XGIMI Elfin Smart LED Projector with Android TV

XGIMI has already proven to be a fascinating brand with a few projector models that have already come our way for testing. Previously, we had covered the XGIMI Halo projector, a model with a built-in battery, letting you take it on the go. This time, we take a step back to focus on a model that doesn’t feature a battery, but can still be easily moved around as long as there is an outlet nearby. This is the XGIMI Elfin Smart LED Projector.

This is another Android TV-equipped model that includes similar auto-calibration options to the Halo. It is a powerful projector with a small footprint that can be used to project against any white (or light-colored) surface while taking care of most or all of the setup for you when you turn it on.

The AI-powered image correction allows it to automatically adjust the image focus, keystone (corners/warp), and image size. It does this while also looking for any nearby objects on the wall that it should avoid. What that means, is that it will look to avoid anything like light switches, outlets, pictures, or anything else on the wall. It will look for a convenient space in between it all and size the screen to fit. It’s a pretty neat feature that XGIMI has been working on and we are happy to say, that it works.

The size of the projector makes it larger than a Pico projector while still remaining much small than your average projector model. It is also quite light, weighing only 2lbs. Between its size and weight, as wells as the software inside, it makes for the perfect 1080p model to drag around the house (or from house to house, or hours to yard). As long as there is an outlet nearby, an available Wi-Fi connection, and something to project it against, you don’t really need anything else.

The only accessories that come with the project are its power cord and remote. The remote is small and is identical to the one included with most of the models XGIMI has to offer. It is small, light in weight, and gets the job done just fine thanks to Google Assistant.

There are no physical controls anywhere on the projector outside of a power button on the back, therefore it is completely controlled via the remote control it comes with.

On the remote, there is a power button, menu, Google Assistant, settings, inputs, home, and back. There is a directional pad with an ok button at its center, and a volume toggle/button at the bottom that converts to focus control if you flip the small dip switch at the bottom side of the remote.

You can, just like XGIMI’s other Android projectors, hit the Google Assistant button on the remote to ask Google to take you directly to all of your favorite content within the various apps you have installed. Making it easy to get straight to it all without having to manually search using the on-screen keyboard.

You do have an HDMI 2.0 and USB 2.0 port on the back for physically connecting a device or thumb drive/HDD. This is best used for sending an HDMI run from a receiver, gaming console, or Blu-ray player. There is also a 3.5mm line-out (stereo) for external headphones or a simple stereo speaker solution (if you want to take audio directly from the projector).

Setup

This is a quick process and the projector walks you through everything. You start off by turning it on from the button on the back. It will then guide you through pairing the remote, connecting it to a Google account, then your Wi-Fi, and then walks you through various steps like privacy agreements and app preferences (some popular apps to get started with). Once you have set this up and landed on the main homepage, you don’t have to do any of that again unless you move it to a new location that uses a different Wi-Fi (which then you only have to update the Wi-Fi settings).

From there, each time you turn it on, the only thing you have to wait for is that before-mentioned AI-driven auto-calibration. After it boots up, it will work to quickly focus, keystone, and size the image to whatever free space is in front of it. When it finishes, it will drop you right back into the home screen.

If you move or slide the projector enough for the image to move on the wall, it will then auto-trigger the calibration process and then stick you right back to where you were. This means you could have it running on one wall and then walk right up to it and spin it around to face another wall. You won’t have to reboot it or change anything as it will do everything for you.

At least, most of the time. Sometimes it will question its job and ask you if any of the corners should be adjusted. You can make adjustments or skip and once again land back to where you were. At times, you may also find yourself manually adjusting the image if you want to fill a specific space more properly. For example, if you are pointing it at a projection screen as we did in the video at the end of this story. It doesn’t seem to do well at all when it comes to fitting the images completely within a projection screen. So you can tell the calibration features were built with just walls in mind. For screens, it will have to depend on you to fit everything in just right.

Performance

The image quality of this projector is pretty spot on. At least, when we compare it against other models within its size and anything sub-$700 in cost. It isn’t the brightest image, but it is bright enough for the average home (videophiles excluded, of course). At 800 lumens, it provides a great image when you have the lights out, and a tolerable image with the lights on. In almost all cases, you will likely be using it in a dark room though, else there are some brighter options out there (they may not do the things this one can though, so it all comes down to what balance of features you are hoping for).

It can expand to up to 200-inches. We did this many times randomly pointing it at walls around the building. It is important to keep in mind though, the larger the image, the more spread out the light is causing you to lose a little of the brightness. The smaller the image, the brighter it gets.

You may find yourself calibrating things like colors in order to dial the image to your looking. However, we found it looks pretty darn good right out of the box (the demo we include in the video at the bottom of this story features raw out-of-the-box footage). Especially, for something as portable as this one.

Since it has Android TV built-in, you won’t have to necessarily hook anything up to it outside of power. As long as you have a Wi-Fi connection, you can take advantage of some of your favorite streaming apps within Android. Or you can make use of your favorite local server to dish things out to it (like Plex). As mentioned, if you do connect something to it, it will likely be coming from an AVR (receiver) or gaming console. You can also plug in your favorite streaming stick/box on the back if you aren’t a big fan of Android TV (ie, Apple TV).

The interface is quick and free of any major lag points that we could find. It is quite comparable to your typical smart TV (only with the full use of Android TV vs what is normally a limited app environment).

Inside the projector are two 3 watt Harman Kardon speakers. They aren’t the loudest and don’t offer much bass since there isn’t a lot of space to make any magic happen. However, the audio they do provide is crisp enough to enjoy in certain situations. Mostly retro gaming, entertainment dens for kids to watch movies or cartoons, and other situations where loud detailed audio isn’t required. If you are looking for anything theatrical, you will skip using these speakers. This is the same with any projector that has built-in speakers.

Our Conclusion

This is a very user-friendly projector. Especially, for users who may not be as tech-savvy when it comes to fully configuring a proper image on the wall. The fact that it auto-calibrates is great, and the software is fast enough to skip ever plugging anything into it. Gaming on any projector will result in latency issues, so it would be wise to limit the amount of gaming you do with it.

It’s small, it’s light, it’s easy to set up, and it has the power of Android inside. It makes for a powerful projector. It is a bit pricey and that is something some will have to get over (or not). Those who understand a little more about how the balance of the model’s features brings it to the price should be a bit more comfortable with this.

We do wish it would come with batteries for the remote though. With the price of the projector, we can’t understand why none of the models come with batteries for the remote. Maybe we are obsessing on this a little too much. Then again, maybe we aren’t. It doesn’t cost much to toss in a few generics, at least.

Finally, we would also like to see future models do a little better with framing the image to projection screens and not just empty space on the wall. It does a good job of getting the image “within the space” of the projection screen, but not filling it. This leaves a lot of empty space you will manually have to go back and adjust for.

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Are you a manufacturer or distributor that would like us to test something out for review? Contact us and we can let you know where to send the product and we will try it out.

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