ViewSonic PJ258D iPod Projector Review

There are gobs of iPod-focused accessories on the market currently and ViewSonic is making some of the coolest and most expensive of them with their line of displays and projectors with iPod docks built right in. Today we are checking out the ViewSonic PJ258D projector that is designed to throw your collection of iPod flicks and TV shows onto the wall or a screen at much larger sizes than the puny iPod screen. Read on to see how well it performs.

Gallery

6 images

Benchmarks

Features & Specifications
ViewSonic packed some very nice specs into the ViewSonic PJ258D projector. Brightness is rated at 2000 lumens making it quite bright and easy to watch in rooms with lots of light. The unit utilizes DLP technology for improved color and sharper graphics. One of the cool features of the ViewSonic PJ258D projector is that you can simply unplug it and go; you don’t have to go through a lengthy cool down process.

The projector supports both 720p and 1080i HD video and data sources, but curiously doesn’t have a HDMI or HD composite input so it can’t be used with your HDMI connectable home theater components like cable converters, Blu-ray players or other gear. The only connectivity options you get are the iPod dock, VGA for analog PC input, and S-video.

PJ258D in Use
The controls for the glossy black ViewSonic PJ258D projector are on the rear of the unit and are a bit small for my tastes, but you have to keep in mind this is a small projector designed to be taken on the road. The all black design of the buttons means that you will probably have difficulty telling which button is which in dark rooms even though the button labels are white.

If you want to play some PC games on a big screen, the ViewSonic PJ258D projector will allow you to thanks to the analog input. The projector is bright enough that it throws an image about 80 inches in size form right at ten feet away from the wall.

Watching movies from the PC is also a good use of the ViewSonic PJ258D projector, which has bright colors, natural skin tones and a sharp image. I noticed no ghosting or smearing during gaming or movie watching. iPod fans will like the dock for iPod video players. You simply plug your iPod in as you would with any other dock, and play your video content back.

At the end of the day, the ViewSonic PJ258D projector is a good unit that is only lacks HD inputs for other home theater components to make it a great projector. The MSRP on the ViewSonic PJ258D projector is $1399, which is a lot for an iPod accessory, but reasonable for a projector that can display HD images.

Verdict

Conclusion

Pros

• Nice iPod integration
• Very bright
• Small and compact

Cons

• Lacks and HD inputs which greatly limits the usefulness of the projector

Verdict
If what you are looking for is a small, lightweight projector that you can use to watch iPod video on the road after work, while you use it to show your presentations during the day this is the ideal product. However, if you are a home theater lover looking to move to a projector with a larger image size for your HD goodies you will want to shop elsewhere.

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