Sanyo PLC-SW20

This LCD projector's low cost belies its good image quality and features.

When it seemed that every company making data projectors had chosen Texas Instruments' Digital Light Pipe (DLP) core as the basis for new products, we receive a unit that reminds us that there's an alternative.

Sanyo's PLC-SW20 might not be as compact as some of its contemporaries, but it will appeal to those looking for a non-DLP solution.

While not being an ultra-portable, this projector's 257mm by 76mm by 229mm chassis and 2.8kg weight is still small and light enough to be transported with ease. PC and A/V connectors are located at the projector's side and include composite and S-Video alongside a standard 15-pin VGA port.

However, digital signals via a DVI-I interface aren't supported. This panel also plays host to audio inputs for the projector's built-in 1W speaker, as well as a pass-through for an external amplifier.

A slimline remote control is supplied, with a front-mounted sensor offering an operating range of 5m that can be used as a remote mouse to operate your PC. assuming you're not at the PLC-XW20's maximum throw of 8m.

At this distance, the effective screen size is 200in diagonal, but this can be taken back to a minimum throw of 1.6m, which should be sufficient for even the smallest of presentation rooms.

Quick-release legs at the front allow for tilt and angle adjustments of up to 10 degrees, with digital keystone correction compensating for tilt distortion at the expense of image clarity.

Inside the PLC-SW20 sits a three-chip LCD engine, with individual LCDs for each of the primary colours. Thanks to this, the device doesn't give off the strobing effect that can occur on DLP-based devices.

Although LCD-type projectors can often demonstrate poor uniformity and misconvergence due to misalignment of each colour channel, we found virtually no evidence of this with our test patterns. Automatic calibration of analogue signals was reasonable, but required some adjustment to the phase settings for best results.

At 1,100 ANSI Lumens and a contrast ratio of 300:1, the PLC-XW20 is bright and clear enough for most situations and will rescale non-XGA resolutions up to 1,280 by 1,024 pixels.

Digital zoom allows you to enlarge parts of the image being displayed and a No Show button on the remote lets you quickly blank the display without turning it off. Overall image quality is also impressive.

Price: £799.99 (ex. VAT)

Details:

Display: LCD
Native resolution: 1,280 by 1,024
Contrast ratio: 300:1
ANSI Lumens: 1,100
I/O: VGA, S-Video, composite

Contact: Sanyo 01923 246363
www.sanyo.co.uk