BenQ is updating its Home Cinema Series projector lineup with two new models, including the high-end BenQ W5850, designed for projecting movies onto “theatre-grade” screens, and the BenQ W4100i, which brings cinema-like visuals to the living room.
The company stressed that the BenQ W5850 is meant to deliver the “ultimate cinematic experience”, throwing up a 200-inch image from just a few metres away from the wall or, ideally, proper projector screen. Its blue laser light source is rated at 2,600 lumens, which should be plenty bright enough, considering that it’s aimed at people who have created dedicated home theatre rooms, as opposed to those that just want a big screen in the living room.
As for the BenQ W4100i, this boasts an even brighter LED light source rated at 3,200 lumens, which may seem unusual at first given it’s being pitched as the more affordable model. But then again, it also makes sense, as anyone who has created a dedicated cinema room has most likely done something to eliminate ambient light. That’s less likely in a standard living room, so the W4100i’s extra brightness could be helpful.
Curiously, BenQ didn’t say anything about the maximum image size for this model.
What it did say is that both models meet key industry standards, with 100% coverage of the DCI-P3 colour gamut and Delta E<3, which pertains to colour accuracy. They also feature BenQ’s proprietary HDR-PRO engine, which uses three separate processing technologies – Global Contrast Enhancer, Local Contrast Enhancer and Dynamic Black – to enhance the contrast of the images. This ensures that it can support HDR10, HDR10+ and HLG content, but sadly Dolby Vision isn’t mentioned.
Little was said about the respective audio systems on the W5850 or the W4100i, though both models are equipped with built-in noise reduction capabilities that can enhance the sound for compressed streaming content. BenQ’s AI Cinema Mode is also onboard, providing real-time image composition analysis to dynamically adjust the colour saturation, sharpness and dynamic range of the images, so it can boost the quality of movies and shows streamed via Netflix, Amazon Prime Video and other services.
It’ll be interesting to see the impact of these AI algorithms, because while AI processing is more or less standard on most new televisions today, it’s not all that common on projectors. Clearly though, BenQ wants to change that.
As for connectivity, BenQ said there are HDMI 2.1 ports on both models, plus SPDIF and eARC with support for Dolby Atmos and 7.1-channel surround sound. Gamers will be happy to hear that the projectors come with a low-latency “Fast Mode” that enables a response time of just 17.9 milliseconds when connected to a console, making it ideal for smooth, big-screen gaming sessions. The same mode will also be beneficial for some types of content, such as live sports.
BenQ said the W4100i is powered by the Android TV operating system, providing simple access to all of the essential streaming apps. It neglected to say if the W5850 also has Android TV, or if it’s necessary to attach some kind of set-top box or streaming dongle to it to access Netflix et al.
Both of the new projectors are on sale in the U.K. now, with the W5850 priced at £4,599 and the W4100i available for £2,999. They're expected to be available in Europe and the U.S. in the coming weeks, too.
