I tried would properly pair with my review unit. I asked Sony to send its newest glasses, the TDG-BT500A, and they paired properly, allowing me to test 3D.

Compared to the JVC and the Epson, the Sony is the best 3D performer, delivering the least crosstalk (that ghostly double image that plagues active 3D systems) and the best pre-calibration image. I checked out all three using the "Hugo" Blu-ray, my go-to 3D test disc, and while the Epson and Sony were relatively close in terms of crosstalk reduction, the Sony was the best.

Some crosstalk was visible, especially in the most difficult scenes like the stomach-churning extreme 3D of the Inspector leaning in toward Hugo (44:27), but the Sony's was consistently the least-noticeable. The Sony also handled tough high-contrast adjacent areas, like the bright edges of the railing (2:06) or the black lines of the drawing on the white pages of the sketchbook (at 6:18), the best. The Epson did look better in other spots, like the edge of Méliès head and hand as he dozes in Chapter 1, however, and generally held its own against the Sony. The JVC fell a good deal behind the other two in its crosstalk reduction.

I don't calibrate for 3D but it's worth noting that in their best default picture settings--THX 3D for the Epson and JVC, and Reference 3D for the Sony--the image on the Sony was the most pleasing to my eye. Its image was punchy, vibrant and relatively bright, with accurate color and shadow detail. The Epson looked flatter, less saturated and dimmer by comparison, while the JVC was dimmer still, with crushed blacks and inaccurate colors. Of course a good 3D calibration would likely put them all on a much more even plane, but I suspect the Sony (as it did with 2D) would still manage to deliver the most light (with accurate color), which is much more important in 3D because the glasses attenuate light so much.

I also found Sony's TDG-BT500A specs the best of the three. They're the lightest and most comfortable, followed by the medium-weight Epsons and the relatively chunky JVCs. Of course, Epson has the cost advantage in that it's the only one of the three to include glasses in the box.

I also tried pairing a number of other 3D glasses with the projector, including the Sony TDG-BT400A, the Panasonic TY-ER3D4MU , and the Samsung SSG-5150GB and SSG-5100GB. All worked properly. I'm not sure exactly what failed during my first test--perhaps it was an issue of interference from other Bluetooth devices--but in any case things worked much better the second time.

Sony VPL-VW350ES CNET review calibration results

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