Refine search for TVs

  Leave a comment      Email this to a friend TrustedReviews Newsletters

When I'm watching a film, I like dark parts of the picture to really look black. I make no apologies for this, or for the fact that it's often a decisive element in my reviews, for I genuinely believe black level response to be one of the most important elements in creating a truly convincing home cinema picture.

Which explains why I'm so excited today to be sat alongside the InFocus IN83. For tucked away inside this projector's surprisingly living room-friendly body beats a heart of black gold, AKA the Full HD Texas Instruments DarkChip 4 DLP chipset.

The IN83 is the first DarkChip 4 projector we've seen, and as you can probably guess from my earlier babbling, its main claim to fame over its DarkChip 3 predecessor (DC3 being the chipset used in the already impressive InFocus IN82 projector) is an improved black level response.

To put some numbers on this, the IN83 claims a 5,000:1 native contrast ratio versus the IN82's 4,000:1. What's more, the gap between these two figures grows if you call in a manual iris adjustment feature, reaching 15,000:1 for the IN83 versus 12,000:1 on the IN82.

Given how stunning the IN82's black level response was, I can't wait to find out what approximately 25% more contrast looks like. Especially since any extra black level punch in the IN83 is going to be enhanced by the fact that it's also a notch brighter than the IN82, serving up a typical light output of 1,400 ANSI Lumens (1,600 Max) against the IN82's 1,200 (1,400 Max).

To prove I have the patience of a saint, however, I'll temporarily forego what I hope will turn out to be a really fun reviewing experience in order to fill you in on some more of the IN83's background.

The first thing to note is that aside from the factors we've already covered, plus the fact that the IN83 can deliver SMPTE brightness on images up to 15.2ft across versus the IN82's 14.75ft, the IN83 appears to be identical to the IN82.

This includes its looks, which find the DC4 system lying within a boldly designed host employing a polished black finish, rounded corners and some cutesy angles to delightful effect.

The connections on this sultry-looking number are up to snuff, too, including two v1.3 HDMIs (one via an M1-DA port and supplied adaptor), two 12v outputs for triggering electrical screen and aspect ratio devices, plus RS232, IR repeater and Niles/Xantech compatible 3.5mm mini jacks for helping to integrate the IN83 into a fully fledged home cinema installation.

Add your comment