Thanks to those of you who have written encouraging us to continue with a "recommended" projectors feature. Here are our latest recommendations and updates.

Sanyo PLC-XP21N / Boxlight MP-38t / Eiki LC-X999 / Proxima DP9260+ : This outstanding projector manufactured by Sanyo and marketed under the four labels noted continues to sell extremely well. And with street prices now down to about $5,000 it maintains its commanding position as one of the very best overall values in a projector for home theater today. The widely spread rumor of this product's imminent demise are greatly exaggerated. Yes, it has been on the market for a year, and products don't often make it even that long. But this one will be around for quite a while. For many home theater buyers it is without a doubt the best place to invest $5,000. Please note--there is often no advantage whatsoever in buying a product from the original manufacturer instead of one of the remarketing companies. In fact the opposite is the case...remarketers often deliver better service, support, return policies, warranties, etc., to distinguish themselves from the original manufacturer. So if you are in the market for the XP21N, do not fail to check the offerings from those who market the exact same machine under their own labels.

InFocus Screenplay 110: We have just reviewed this unit (click for review). Bottom line...this is a superb performer for the current retail price of $4,999. It is particularly outstanding for the display of widescreen enhanced DVD, as well as occasional HDTV. It is the only product in the $5,000 price class that can compete for the cash you might otherwise spend on the Sanyo XP21N. More will be posted on the competitive advantages of these two machines shortly.

Sharp XV-Z9000U: Sharp hit it out of the ballpark when they introduced this native 16:9 high resolution DLP projector. At street prices of around $9,000, the Z9000U clearly dominates the high-end digital projector market. It is strongly recommended for buyers who are heavy into HDTV, have good HDTV sources at hand, and want the very best HDTV picture they can get. More will be posted shortly comparing the Sharp Z9000U to the InFocus Screenplay 110--is it worth the extra $4,000?. For some it is, for some it isn't. Stay tuned.

PLUS "Piano" HE-3100: For those who don't want to go deep into the retirement funds for a projector, the PLUS Piano is a unique little product for a particular kind of buyer. If you don't have good HDTV sources in your area, or you don't care about HDTV, the Piano may be for you. At a retail price of just $2,995, it can produce a truly exciting picture from enhanced widescreen DVDs. That is what it is designed to do, and that is just about all that it does, but it does it very well. It needs a dark room, and don't push it beyond a 6 foot wide screen. But if that is your set up, there is nothing that can touch the clarity of its image in the $3,000 price range.

Best regards,

Evan Powell