Is it time for projectors to be considered as a viable screen option for gaming? The BenQ X3000i seems to be making a decent case here as the world’s first 4LED 4K HDR gaming projector.
The difference between 4LED and conventional 3LED is that 4LED designs have an extra blue LED, which is used to amplify the overall output of green light in a red, green and blue LED array. The result is 8-12 per cent more brightness over 3LED. The light source is rated for over 30,000 hours.
BenQ designed this projector with open world games and Playstation 5 in mind (RPG mode), but it has two other game modes optimised for sports (Sports Game mode) and first person shooters (FPS mode).
The specifications sheet reveals that the projector can achieve a refresh rate of 240 Hz, albeit at 1080p resolution. The reported input lag is understandably not quite gaming monitor quick, but isn’t laughably bad either – ranging from 16.67ms on 4K at 60Hz to 4.16ms on 1080p at 240Hz – so it pretty much lines up with their intended purpose mentioned earlier.
Even if it’s slightly less responsive than top-tier gaming monitors, what those desk-bound displays can’t give you, is 4K resolution with 500,000:1 contrast and 3,000 lumens brightness, along with 100 per cent DCI-P3 colour gamut and HDR10 and HLG compatibility, on a 150″ screen.
Chances are, you already have a speaker system to accompany this projector so it’s go to know that there’s an eARC connector onboard to accommodate your setups. Otherwise, it’s good to know that the X3000i has two 5W speakers onboard featuring Bongiovi DSP (useless fact: Jon Bon Jovi’s un-anglicised surname. Without the DSP, of course) and tuned by treVolo.
Aside from Playstation 5, BenQ states that it officially supports Playstation 4 Pro, Playstation 4, Playstation Slim, XBox One X, Xbox One S and Nintendo Switch. Last but not least, the projector comes with Android TV built in, so you can easily switch over to some streaming entertainment when you’re taking a break from your games.
The BenQ X3000i 4LED 4K gaming projector retails for $3499 at the BenQ Store on Shopee and Lazada . Enjoy free shipping on your X3000i order until 23 May 2022.