![\"BenQ](\"http:\/\/www.hugorodriguez.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/03\/BenQ-W1700-03.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nLet\u2019s put ourselves in situation….<\/p>\n
The BenQ W1700 is a very surprising home cinema projector, because it offers an image quality and performance that I have personally found in models that triple or quadruple its price. The fact is that in recent years I have had to calibrate professional range projectors in small video rooms and some home cinemas, and I know well the image quality they achieve. In addition, having calibrated and measured them, I also know exactly what their qualities are in terms of contrast, colour, brightness…<\/p>\n
Well, in my opinion, this W1700 comes to revolutionize the market because it competes, not with those of its price, but with those of several superior ranges. And I say this, not because I’m trying to hype this projector because I’m an ambassador for the brand, but because I’m sticking to the facts: just take a look at one of the leading projector test sites and you’ll see that in the price range of between $1,000 and $2,000, the best models have similar features to this one in terms of luminance and other aspects. But there is a \u00absmall\u00bb difference: none of these models achieve a 4K resolution, while the W1700 does. And that means it’s capable of projecting the equivalent of four FullHD projectors together….<\/p>\n
What’s more, the W1700 is a\u00a0true 4K projector, which means it is capable of presenting a 4K resolution image, while many other enhanced 4K projectors do so using a variety of techniques that, in the end, do not deliver the promised true resolution. For example, some display a FullHD resolution image (which has half the resolution, and a quarter as much in pixels as a 4K) that moves 1 px up and down alternately, which at first glance makes it appear to be twice the resolution, but the reality is that the level of detail is much lower. Many models that are advertised as 4K do not really have the 8Mp that this standard defines but actually have half: 4Mp, combined with various techniques to interpolate up to 8Mp.<\/p>\n
To be short: the W1700 displays a 3840×2160 resolution (thus, 8.3 Mpixels) distinct pixels for each frame thanks to its DLP 4K chipset with advanced image processing. An enhanced 4K projector only produces half the pixels true 4K can produce, and it usually refers to pixel shifting technology.\u00a0This mostly shows 2K resolution, but fired twice to show seemingly 8 Mp on the screen.<\/p>\n
And there’s more: the W1700 has a native 10,000:1 contrast and a 10-bit chip (not a panel, since we’re talking about projectors, not monitors!)<\/p>\n
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An overview<\/h2>\n
The BenQ W1700 is a projector of, say, medium size. It looks smaller in pictures than it is. It’s not like those finite projectors that almost look like a thick book of photography; no, it’s much thicker and bigger. The design, although this is a rather personal thing, I find it quite pleasant. The soft curves almost make it look like a cushion that you want to caress. It weighs about 4 kilos; it’s not too much, but it’s certainly not easy to carry on a shoulder strap, although it’s not difficult to carry either. I’d say it’s a little on the edge of portability.<\/p>\n
The location of the controls is typical: the zoom and focus ring next to the lens, the pad button to access and control the menus, and all the connections on the back.<\/p>\n It has two HDMI inputs but they are not the same. The one on the left. It supports HDMI 2.0 while the other supports 1.4, so it is always preferable to use the 1st. It also has two USB inputs, a small one and a standard one. The small one is for service purposes only, but the normal one allows you to connect a flash drive or hard disk directly and play it from there. In addition, it provides 1.5A of current, feeding sucker<\/em> discs.<\/p>\n The legs allow tilt adjustment on both axes, with the only front leg easily adjustable in height. The back panels are threaded to allow for easy levelling. One snag is that the glue on the front leg comes off easily, but with a few drops of glue you can fix it quickly.<\/p>\n The remote control is very well organized, very bright, easy to read, and all the keys are backlit for easy viewing in the dark.<\/p>\n The layout of the keys reminds me of models of much higher range and price than this one, with shortcuts to the important things to be adjusted: brightness, contrast, focus mask, color temperature, gamma curve, HDR mode, geometry settings, advanced color management… Can you ask for more?<\/p>\n However, some keys are disabled but only indicated in the manual. For example, Dynamic iris Detail enhancer or Lumi expert may be from another model that share this very same remote with, but they don’t work on the W1700.<\/p>\n The installation does not involve any complications. Basically it’s just plug in, turn it on and it’s done. The projector automatically recognizes the connected source and displays the image in a few seconds. Switching on takes a long time (about a minute), as does switching off. In that sense, it is similar to the other projectors.<\/p>\n Once switched on, in a completely quiet room the fan is heard slightly, but if you choose the \u00abEco\u00bb mode, in which the bulb goes into low voltage (and the image becomes less bright), the fan also slows down and is actually very very quiet (33 and 29 dBa respectively). In my tests, I have always used it in the dark room, and I did not need to use the normal mode; the Eco has the right brightness.<\/p>\n The first (pleasant) surprise came when I realized, after a while looking at images, that I had never adjusted the convergence. I mean, depending on how the projector is placed, the image is distorted in a trapezoid shape, instead of being a perfect rectangle. I was a little perplexed because I had slightly adjusted the projector to tilt it slightly upwards and I knew that when I did that it was not perpendicular to the wall and therefore a trapezoidal image must appear. Wow, that’s what’s happened to me all my life with the projectors in the classrooms.<\/p>\n But it turns out that -surprisingly- the W1700 has an internal gyroscope and automatically corrects itself! Yes, folks, it looks like mobile technology is now making its way into the projectors as well. I picked up the projector with my hands and tilted it slightly up and down and found that it does indeed correct itself in a few moments. What a great idea!<\/p>\n PS: Later I knew that is something already present in projectors for some time, but I was never aware of it.<\/p>\n With the projector already well installed, framed and focused, comes the second surprise: the image quality.<\/p>\n I’m not really sure what words to use to describe it. I don’t want to seem repetitive or overly optimistic. It’s true that as a brand ambassador I’m committed to talking about its products, and it’s easy to put in a good word for them, because they have many virtues. Obviously I am going to detail their virtues, but like all the apparatuses of this world, they are not free of defects. Of course, I’m not going to get mad at them, but it’s my moral obligation to describe them.<\/p>\n Well, trying to moderate myself with my words, I have to admit that this is the first time in many years that an image has impressed me so much. It’s as close to a real movie theater as I’ve ever seen in a mid-size room.<\/p>\n Surely my impression is conditioned by the fact that the chosen wall is 3.8 m wide and the image practically covers the wall from corner to corner. Imagine the situation: you’re looking at a 170-inch image (you laugh at the 60″ of the most cutting-edge TVs today) that practically fills a wall almost 4m wide. As you can guess, it’s impressive when you’re in that room.<\/p>\n Okay, size matters, and a lot. But it’s not just the size, because any projector can fill a screen like this; it’s just a matter of separating it at the right distance. There are many aspects together that really impress. On the one hand, the shooting distance to which this screen is able to fill is quite short: little more than 5 m.<\/p>\n Continues\u00a0in page 2…<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The definition is simply overwhelming. The level of definition and cleanliness of the image while watching a movie in FullHD resolution is really impressive. No \u00abmist\u00bb, no purple edges, no chromatic aberration, no flare, no light stains….<\/p>\n And the projector is working, so to speak, at 25% of its capacity, since in FullHD it only has to show a quarter of the pixels it is really ready for (4K).<\/p>\n Remember that the 4K standard defines a size that is twice as wide and twice as high as FullHD, resulting in twice the resolution and four times as many pixels. Well, here we would have to talk about the two standards that I could call 4K (3,840 in width) and UHD (4,160 in width), and in this case I am referring to the first one.<\/p>\n And this is not the end of the story, because seeing each scene and the intensity and fidelity with which the colors are reproduced, it practically knocks you out. Yes, I know that with these words it will surely seem that I am exaggerating, but all those who have passed by and seen it live have said exactly the same thing: absolutely impressive.<\/p>\n The finishing touch came when, after a few days, I finally got a chance to try it out with a real 4K film, to really test the W1700.<\/p>\n I have to start by saying that when it comes to 4K, I think the industry is overreacting and that the difference with a good FullHD is not really that big. It’s a topic that gives a lot to talk about and it’s something I want to do, but in another article.<\/p>\n What I do want to comment on is that there are movies and movies in 4K. Some are real and some are…. say, fake 4K.<\/p>\n The most common, unfortunately, are the fake 4K. So, what’s that? These are releases that are shot with 4K cameras (sometimes even 3K or less), but then edited in 2K. Yeah, as it sounds. Basically you could almost say that they are FullHD movies that haven been interpolated up to 4K and sold like that. Just as it sounds. To top it off, special effects are also rendered in 2K. Obviously, the final film does not have the level of definition that is expected of it, because it is basically an interpolated 2K film.<\/p>\n And you’ll think:<\/p>\n Already last year, while testing the SW320 monitor, I noticed it. Watching The Martian I noticed that on the SW320 itself it looks great with its high pixel density, but when viewing a 100% enlarged frame on the 24″, it was clear that it lacked definition. I happened to see it in images of the spaceship, which are part of the fx (special effects) and were rendered in 2K, but apparently the real images are really 4K.<\/p>\n The fact is that for the 4K test with the BenQ I got Sicario, which according to the reviews and the realorfake4k.com website claims to be authentic 4K: shooting, editing and fx. Well, indeed, it is. It sure is….<\/p>\n There are some very static shots of the main character, still inside a car, to give an example, in which in the FullHD version you can see the pores of the skin clearly. This is already impressive because of the level of detail. But with the 4K version you go beyond the ‘awesome’ to the ‘overhelming’. Not only could I appreciate the pore, but I could appreciate the hair on the skin!<\/p>\n That’s where the native 4K resolution of the W1700 and real 4K film can be seen, without any tricks. As I was saying, it’s hard to describe in words, but when you see such a big, sharp picture, it’s hard not to be impressed.<\/p>\n However, in order to appreciate such quality, several requirements must be met:<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The menus are very well organized and distributed. In addition, their size is large, much larger than most of the competition’s menus, which seem to be doing a competition to see who makes it smaller and shorter. With the amount of space available, I never understood why most engineers insist on designing it so small. Virtually all the functions you expect to find are there, and where you expect them to be. Oh, and with the name you expect to see, not with those translations that seem to be made by Tarzan. Yes, you English spoken won\u2019t have any problem but we, the Spaniards indeed do.<\/p>\n To give you an idea of the size, you can see it here:<\/p>\n In addition, the instruction manual (PDF) is very well explained. It’s short and doesn’t say the obvious, as we’ve all met on multiple occasions, does it? Things like how to explain in detail what Landscape mode does in a camera tells you \u00abto take spectacular landscapes\u00bb. Wow.<\/p>\n For example, it is very typical that to explain what the brightness or contrast does, in the manual you find that it \u00abserves to regulate the brightness\/contrast\u00bb, but not what it actually does, something that is fundamental for the advanced user. Here, for example, it makes it clear that the brightness is used to adjust the black level and the contrast, the white level. Man, for once I find it well explained!<\/p>\n In fact, I hardly spend any time reading the menu anymore because after reading so many times pages and pages of useless stuff, I choose not to read it, but I confess that I have read it.<\/p>\n When you open the menu you will find 6 tabs:<\/p>\n In the picture menu are the main controls to adjust it. The first thing to do is to choose a preset. If you’re looking for something faithful to the original without having to go through a lot of calibration work, you’ll like the Cinema<\/strong> mode, because it’s pretty well tuned. In my trials he has proved to be very faithful, as you will see later.<\/p>\n If you’re going to watch TV shows (not movies or series), Vivid TV<\/strong> is sure to give you the extra color, brightness and contrast you like. But if you’re one of those moviegoers who enjoys knowing they’re watching exactly what you’d see in a good movie theater or, in other words, what the photography director wanted you to see, then you’ll love the User<\/strong> and a good calibration, because with the right tools you can leave it so well tuned that it rivals a good movie theater without a problem.<\/p>\n Once the first parameters (brightness, contrast, saturation, sharpness…) have been adjusted, you can move on to the Advanced tab, where you will find the gamma curve, the color temperature (or rather, the white point calibration), the complete color management (6 primary settings) and various functions to apply some improvements to the image.<\/p>\n Inside Gamma<\/strong> we find settings from 1.8 to 2.6 and the \u00abBenQ\u00bb position, which must be between 2.8 and 3 (not specified in the manual). In the manual itself he explains that it must be chosen according to the ambient light of the room: the less light, the higher the gamma. The default value is 2.2, which corresponds to the Rec709 standard and is almost equal to that of the sRGB.<\/p>\n Within Color Temperature<\/strong> you can actually adjust both the RGB gain (typical) but also the so-called RGB offset (to regulate the black color). You can’t ask for more.<\/p>\n Continues in page 3…<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Within Color Management<\/strong> there are controls to adjust the three axes of each of the six primary (HSL). Not only are there hue and saturation adjustments, but there’s even the gain adjustment, something I’ve only found in models that are much more expensive. And, in fact, not even in all of them. Another small token of how serious BenQ’s bet is. Interestingly, I was surprised that not all the handles are in the middle of the default settings. It seems as if the engineers wanted to calibrate it and leave it at the values they needed to get the best color fidelity.<\/p>\n Cinema Master<\/strong> is a set of settings that apply various processing to the image. For example, Color enhancer, according to the manual, allows to increase the saturation finely thanks to complex algorithms. I don’t doubt it, but personally I prefer to leave it well calibrated and that the colors are as they should be.<\/p>\n Flesh tone<\/strong> serves to slightly modify the skin tone to bring it to the ideal tone, and avoid colorations that are seen under light sources with dominant.<\/p>\n Pixel enhancer 4K<\/strong> is an advanced sharpness filter, ideal for 4K.\u00a0The effect is noticeable (only with 4K though) and usually 2-3 works perfect for many cases. DCTI and DLTI are processed to increase saturation and brightness with colored or contrasted images.<\/p>\n Noise reduction<\/strong> reduces the noise produced by sources that are not of the highest quality (DVD players, media players…).<\/p>\n Brilliant color<\/strong> increases the brightness of the white for more contrast, but at the expense of losing the white point calibration. Useful with TV programs but for a purist film buff it’s best to leave it off.<\/p>\n And with the Light mode<\/strong> comes an important setting: the brightness level of the bulb. Three modes are available: Normal, Eco and SmartEco.<\/p>\n With Normal<\/strong>, the light bulb operates at full power, the brightness of the image is at its maximum and is therefore as good as it looks in rooms with ambient light, not too dark. That if: the wear of the bulb is greater, and the life expectancy is 4,000 hours.<\/p>\n In Economic<\/strong> the bulb lowers the intensity and lowers the brightness of the image, as well as the fan. As it works at lower power, it heats up less, and the fan is quieter. In addition, life expectancy is considerably extended to 10,000 hours.<\/p>\n The SmartEco<\/strong> is very interesting, which varies the power of the bulb on the fly, depending on the image itself. If it is dark it automatically lowers the brightness, if it is bright it increases it. It’s a smart choice that looks great. In my case, having always used it almost always in complete darkness, I preferred the Economic, which also provides optimal brightness in these conditions, even with such a large image of 170″ (3.8 m wide, which is no small thing).<\/p>\n Also in the next menu we find Overscan<\/strong> settings. We also find the settings for 3D video and HDR.<\/p>\n So far I haven’t been able to test 3D, although some people say that it’s beginning to look like a passing fad that’s gone through the ‘boom’, and the proof is that less 3D content is being edited. To try it out you need the optional glasses, which are not included, and of course a compatible player. I have been told not to test the 3D yet because a new firmware was on its way and improves performance, so I am looking forward to having it updated once it is shipped back to the factory. I will post more information as soon as I receive it back with the new firmware.<\/p>\n The HDR<\/strong> function controls the behavior of the projector with such content. Basically you can force the projector to assume that the signal is HDR or non-HDR, or to automatically detect it. There is no reference to what kind of HDR signal it will assume, so I imagine it will correspond to one of the standards, the one the brand has chosen. Currently we have several: HDR10, HLG, Dolby Vision…<\/p>\n There is no information of which standard BenQ uses, although I assume it recognizes several. In a next addition I will comment on the projector’s performance in both HDR and 3D.<\/p>\n In the Installation<\/strong> menu you will find the typical settings to configure how the projector is installed: upwards or downwards, front or rear of the screen, as well as to force the aspect ratio or the high altitude mode (which increases the fan speed to ensure good cooling in very high places, because of the lower air density).<\/p>\n In System Setup Basic<\/strong> we also find typical settings, such as the background color when there is no signal, the time for automatic shutdown without signal or the source search. The sound menu is worth noting, because the W1700 has a speaker that – though small – sounds really good. Not that it is a substitute for a good HIFI system, of course, but the truth is that to watch the news or simply listen to the voice, it works perfectly. In fact, my kids haven’t had any trouble watching a cartoon movie like this, and they’ve had a great time. With the high volume it offers a more than good level of listening.<\/p>\n Within the Sound Mode<\/strong> you can choose from several equalizations: cinema, music, games, sports and user. In the latter you can adjust the EQ manually in 5 bands (good!).<\/p>\n Continues in page 4…<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In System Setup Advanced<\/strong> there are some very useful settings.<\/p>\n In HDMI configuration<\/strong> you can choose the numerical range for HDMI operation, either full range (0-255) or limited range (16-235) or automatic. If you are going to use the projector connected to your computer to view photos and programs in general, choose full range. But if you’re going to watch videos or movies on your computer, you might want to choose the limited one, because all movies and -in general- videos are produced with this range, and it’s very common that when you play them on your computer it doesn’t look good. The problem is that the graphics card driver (it happens with all nVidia and AMD) seems to completely ignore this and assumes that all videos are full-range (whether they are or not), causing the videos to look very muted. And, yes, this happens on both Windows and Mac (especially Quicktime).<\/p>\n The CEC<\/strong> system makes life a little easier, so to speak. If you have the projector connected to a CEC compatible source, when you turn this source on, the projector will also turn on.<\/p>\n With Quick cooling<\/strong> you can choose to have the projector either cool down for a minute and a half or 15 seconds when the projector is turned off. If you have it fixed in place somewhere, it is best to leave it at 90 seconds, as slower cooling is better for the bulb. Cooling it down faster is probably not as good, but you can store it quickly.<\/p>\n At the end of this menu there is something very interesting for those of us who -like me- are dedicated to calibrating screens: the ISF menu<\/strong>. It is the acronym for Image Science Foundation, an organization that tries to promote a good reproduction of digital images, which trains and certifies those who want to dedicate themselves to this professionally. To enter this menu, you must enter a password that only ISF-certified professionals have and that combines the really important settings for the image in a single menu. It is a very good idea that makes the work easier for those of us who are concerned about extracting the maximum image quality from each device. Not only is it a good idea; having a screen with an ISF menu says a lot about it and its manufacturer.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The case of the W1700 is – in my opinion – unique. Usually the devices compete with each other for one of two things: quality or price. If they compete for quality, they aim to have a high quality, similar or slightly better than their competitors (at a similar \u2013or not- price). If they compete for price, image quality is secondary and what matters is that the price is at the low percentile, in order to achieve more sales.<\/p>\n The rare thing is that a product competes in both, and does it well. That’s not usually possible. No one offers a premium car at a budget price, because the numbers just don’t come out.<\/p>\n But in the world of technology there are sometimes major leaps that make this possible, and this seems to be one of those occasions. Apparently, the 4K DLP chip that comes with the W1700 is a real breakthrough and makes all the difference. But a good projector is not just the chip; software matters, and a lot. Exactly the same as in the world of monitors. There are monitors with very good panels but with a software that has shortcomings and takes many points away from the final result.<\/p>\n The quality of the W1700 is really very high. Starting with the definition, you don’t see a \u00absoft\u00bb image in which no matter how much you move the focus ring, you never seem to find the exact focus point; on the contrary, that exact point is very clear. But it’s also true that it’s hard to adjust because to be able to appreciate all its definition you have to separate yourself sufficiently from the screen, and when you do, you’d want to get close enough to see those tiny pixels more clearly… but then you’re no longer near the focus ring. On the other hand, it would be appreciated if it had a wider rotation, to facilitate the operation.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n BenQ promises that the W1700 has a color gamut that covers more than 96% of the Rec709 standard (the HD video standard, very similar to sRGB) and is calibrated for less deviation than Delta E 3, which is impressive. Already with their monitors they promise something similar (and they do, as I’ve seen in several reviews); but with projectors it sounds like something more difficult to achieve.<\/p>\n In this CALMan capture you can see that the primary colors of the W1700 fit almost perfectly into the Rec709 standard (which is almost the same as the sRGB).<\/p><\/div>\n <\/p>\n Little can be said about the W1700. It’s simply formidable. Not only is the gamma curve almost perfect, the neutrality of the greys bordering on perfection and the adjustment of the colours is difficult to improve.<\/p>\n Using my i1 Pro2 and CalMAN 5 I have taken measurements and found that in the Cinema mode the fit to the Rec709 standard is very good. I have only had to calibrate the white point and very slightly retouch some primaries to get a \u00abbook\u00bb adjustment. In User mode and playing a little, I had no trouble getting this:<\/p>\n Here you can see the greyscale response. As you can imagine, if the lines are all on the central axis, it is that they are perfect. There’s no need for comments.<\/p><\/div>\n And that’s not all: the colour rendering could also be described as excellent. The brightness of the colours is surprising. The brand announces it very clearly, but until you see it, you don’t realize it.<\/p>\n Just as a note, the next measurement:<\/p>\n In this screenshot you can see if the color rendering is adjusted correctly. As you can see from the graph on the right, the little squares indicate the reference (where they should be) and the little circles, where they are. You can clearly see that (except green) they are almost perfect….<\/p><\/div>\n <\/p>\n What BenQ has done with the W1700 is very remarkable. Having tested projectors in the 6-10,000\u20ac price range and having seen their performance, I was very surprised that this 1,500\u20ac model is perfectly up to them. It is true and fair to say that these other projectors have a much higher color gamut (DCI-P3) but…. somewhere you had to notice the price difference, didn’t you?<\/p>\n The W1700 is a projector for those who are looking for the best but don’t have the budget to pay for it. In photo rooms where they want to appreciate their work in great detail, in color grading and video editing rooms and for home cinemas of very demanding spectators, the W1700 will delight those who have the pleasure of seeing it.<\/p>\n That’s when you remember all those projectors, typical of photo classrooms and conferences that treat color as well as meat in a chain of fast burgers. Next to it, the W1700 is like a gourmet restaurant. The colour is the same for everyone, yes, but as with meat, you can make hamburgers or a good steak with fine herbs; everything depends on the cook…<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n\n
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The menus<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/section>\n<\/div>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\nIMAGE QUALITY<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\nCOLOUR\u00a0GAMUT<\/h2>\n
<\/a>COLOUR REPRODUCTION<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/a>CONCLUSION<\/h2>\n