BenQ HT2050A 1080P Home Theater Projector | 2200 Lumens | 96% Rec.709 for Accurate Colors | Low Input Lag Ideal for Gaming | 2D Keystone for Flexible Setup

If you have started looking into creating a home theater, you know that picking a projector can be a daunting task. It is not at all as simple as pick a TV and throw it on a wall. You have to know your wall/screen size, the intended placement of the projector (both height and distance from said screen), and the brightness of the projector based on the needs of your room. What I found in my research is that BenQ makes some of the best DLP projectors - made to fit most rooms and distances while producing some of the best images on the market. And for the price - it only enhances that statement further.I bought the 2050a back in May 2018, after much back and forth over it and the 3050. I simply could not pass up the increased user adjustments, low input lag, and many dollars saved for a 4% reduction in an already impressive color accuracy that I will likely never ever be able to tell the difference. And I'm so glad I did, as this projector has been awesome. It was easy to mount and set up. I have it mounted on a Pearless PRG-UNV and paired with a 100" Elite Screen CineGrey 5D from about 8.75' and in a moderately light controlled room, the images are nothing short of spectacular.The 2050a has near perfect color calibration for the average consumer right out of the box (confirmed by using a well reviewed calibration disc), has no DLP rainbows, can project a massive, crisp 1080p image from a relatively short throw, has a 10% vertical lens shift, has both vertical and horizontal keystone adjustments, is whisper quiet, and has a dedicated 3D mode that is a astonishing to see in person (ie. we have fallen in love with it). If fact, I've yet to find one thing that I really don't like about the projector. Family movie night night has taken on a whole new meaning now.If your going to do a home theater and you have only a small space to work in, you really owe it to yourself to check out the BenQ line of projectors. If you are not ready for 4K, I'm not convinced you can find a better 1080p projector for the price than the 2050a. That said, If you are 4K ready and have to sources ready to feed a 4K projector, be on the lookout as the 2050a has a 4K short throw brother coming out very soon.

The BenQ seems clearly meant for more home theater use with connected devices such as an Amazon FireStick, Roku, etc., desktop/laptop computers, Blu-Ray players, cable or satellite TV and the like, since it has no native ability to directly view TV signals or video sources with no such devices attached.The BenQ gets the nod over most 1080p projectors I've seen however, in its ease of setup. One click of the (backlit!) remote and it was ready for ceiling mounting, and right out of the box displayed excellent color and brightness, with only minor tweaking--and some owners might say NO tweaking is needed.We ordered 3d glasses and movie discs, and are pleased with its performance while viewing 3d on our large commercial screen.UPDATE 05/20/2019After approximately 5 months of use, we've changed our overall impression from four to FIVE stars.The HT2050A continues to impress us with its black levels and better contrast. I am convinced that if we could take measures similar to those used in a commercial theater--blackout curtains, and low wall/ceiling/floor reflectivity, as well as minimal lighting for theater entrance/egress--we might see contrast nearly as good as our local cineplex offers.Its vertical lens-shift and sturdy versatile mounting-points make it easier to mount, as long as you have it horizontally centered to the screen, so as to avoid loss of focus on either the left or right side, and of course one side being taller or narrower than the other.We continue to enjoy this device, and prefer it to our LCD TV.UPDATE--Three years later . . .We continue to enjoy watching video these days--especially since March of 2020, for obvious reasons--and despite the almost every day usage are still on the same original bulb, with a continued bright image and video quality.We might have purchased a 4k projector when we got this one, but at the time 4k projection was rather new, and it made sense to give the tech to advance a bit longer, and for prices of 4k projectors to stabilize, given the paucity of actual 4k content that was available in 2018.Whenever we have visitors they have been surprised at the sharpness and contrast of our 2050A--several guessed that it might be a 4k projector (yes, I know that's naive, but most folks watch their HDTV from too far away to see the detail in even a 1080p image, much less a 4k image!)We continue to enjoy watching our three-year-old Benq, that has had ZERO problems for the entire three years we've owned it.NOTE: The only less-than-great issue we have is not with the projector itself but with all the 4k streaming devices (Amazon FireTV, Roku 4k, etc.) that exhibit an AWFUL gray haze over the entire projected image. I suspect it is because of the HDR signal that most LCD and OLED TVs can interpret for improved contrast and dynamic range, but a 1080p projector of this vintage was not designed with the HDR feature in mind. And although I have not attempted to use one of these devices on another brand of 1080p projector (Epson, Optoma, Viewsonic, etc.) I have little doubt that all of them would experience the same issue. We first noticed this phenomenon when we connected our Amazon 4k FireTV stick to the HT2050A, and were surprised when the Roku 4k device did NOT go all gray on us when we used it. THEN Roku updated its software/firmware and now we get the same unwatchable gray picture. (For those who wonder why we would attach a 4k device to a 1080p projector, I should add that it made sense to us to "future-proof" accessories as much as possible rather than purchase a device that would have to be upgraded later.Of course a case could be made that we might have purchased a 4k capable projector! But again, in 2018 there was much less 4k content than today--and still, in August of 2022 a majority of content over-the-air/cable/satellite, continues to be in 1080p format, though streaming is catching up faster than cable/satellite.But as long as you stream or view TV from a streaming device that was not made for 4k displays, there should be no problems. However it is my hope that someone somewhere will be making the software/firmware of services and devices to adapt to the characteristics of the displays to which they are connected, so that they will disable the HDR functions, etc. for use on displays that do not have this feature.

Finding the right projector for our needs was challenging. Needing a “ short-ish” throw. Only about 7.8 feet between the back wall (on an angle as well projection) to the 92” screen.With this HT2050A we hit the mark!Super easy to set up with its vertical and horizontal keystone correction plus lens shift. We use only at night or dark days, so Cinema mode is excellent.Colours are fantastic. The big this for my eyes are “NO RAINBOW” effect. With DLP you always run the risk of this. To my eyes (which I have been prone to with other DLP models) none exist. Way better than LCD we had tested. Great black levels in Cinema mode. Easy to use menu and a backlight remote. So nice to use. For the money I can’t imagine a better home projector. With its versatility in set up to its picture quality.Very happy with this purchase.

Let me just say that I did a lot of research into projectors before I committed to this. I had a 4:3 projector by InFocus, but it was meant for office use (You can tell if its a WGXA, its meant for office use.)The projectors you find at sub 200 that seem like such a good deal while offering "amazing" quality are a crock. In this world, you're going to get what you pay for.The 2050A is a single chip DLP projector. This means two key things:One: It is DLP, so the colors are much richer natively than a 3LCD projector (such as Epson). However, a single chip has NOTHING on a three chip DLP projector (which is probably why those start at around 5000).Two: It is DLP, so a SMALL PERCENTAGE of people may be subject to the dreaded "rainbow" effect in high action sequences. This is not everyone, I play lots of high action sequences on it and have never had an issue. If you are concerned, I would say buy it, hook it up (before you mount it or anything), and get some fast and furious movies or anything like that going.My set up uses this projector ceiling mounted, and an Elite Screens Sable Frame 2 120 Inch CineWhite on the other side. Under it is a YAS 107 soundbar with built in subwoofer, and a Amazon Firestick connected into the soundbars ARC/IN hdmi port. A 30 foot hdmi cable runs in the wall and ceiling to connect to the projector. I have no issues with any of this. I also use a SteamLink into the projectors HDMI 2, allowing me to broadcast my high end gaming computer onto my projector screen over my wireless network. None of this is hard to set up by the way, for you people that are less than handy (my wife forbids me from using power tools).Lets talk about the picture:PRO:PRO ONE: The picture is awe inspiring, it truly is wonderful in native 16:9 resolution (this matters).PRO TWO: The throw distance to 120 inches is about 11-12 feet, so you need to make sure you have that much space between the projector to the screen or wall. In the event you don't, you may want to invest in a laser projector.PRO THREE: The different picture modes include cinema (most true to color tones according to cnet), and vivid image (which is fortunately very watchable).This projector is exceptionally easy to set up, ceiling mounting was a breeze.PRO FOUR: Even with ambient lighting, the picture is still very easy to watch,.CONSCON ONE: The picture only has a vertical lens shift. This means you need to point the picture DIRECTLY PARALLEL at the surface youre blasting at. If you dont, you will end up with a slight or pronounced trapezoid. BenQ, like all others, uses a keystone to fix this, but it is not very precise, and not recommended (it scales your picture. Best to just make it parallel). If you cant, youll have do what I had to do, which is use the vertical lens shift. This allows the lens to be tilted down (in the machine), to avoid keystone adjustments. Unfortunately, it does not also have a horizontal lens shift, that would have been a nice feature.CON TWO: This is not a 4k machine. However, I have read mixed reviews about 4k capable projectors, and decided to wait until the technology was truly fleshed out.Audio:I didn't have my sound bar set up right away, so I heard the audio on this for a few nights. It is VERY impressive for being a stock machine. I of course recommend a home system, however kudos to BenQ for going big on the little machines audio capabilities.Notes:The projector has a light up remote. This is very cool.The projector itself has a status light on top (or bottom if its ceiling mounted like mine). While not BRIGHT BLUE like so many other lights, it was enough to distract me. A simple piece of tape fixed the issue.Overall, compared to say the Epson 2150 (which is most comparable to this, and easy to find side by side reviews for), this projector wins hands down. It destroys lower level projectors with its deeper and richer blacks. It does get outclassed by the next weight class, such as the Epson 3150. The Qotoma UHD 60, and the BenQ 2550A. However each of those is at least 500 more than this projector.You SHOULD use a screen for this. An investment like this should be made fully, not half way.I am also not an AV expert, I recommend you to look up reviews on CNET.BenQ offers a reward for review program, which is why I am posting this. They absolutely do not include any guidelines on what to say. All thoughts are my own. I would rate my set up at 1300 or so investment, as entry level.

The quality is very good, the picture is very clear, especially the sound effect is perfect for me.