Front projectors have long been considered an exotic way to experience movies at home, but they're quickly becoming a more mainstream option. That's because prices for 1080p-resolution front projectors have sunk below three grand, while flat-panel sets with screen sizes 60 inches and up that offer similar resolution have yet to become affordable. You'd think that buying a front projector over a flat panel would be a no-brainer, but there's been a major barrier to the category gaining widespread acceptance: Front-projected images require a dark room to look good.

The reason for this has everything to do with the material used for standard projection screens, which is designed to both reflect light coming directly from a projector mounted across the room as well as diffuse it so the picture looks bright to viewers sitting in off-center seats. And while standard screens are engineered to maximize the reflection of a focused, on-axis light beam, they also beam back to the viewer the light from "ambient" sources of illumination — such as lamps, undraped windows, and cross-reflections from light-colored walls, ceilings, and furniture. That's why screen manufacturers recommend that you pursue a tomb-like decorating scheme for any room destined to host a front projector.

But a handful of new screens on the market, including Planar's Xscreen line, are helping to bring front projection out of the darkness. The Planar Xscreen front-projection screen incorporates what the company calls Daytime Screen Technology — basically, a thin-film coating bonded to a 4mm-thick glass layer. The Xscreen coating concentrates light hitting its surface in the vertical plane while simultaneously blocking out ambient light coming from the sides — an approach that allows the screen to be used in moderate-to-high-brightness environments.

With its glossy black beveled frame, the 60-inch Xscreen that Planar sent me looked just like a flat-panel TV. The model that I checked out was the basic version, but the company sells an even more TV-like one called Xscreen Plus with video switching (HDMI, component-video, RGB computer, and composite- and S-video), high-def video scaling for standard sources, speakers, and a universal remote control. Xscreens also come in a range of sizes, with 70-, 80-, and 100-inch versions filling out the line. A wall-mounting bracket with a safety lock comes as part of the package.

The Short Form

Price $1,399 / planar.com / 866-475-2627

Snapshot

Planar's Xscreen front-projection screen delivers bright pictures with vivid color, and you don't even have to dim the lights!

Plus

•Delivers bright pictures in daylight conditions •Excellent color saturation •Good looks •Affordable alternative to large flat-panel TVs

Minus

•Very tight viewing angle •Limited shadow detail and contrast in bright lighting

Key Features

•Rigid, wall-mountable design •Includes wall mount with safety lock •2.0 gain •60 x 34.8 x 3.3 in / 69 lb

PERFORMANCE I tested the Xscreen in two different daytime lighting conditions: the first, a light-controlled room with lamps turned off and window blinds partially filtering out daylight, and the second, a regular room with blinds open and overhead lights switched on. Under the first set of conditions, the Xscreen's image looked about as bright as that of a regular flat-panel TV, and both its contrast and its color saturation were just as impressive. When I looked at high-def clips from the recent remake of King Kong, the Xscreen delivered solid blacks in a nighttime scene where the cast and crew board a rickety boat, and there was plenty of shadow detail visible in the background. And when I next watched a World Cup soccer match recorded from ESPN-HD, the picture looked crisp, while both the green turf and the red and yellow hues of the players' uniforms came across vividly.

When I viewed the same programs in the brighter lighting conditions, the Xscreen still delivered a surprisingly crisp, bright picture, but a dip in both contrast and shadow detail made dark movie scenes look comparatively flat. Sports programs didn't look nearly as washed out, however. When tuning in an NHL game, for example, the Boston Bruins' black uniforms looked deep, while the rink's white surface had a bright, punchy quality.

Another thing I noted when watching hockey was a fixed pattern created by the screen's texture, which was mainly visible on the ice and other flat, light-toned surfaces. This is an effect I've seen many times on rear-projection TVs (we often refer to it as the screen's "grain" in our reviews), and depending on the type of program you're watching, it can be distracting. Viewers sitting off to one side of the couch might also be bothered by the Xscreen's uneven brightness from that angle — a side effect of its relatively high 2.0 gain. Basically, the picture dims on one side when you move your head more than 10° from the center axis. And at 45°, the entire screen is substantially darkened. However, I had no serious complaints about uniformity while sitting directly in front of the Xscreen.

BOTTOM LINE Flat-panel TVs can get downright expensive when you hit 60 inches and above. In comparison, a front projector paired with an ambient-light-tolerant Planar Xscreen front-projection screen is a much more affordable option. Dim the lights a bit, and the Xscreen will produce a picture that can effectively compete with that of a flat-panel set (and given its TV-like design, some people won't know the difference). Turn the lights up, and the same picture still looks surprisingly punchy and bright. It's a neat trick and, as long as you're sitting front and center on your couch, one that seems pretty close to magic.

Test Reports RSS Feed
More Test Reports
Back to Homepage
What's New on S&V