InFocus IN1124

The InFocus IN1124 ($975 direct) is a compact, super-light, yet bright data projector geared to business travelers who need to frequently present to small groups. It?s highly portable, although you do need to run presentations from a computer as there?s no port for a USB thumb drive. Image quality is middling, though it?s up to the task of typical business presentations.

The IN1124?s brightness is rated at 3,000 lumens. The projector has a native XGA (1,024 by 768) resolution, a 4:3 aspect ratio typical of data projectors. ?At 2.8 by 8.6 by 7 inches (HWD) and 3.4 pounds, it?s very compact and lightweight. The Editors? Choice Epson PowerLite 93+ ($549 direct, 4 stars) isn?t quite as bright (at 2,600 lumens), while the NEC NP-V300X ($779 direct, 3.5 stars) matches the IN1124?s brightness. Though portable, they?re both larger and heavier than the InFocus. The 2,500-lumen Boxlight TraveLight3 ($999 list, 3.5 stars), another XGA projector, is roughly the same dimensions as the IN1124.

This projector is black and boxy. The front can be tilted upwards using an extendible riser. There are both zoom and focus wheels; I had no problem in bringing the IN1124 to a reasonably sharp focus.

The IN1124 packs a typical selection of ports for an ultraportable projector: an HDMI port (which we?re frequently seeing these days, even on XGA projectors); S-Video; an RCA jack for composite video; audio-in; VGA; and a USB mini-B port that you can plug into your computer for remote mouse support, allowing you to use the projector?s remote control in lieu of the mouse to advance slides and the like.

One port that would have been a useful addition is a USB type A to let you run a presentation computer free off of a USB thumb drive. Without it, you still have to lug a laptop with you. The projector does come with a soft carrying case for protection.

Data and Video Testing

I tested the IN1124 from about 10 feet away, where it threw a 6-feet diagonal image on our test screen that stood up well to ambient light. In testing with the DisplayMate suite (www.displaymate.com), data image quality was typical of a DLP data projector. There was some tinting, most often in the form of fringing, in which the boundary between a bright and dark area (for example, the edges of the image, would appear colored?yellow if at the top or right edge, blue if at the bottom. Areas of actual yellow, though, looked muddy and slightly green at times.

All DLP projectors are potentially subject to a rainbow effect in which white areas break up into their component colors when one shifts one?s gaze (or, in the case of video, when something moves onscreen). This effect was obvious to me in images that tended to bring it out. White-on-black text was readable though fuzzy at the smallest two sizes, and was subject to mild tinting. Image quality should be fine for typical data presentations, unless you require exacting color.

Video quality is adequate for short video clips as part of a presentation. The projector did well in resolving detail in both dark and bright areas. Colors seemed reasonably true, except for two issues. The rainbow effect was more obvious than in typical DLP projectors, and people who are sensitive to it would likely not want to watch this projector?s video for any length of time.

The other problem is color fringing. The intersections where bright areas met dark backgrounds (including the edges of the screen when the part of the image near them was bright) frequently showed as colored lines, yellow if at the top (or right edge) of the bright area, and blue if at the bottom. The yellow edge was most notable, and the fringing was visible often enough to be distracting?it really stood out in the type in the film credits.

Another drawback to showing video with the IN1124 is that its sound system, which employs a 1-watt speaker, is feeble. You?d have to be very close to the projector for it to be audible.

The InFocus In1124 is a lightweight, highly portable projector fitting for its intended audience: businesspeople that need to make frequent presentations to small groups while traveling. It?s brighter?and lighter?than the Editors? Choice XGA-resolution Epson PowerLite 93+. However, the InFocus?s image quality was middling while the Epson?s data and video image quality were both excellent. The 93+ has the loud and clear audio that the IN1124 lacks. However, it?s not as wieldy, as the InFocus, so for frequent presenters who need a small and bright projector to get the job done while on the road the IN1124 may be preferable. The InFocus is brighter than the equally portable Boxlight TraveLight3, with about the same image quality and sound.

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