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Overview
Just to stop your thought right there - sure other projectors also
have horizontal lens shift. The important aspect is though how far
the lens can be shifted. The closest competitor to the Sanyo PLV-Z4
these days is the
Panasonic
PT-AE900U. The Panasonic projector only supports horizontal lens
shifting by 1/4 of the screen. I have placed the Sanyo Z4 nearly at
the right edge of the projected image. This is only possible with a
lens shift of 50% of the image width.
The other aspect that spoke for the Sanyo PLV-Z4 besides being
HD-Ready is the low price.
Offers are below $2,000 in the United States. For that money you
get your own impressive cinema at home.
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Sanyo PLV-Z4 with closed sliding
shutter |
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Performance and Usage
I have my Sanyo PVL-Z4
setup to project a 103 inch sized screen. The PLV-Z4 can go up to
300 inch. Every time I watch a movie at home now it just makes me
smile. The quality is amazing. The Sanyo puts out 1000
ANSI Lumens and has 7,000:1 contrast
ratio. I am still waiting for my projection screen. I am currently
projecting against a white wall , which already leads to a great
image. Of course the room needs to be dark to enjoy viewing. The
preset settings are easy to use. There is no need to tweak the
settings. I might play around with some individual settings once the
screen is up.
A concern about projectors I was concerned about is the noise. The
Sanyo PLV-Z4 is at 22db. Especially in economy lamp mode the sound
of the ventilator is almost gone. At night the lamp can actually be
used in economy mode the image does not suffer in contrast (at least
I cannot see a big enough difference). Also in full lamp mode the
projector can only be heard if there is no sound from the movie
coming. I actually think once I have put it inside the dry wall
pillar I will not hear the projector at all anymore.
The remote control of the PLV-Z4 is small and easy to use. What is
nice is that the signal from the remote is pretty strong. I can
point totally away from the projector and it still picks up the
command. Which is very convenient as the projector is located behind
me. The On-Screen menu is a typical hierarchical drop down menu. The
only issue I have is the thin explanation of some of the settings in
the manual. It does not explain what to change and why to change
things. Some of the settings are self explanatory, but others are
not. The good thing is that the Sanyo PLV-Z4 default settings are
great, so no need to fiddle around unless you are into that.
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Vertical and horizontal lens shift
wheels with lens shift lock |
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The back features two component
inputs, HDMI, VGA and S-Video. |
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Before you get the Sanyo PLV-Z4 it makes sense to use Sanyo's great
tool to calculate distance, position and screen size for your needs.
See this
screen-shot of the tool. With this online tool, I could make
sure that the PLV-Z4 will work at the location I have planned for
it. You can see your room in 3D and play around with the lens shift.
This tool is only available on the European Sanyo
site (click on Lens Calculator on the right last menu item).
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Warm air comes out on the side of
the PLV-Z4. |
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The handy remote features light-up
buttons. |
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I am not getting into all the
nitty-gritty image quality aspects in regards to different
resolutions etc.. For that I suggest you consult the PLV-Z4 reviews
on projector focused sites like
Projector Central. For me the only image issue I see with dark
movies where the black colors are a bit grayish. I do not want to
give a definite judgment here, as I want to wait for the projection
screen. I have no HD input yet available, I am tempted to by the
Xbox 360 just to try HD on the PLV-Z4. Currently I have a
Panasonic DVD player hooked up via component video. Yesterday I
watched
House of Flying Daggers for instance. The scenic images are just
fantastic and you cannot beat watching movies at home on a 103 inch
screen. Watching TV is also quite cool actually. The image format
can easily be switched via the remote. The PLV-Z4 is of course
native 16:9, but naturally also supports 4:3. Several scaling modes
are available to optimize the image size.
Conclusion
The Sanyo PLV-Z4 is the most flexible home cinema projector under
$2,000 that I could find. You get a high quality home theater that
will keep you smiling for weeks. The noise is pretty low and does
not disturb the movie experience. Image quality is just excellent.
It is really like in a Cinema. I predict small screen Cinemas will
just die soon (again).
How to Buy
Several stores are offering the PLV-Z4.
Click here to see a full list. The PLV-Z4 replacement lamp
sells around $300.
Specification
Resolution 1280 x 720
Brightness (typical) 1,000 ANSI Lumens
Uniformity 85% (corner to corner)
LCD Panel System 0.7” TFT Poly-Silicon x 3 (16:9)
Number of Pixels 2,764,800 (921,600 x 3)
Contrast Ratio 7000:1 (vivid mode)
Projection Image (diag.) 40” ~ 300”
Aspect Ratio 16:9
Throw Distance 3.9’ ~ 30.2’
Zoom/Focus 1x to 2.0x, Manual driven
Lens Shift Manual (Up/ Down/Left/Right)
Up/Down/Left/Right Ratio Up/Down: 3: -1 ~ -1:3 (-1V/Center/+1V)
Left/Right: 10:0 ~ 0:10 (-0.5H/Center/+0.5H)
Digital Keystone Correction Vertical : +/- 20°
Optical System Dichroic mirror & 4P prism system w/ PBS
Projection Lens F2.0 ~ 3.0 / f0.84” ~ 1.68”
Lens Throw Ratio 1.5 ~ 3.0:1
Projection Lamp 145W UHP
Scanning Frequency H: 15~80kHz, V: 50~100Hz
(auto sense/select)
Dot Clock 100MHz
Color System PAL/SECAM/NTSC/NTSC4.43/PAL-M/PAL-N
Computer Compatibility WXGA/SXGA/XGA/SVGA/VGA/MAC
Voltage 100V-240V AC; 50/60Hz (auto voltage)
BTU Rating 717
dB Rating 22dBA (Eco mode)
Power Consumption 210W
Dimensions (WxHxD) 15.0” x 5.0” x 12.0”
(not including Adjustable Feet)
Net Weight 11.0 lbs.
User Maintenance Clean air filters, replace lamp assembly
Input Terminals
Component Video 1
Y, Pb/Cb, Pr/Cr (RCA x 3)
Component Video 2 Y, Pb/Cb, Pr/Cr (RCA x 3)
S-Video S-Video (Mini DIN 4-pin x 1)
Composite Video Video (RCA x 1)
Computer Analog RGB (D-Sub 15 )
HDMI 19-Pin DVI HDMI (19-pin)
Communication RS-232C/ Service Port (Mini DIN 8-pin)
Included Accessories Owner's Manual; Illuminated
Infrared Remote
Control; AC Power Cord (6.6’); Composite
Video Cable (9.8’); 2 AA batteries
Optional Accessories 6103235998 – Replacement Lamp
FCC Rating Class B, UL Listed
Warranty 3-years parts & labor; 90-days lamp
(original); 30-days lamp (replacement)
Quick Repair Program under warranty
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