THE HOME theater projector market is undergoing a major transformation. Lamp-based projectors are being replaced by solid-state projectors. BenQ is a unique company in this market, primarily using 4LED technology instead of the single or multilaser setups that are becoming more common.
BenQ recently introduced its first 4LED home theater projector, the BenQ HT4550i, which uses the new DLP 0.65-inch DMD from Texas Instruments to achieve a rated brightness of 3200 ANSI lumens. It also supports HDR10+ high dynamic range (HDR) and a host of other intriguing features. However, the most intriguing aspect of this projector is its price: $2,999.
This price point is significant because it is the traditional sweet spot for budget-conscious home theater enthusiasts. This price point has been dominated by bang-for-your-buck titans like the Epson 5000 series and Sony 1080p SXRD models of the past. BenQ clearly believes that its new HT4550i and 4LED system are up to competing at this level. I was eager to put this projector to the test.
The HT4550i boasts several impressive features on paper. As noted, BenQ has employed the new, larger 0.65-inch DMD with XPR (eXpanded Pixel Resolution) technology, providing improved clarity and contrast over the existing 0.47-inch XPR DMD that most 4K DLP projectors have been based on. Like the 0.47-inch XPR DMD, it is a native 1920x1080 chipset that shifts four ways to deliver the required 8.3 million individually addressable pixels on screen for 4K. 4K DLP projectors have long been plagued by low native contrast, so a boost in this metric is a very welcome change.
The 4LED system is a marvel of technology. It features a single LED for each color—red, green, and blue—as well as a white
