It’s not too often when we find ourselves looking back on something that has been out for over two years now, but sometimes you just run across something that leaves a solid mark. Epson’s 5030ub Home Cinema projector has been installed for some time now in one of our demo rooms where we test out various sound and visual eye candy for the stories we publish. Braced to the ceiling like a newborn to its mother, this projector looks like it belongs in that room (or my house preferably).
The 5030ub happens to be one of the best projectors we have ever tested out in the last few years that rates high in the game of resolution, provides a giant image with bright vivid detail and still falls within a affordable price range (currently $2,299) that slaps away most of the competition.
It offers 2400 lumens of light, a wonderful contrast ratio of 600,000:1 and 3D. Throw in a massive lens shift range of 2.1, keystone and everything else and you have yourself one monster of a project. The only thing it lacks is mechanical adjustments from the remote (zoom and shift all have to be done manually at the unit), which is fine.
No, it isn’t “4k”, but it offers the perfect compromise until you can justify the price tag of a 4K projector of equal proportions. You may be perfectly happy with not bothering with 4K for quite some time as the Epson offers everything you “need” for current day Blurays and entertainment.
As with any projector, you will see a slight bit of delay when it comes to video games on some systems, so first person shooters won’t always be your best bet, but a lot of users have also claimed they have seen no lag time at all between the controls and the image.
The room we have it installed in is 25ftx25ft in size, the screen it projects to is 125-inches and there is 19ft of distance between the projector and screen. The picture does get much larger than that, passing for beyond the height of the walls in the room and covering 1/4 of the ceiling space. So if 125-inches isn’t enough for you, rest assured you can still go bigger.
So why are we talking about it again since we have covered these in the past many times (the wireless model example)? Because to this day, the Epson 5030ub still astounds us every time we spend time in that room. Thanks to it, a lot of us spend our breaks and downtime in there watching videos and TV every day. Chances are, it won’t be long until we will be crawling to Epson for a replacement bulb.
Looking at the analytics of things, it seems we aren’t the only ones with this opinion since even at two years of age, it is still selling strong all-around with scores a near-perfect here and everywhere else. We can’t wait to see what Epson has in store for the future.
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Our Rating See Review | Average Price* $1,999+ | ||
*Average price is based on the time this article was published
Additional Images:
Specifications:
Projection System: Epson 3LCD, 3-chip optical engine
Projection Method: Front / Rear / Ceiling mount
Product Color: White and Black
Driving Method: Epson Poly-silicon TFT Active Matrix, 0.74-inch wide panel with MLA
Projected Output: HD, 2D, 3D, 1080p
Pixel Number: 2,073,600 dots (1920 x 1080) x 3
Color Brightness (Color Light Ouput): 2400 lumens
White Brightness (White Light Output): 2400 lumens
Aspect Ratio:
- Native 16:9 widescreen
- Compatible with 4:3
Native Resolution: 1080p (1920 x 1080)
Resize: 16:10, 4:3
Lamp Type: E-TORL™ 230 W UHE
Lamp Life:
- ECO mode: Up to 5000 hours
- Normal mode: Up to 4000 hours
Throw Ratio Range: 1.34 – 2.87
Size (projected distance): 30″ – 300″
Keystone Correction: Vertical: ±30 degrees (Manual)
Contrast Ratio: Up to 600,000:1
Color Reproduction: Up to 1.07 billion colors
Color Processing: 10 bit
Projection Lens
Type: Manual focus / Optical zoom
F-number: 2.3 – 3.6
Focal Length: 22.5 mm – 47.2 mm
Zoom Ratio: 1.0 – 2.1
Lens Shift:
- Vertical: ±96.3
- Horizontal: ±47.1
Lens Cover: Powered, Slide Lens Shutter
Other
Display Performance: 1920 x 1080 native (1080p); HD, 2D, 3D, 2D to 3D conversion
Color Modes:
- 2D: Dynamic, Living room, Natural, THX, Cinema, B&W cinema
- 3D: Dynamic, Cinema, THX
Cinema Filter: Automatically adjusts to color mode;
(On: Natural/THX/Cinema/B&W Cinema;
Off: Dynamic/Living Room/3D Dynamic/3D Cinema/3D THX)
Auto Iris: Automatically adjusts to video source;
Off/On: High-speed or Normal, 2D and 3D mode
Super Resolution: 2D and 3D
Input Signal:
- Composite: NTSC / NTSC4.43 / PAL / M-PAL / N-PAL / PAL60 / SECAM
- Component: 480i / 576i / 480p / 576p / 720p / 1080i / 1080p
- HDMI: TMDS
Terminal Inputs:
- 2 HDMI
- 1 RS-232c
- 1 RCA (composite)
- 3 RCA (component)
- 1 VGA D-sub 15 pin (computer input)
Terminal Outputs:
- Trigger On/Off (3.5 mm stereo jack)
- 12 VDC 200 mA (max.)
Computer Compatibility: PC, Mac®
Operating Temperature: 41° to 95° F (5° to 35° C)
Power Supply Voltage: 100 – 240 VAC ±10% , 50/60 Hz
Power Consumption:
- Lamp on 350 W, Lamp on (Eco) 280 W
Fan Noise: 22 dB – 32 dB
Security: Kensington Security Lock Port
Dimensions
Including feet: 18.34″ x 15.5″ x 6.2″ (W x D x H)
Excluding feet: 18.34″ x 15.6″ x 5.5″ (W x D x H)
Weight: 18.4 lb
Remote Control
Features: Front and rear directional
Operating Angle:
Front: Right/Left: ± 30 degrees, Upper/Lower: ± 30 degrees
Rear: Right/Left: ± 30 degrees, Upper/Lower: + 10 – + 70 degrees
Operating Distance: 32 feet (10 meters)
