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Great questions, In the Market. I am looking for my first projector and have many of the same concerns: 1.) I was leaning toward the Panasonic PT-AX100U, but am now wondering if it is worth spending the extra money to get a 1080 projector; 2.) I have yet to find a retailer in my area that carries Panasonics, and am wondering why this is; and 3.) although I can eliminate almost all light in the room I will be using, I anticipate a lot of use will be for watching sports with friends, in which case having some light in the room will be preferable -- the Panasonic PT-AX100U review mentioned that it does quite well with less-than-dark conditions, but there is no mention of this issue in the 1080 shootout. Any info on these points would be greatly appreciated. Thanks much and thanks for the great site -- it is very helpful and informative.

"Initially, let me say, great website, very informative. I currently have a Sharp XV-DW100U. We have enjoyed it over the years. However, it recently developed a problem which is going to cost quite a bit to fix ($1000 to $1500). In addition, its bulbs are getting more and more expensive. To make a long story short, I think my money is better spent upgrading.

I have spent the last few weeks trying to decide what to purchase as a replacement. Our home has no direct light to the windowless projector room, although in the daytime we get some ambient sunlight through the entry way. The projector is ceiling mounted, 17 feet from a Stewart drop down screen (white), which is switched with the projector. I can ceiling mount a new projector such that it will have a throw distance from 10 to 17 feet. At most, I would have to adjust the screen up and down a half screen length, assuming I flush mount the projector to the ceiling.

We use the projector to watch a lot of DVD movies, as well as HD, digital and "regular" cable television, especially sports with friends. I was leaning toward the Panasonic PT-AX100U or a Yamaha DPX-830, as they seemed to be pretty versatile. (Curiously, at least to me in light of the reviews, the "high end" stereo stores really try to steer you away from the Panasonic. They have mentioned reliability problems with Panasonic projectors.) I though a few years down the road we would then upgrade to 1080. More recently, however, I read the shootout related to the native 1080 projectors, as well as the reviews available online. I also found that the native 1080s are priced less than I thought they would be. Now I am undecided again and wondering if I should just go ahead and go with the 1080 at this point..

Given we use our projector for more than movie watching, any thoughts on whether our money is better spent at this point on the lesser resolution, but perhaps more versatile, 720 projectors, and wait a few years to upgrade to 1080. Or, for the long run, are we better off going with a 1080 at this point? If the 1080 route, is there one particular model that would better serve our purposes given our usage patterns described above, admittedly in summary fashion? Thanks."