Panasonic Announces the PT-AX100U LCD Projector

[Audioholics]

<A href="http://www.audioholics.com/news/pressreleases/PanasonicPTAX100Uprojector.php"><IMG style="WIDTH: 125px; HEIGHT: 69px" alt=[PanasonicPTAX100U1] hspace=10 src="http://www.audioholics.com/news/thumbs/PanasonicPTAX100U1_th.jpg" align=left border=0></A>Panasonic today announced the introduction of its new PT-AX100U LCD home cinema projector. The projector's new 220-W UHM lamp and optical unit combine to generate 2,000-lumen brightness, unprecedented for an LCD projector with at least 720p native resolution. It also incorporates Panasonic's new Light Harmonizer image technology, which measures ambient light and adjusts the screen brightness so that images remain bright, crisp and vivid even in well-lit rooms. The LCD projector's optical unit incorporates a dynamic iris, which adjusts itself, the UHM lamp and gamma curve 60 times per second to produce a 6,000:1 contrast ratio. MSRP is set at $2999. We'll be sure to get more info this week (and pics) at CEDIA.

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[gmichael]

Oh yeah. Very nice. And the price didn't go through the roof either. This will force others to step it up at the plate as well.

 

[Rock&Roll Ninja]

I just think its weird, the relatively small HDTV market is giving-up on 720p in favor of 1080p, but the FP market, with its huge image still have more and more 720p models coming out every year?

 

[acurtas]

I still think I bought at the right time. 1000 lumens (Sanyo Z4) is plenty bright in my room. And I will wait for an independent contrast ratio measurement. It seems lately to be the new "Watts per channel" spec that looks good on paper, but never quite measures up.

However, the trend toward new releases at a lower price point can only be good for us in the future.

It sounds like they have a real winner. I look forward to more tit-for-tat innovation between Sanyo, Panny, Sony, and the rest.

 

[BMXTRIX]

I am less than enthralled by this new projector. I mean, yes, it will likely have several nice upgrades over the AE900. But, it is more in the line of 'refinements' rather than 'improvements'. The AE700->900 are both excellent models and the Z4 is great. But, I really thought that they would be working on a second generation 1080p model by now, instead we get a FOURTH generation 720p model, and no 1080p model (yet) at all.

I think 2007 will be the year that LCD gets stomped by 720p DLP. DLP has finally started to hit price points that allow you to choose which machine you want for the same money. While the LCDs have delivered more setup options they have flat out failed to deliver the brightness or the real world contrast ratios that DLP has been giving us. While I love LCD it just isn't quite as good, and coming out with a new $3000 model, when we will see a $1,000 720p DLP projector coming out, is just insane.

I think 2007 may be the first year in a long time where Panny/Sanyo don't sit at the top of the list for budget home theater projectors. Especially as we see DLP issue 1080p models that street under $5K and start to set the performance bar for what is expected from a 1080p projector. LCD will be playing catch up instead of showing up as the innovator.

Still - likely to be a very good projector... But, not as exciting as it really could, and SHOULD be.

 

[ned]

This FP is designed for a niche market - multipurpose room as oppose to a dedicated home theater where ambient light is an issue. It is a very important gap to fill. I guess they think that most multipurpose room users are not quite videophile and could get away with 720p. It could make people who is on the fence to jump into the FP bandwagon.

 

[Rock&Roll Ninja]

And where is all this 720p material coming from?

HD Cable - 1080i
D-VHS - 1080i
XBox 360 - 1080i
Playstation 3 - 1080p (supposedly)
HD-DVD - 1080p
Blu*Ray - 1080p
Nintendo Wii - (?)

 

[ned]

Sure, but the targeted consumer won't care as they prob watch a lot of up converted SD DVD and SD broadcast. 1080 content will look better still on 720p display. As a matter of fact most HD DVD/BR user has 720p display.

 

[steinoch]

this isn't the only new projector coming out by Panasonic...is it? I have been anticipating the release of a PT model that has a native 1080p.

 

[Rob Babcock]

I think they will unveil an 'AE-1080' at CEDIA. While I agree the AX-100 is neat, it's just a gussied up '900U. It would be appealing to those that were about to pull the trigger on a 900U, but I'm more interested in a 1080P model.

 

[billnchristy]

I am excited about this model because it should drop the 900 and other similar projectors in price because we all know at $2999 MSRP real world is 1800 or so.