The Optoma HD142X is the latest budget-level projector from the company, providing not only a cost-friendly solution for home theater, but also a way for folks to experience home theater without a theater room. It succeeds Optoma’s last year line of HD projectors, and offers some cool enhancements, a longer lamp life and a very affordable price.
Optoma HD142X Design
At first glance, the Optoma HD142X has a very manageable footprint, and is pretty light at 5.2 lbs. This bodes well for space-conscious room real estate. With round edges, grated plastic on the front and a low profile, the HD142X is sure to fit nearly any space in which you place it.
Additionally, because of its size and weight, it’s easy to mount this on a wall, table or ceiling without issue.
HD142X Internals and Interface
The Optoma HD142X uses DMD-chip DLP technology to create its images at a maximum display resolution of 1920 x 1080 at a contrast ratio of 23,000:1, with the ability to show an image as large as 305.5″ across from corner to corner at a distance of 32 feet. That’s a long sentence, but suffice it to say, it can throw a large and detailed image from a long way away.
Port-wise, it includes two HDMI 1.4/MHL ports, a USB power port, one audio out and a 3D-sync slot. This may not be the most robust configuration on the back, but it makes things simple and very usable. No more fumbling around trying to find the right port. It’s all laid out quite nicely.
A friendly interface sort of describes the entirety of this device. Not only does it have a simple design, simple port configuration and simple controls, it also has a very intuitive interface. Picture Settings, Contrast and Brightness are all controlled from a single menu. Additionally, presets include options for sRGB, Reference, Gaming and Cinema.
Using the Optoma HD142X
Optoma projectors are known for their brightness, and the HD142X is no exception. It has 3,000 ANSI lumens of brightness that fill even a super bright room. TV, movies, games and 4k videos look stellar, and the 60Hz processor moves at very acceptable speeds. Additionally, the Optoma HD142X can send itself into overdrive to 144Hz in 3D mode, which makes watching 3D content very nice.
The HD142X is also very quiet, with a near-silent fan, and it won’t heat up too terribly badly. The Optoma also has a 10-watt mono speaker onboard, so while not stereo quality, the mono speaker is lound and will get you by.
Bottom Line
The Optoma HD142X is a winner, especially considering it has an 8,000-hour lamp life. While not a workhorse, for the price (around $600), the Optoma HD142X is a best-buy budget home theater projector that will satisfy both beginner and intermediate projector fans. For more information, visit Optoma’s product page Click Here.
