Sections
- Page 1 : ViewSonic LightStream PJD7830HDL Review
- Page 2 : Sound and Conclusions Review
- Page 3 : Picture Quality Review
With careful setup, the PJD7830HDL performs better than any other projector in this price bracket. Plus, you get plenty of features for your money. However, the projector’s numerous strengths are undermined by distracting amounts of rainbow noise.
ViewSonic PJD7830HDL – Sound Quality
As far as speakers are concerned, the usual advice in a projector review would be to “only use the built-in speakers as an absolute last resort”. This isn’t the case with the PJD7830HDL, though.
Its 16W speaker not only pumps out more volume than I’ve ever heard from a projector before, but it also delivers that volume with a surprisingly full-blooded tone that’s a million miles from the paper-thin harshness usually delivered by projector speakers.
The speaker’s soundstage produces a spread that’s beyond the projector’s bodywork too, even attempting to bridge that awkward physical gap between the projector and the screen.
There is, of course, still some sense of dislocation between the sound and the pictures – and there’s a slight lack of detail in the presentation too. Overall, though, the PJD7830HDL sounds better than any projector I’ve heard before.
Other Things to Consider
The PJD7830HDL’s low price and high brightness make it a particularly attractive screen for gaming. And it underlines this by turning in an input lag measurement of only 33ms – low enough to have minimal impact on your gaming capabilities.
As is often the case with bright but affordable projectors, the PJD7830HDL does run a little noisily as a result of its cooling fans – enough to be distracting during quiet movie moments if you’re sat close to it. Running the lamp on its lowest brightness settings reduces the fan noise a little, although not by as much as I’d have expected.
Should I buy the ViewSonic LightStream PJD7830HDL?
If you’re looking for a startlingly affordable Full HD projector for casual/occasional movie/game use in a room that’s difficult to get really dark, then the PJD7830HDL is worth considering. So long as you’re wiling to spend a little time tweaking its picture settings to get the best results.
Its shortcomings as far as black level and the rainbow effects go may well prove too distracting for serious movie fans, leaving rivals such as the Optoma HD28DSE and BenQ W1070+ looking like safer bets.
Trusted Score
Score in detail
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Value 8
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Features 8
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Image Quality 7
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Design 9