With humankind’s technological obsession with making everything smaller, we have we redefined mobility of devices. Laptops and mobile phones were some of the earliest examples of how our behaviour changes when we can take our devices a long with us. The pocket projector could be the next big thing in projection technology.

What is a pocket projector

A pocket projector serves mostly the same purpose as a regular projector, with the massive advantage of being very portable. As the name hints – pocket projector – these projection devices are small enough to be carried in a backpack or bag, measuring in at around 5×5 inches.

This projection technology comes in various forms, with several manufacturers now making them. In addition to the dedicated pico projector, some mobile phones are shipping with limited projection capabilities for displaying photographs, for example, built in, too.

Buying considerations

When purchasing any mini projector, one needs to consider a few factors outside of size. The first is the display quality, with most of these projectors displaying in either a low resolution – 640×480 – or an unusual resolution – often 858×600 – meaning even a regular VGA resolution of 800×600 would be upscaled, leading to dreadful image quality. For this reason, you must test potential pocket projectors with your appropriate output device.
Contrast, colour, brightness, picture quality, the classic rainbow effect and so on can only be seen by testing, so insist on being allowed to.

The next consideration is obviously price. And with most everything in technology, you pay for you get. No one manufacturer has streaked head and shoulders above the competition so far, so it is still mostly hit and miss, but there are a few pocket projectors that have impressed.

Photo: Aiptek

final consideration is sound, with options running the gamut from non-existent to awful to quite descent. It’s likely you could run sound from your laptop, so this may not be too big of a deal, but if it is, it may be well worth putting up the extra bucks for the right incorporated audio tech.

Final thoughts

It’s slow build, at this point, unfortunately. Look around, compare models, capabilities and price and definitely try it out. Aiptek’s range is reputable with the relatively expensive Aiptek MobileCinema D25 being quite a big seller. Even big player Samsung is soon to join the marketplace, proving its viability as a legitimate product set within projection technology. Who will emerge victorious is still anybody’s guess.

The latest little pocket pico projector from Aiptek is the stylish PocketCinema V20. It’s small enough to fit into bags and even pockets, and is designed with a glossy black finish with chrome banding around it making it more modern and flashy. It displays images using LCoS technology, and makes use of RGB LED as its light source. Despite its size the V20 screens images with 15 lumens of brightness, which is impressive for a pico projector.

Mini features

The Aiptek PocketCinema V20 displays pictures with 640×480 VGA resolution and has a contrast ratio of a low 200:1. It may struggle with some outdoor locations and if the room is bright, so projecting images with a small screen size is advised. It has an internal memory of 2GB, but with an SD/SDHC or MS Pro memory card you can upgrade the storage space to a maximum of 32GB. The V20 sports a three-in-one AV jack along with a mini USB port to connect to a Mac computer, but unfortunately cables to hook it up to an iPhone aren’t provided. The mono speaker produces 0.5 watts of sound.

Who’s it for?

The PocketCinema V20 is ideal for business situations like corporate presentations and meetings in different venues. The portability of the V20 adds to its appeal, plus it has rechargeable batteries that allow you to do more with the device. The touch sensitive controls are easy enough to use but don’t have any picture icons so you’ll have to figure them out. The V20 is able to playback a number of different formats including MPEG-4 ASF, Mp3, M-JPEG, JPEG and H.264, providing more versatility in your download options.

What to expect

The V20 pico projector is a sleek and stylish device that produces sharp, clear and lush colour pictures. It may not give the biggest displays and has a maximum of 65 inches, but for business purposes the V20 is perfect. The lack of picture controls is rather confusing, and it would’ve been more appealing if a connection to iPhones was given, but the Aiptek PocketCinema V20 is an affordable projector at £299.

The Hitachi CPX4 provides an amazing resolution of 640 X 480 Pixels. Furthermore, it provides a resolution of 7 ANSI lumens which is much more than various other projectors. It supports 4:3 picture formats and is also fitted with a manual focus. It is equipped with a spectacular bulb that provides a bulb life of 10000 hours. This device works on LED lamp technology which further enhances the overall performance of the device. The width, height and depth of the device are 50 mm, 22 mm and 115 mm respectively. The device weighs around 0.15 kg and can be easily carried and stored.

The Sanyo PLC-XW60 provides a resolution of 1,024 X 768 Pixels. It provides a brightness of 2000 ANSI. The bulb life is around 2000 hours and the lamp life is 3500 hours. It is also fitted with a manual focus which enables you to adjust it accordingly. The micro portable projectors are one of best projectors available in the market.

The 3M MPro120 is basically a Pico projector that provides an amazing resolution of about 640 x 480 Pixels. It provides a brightness of about 7 ANSI lumens that further enhances the performance of the product. It has a manual focus fitted in it so that you can adjust accordingly. The height, width and depth of the product are around 24 mm, 60 mm and 120 mm. Furthermore, the 3M MPro120 projector weighs around 0.15 kg and can be easily transported and carried. The device is fitted with an amazing rechargeable battery that provides long battery back up and a hassle free functioning life. This projector provide has a small size but provides a number of world class features which makes it one of the most demanded projectors in the world.

The 3M MPro120 will provide crystal clear images for a number of years to come. Various other devices can also be connected with this product to further enhance the experience. The pocket projector is easy to install and a layman can easily install it after reading the instruction manual.

Optoma has come up with another addition to its exclusive range of projectors, which quite conspicuously is bereft of any HDMIs, and is compatible with only composite video. Moreover, the resolution is an ordinary looking 320 x 240, and you will also find it difficult to produce watchable images beyond 40in or so. It is therefore natural for you to raise the question, what good is it then? The special thing about this latest offer from Optoma is that it is not your conventional projector; instead it is a full blown pocket projector. And, when we say pocket projector, we really means it. You can even put it in your jeans pockets without feeling the least bit of discomfort or having anyone notice.

The inordinately stylish device is tailor made to entice and its compact and smooth finish makes it a real pleasure to handle it. The Optoma PK101 is equipped with only a solitary composite video connection, and you can also get to have a stimulating stereo sound as well that is transmitted to the projector via either a supplied composite video/stereo audio RCA to 2.5mm plug adaptor, or you can even try special adaptor cables that are commonly found with the Apple iPhone and various Nokia phone models. Meanwhile, the support to PDAs is good news, giving you the unique option of diverting your PDA applications on to a much larger screen for a more fulfilling experience.

The only other connection of note visible on the Pico is a power in port which is provided to enable you to charge the unit by connecting it to a supplied plug/USB adaptor, or a laptop. And yes, the unit comes packaged with a set of rechargeable batteries, with a reported lifespan of around two hours max.

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