Optoma EP721 SVGA 2200-Lumens Portable DLP Multimedia Data Projector

Optoma’s EP721 DLP multimedia projector has a brightness of 2200 ANSI lumens which is suitable for a business multimedia data projector which has to cope with normal office ambient light levels as opposed to the darkened environment of a home theatre. With a weight of only 4.4 lbs (2.0 kg) the EP721 is very portable.

Optoma EP721 DLP Portable Projector

The projection engine for the Optoma EP721 is based on 0.55” DLP chip technology by Texas Instruments. The associated Brilliant Color technology provides the excellent brightness and color reproduction. To cater for personal preferences, the on-screen menu allows you to adjust the Brilliant Color output. A high contrast ratio of 2200:1 (Full On/Full Off) provides better image quality and more detail in darker scenes.

EP721 Picture Adjustments

The EP721 provides a good range of picture adjustments for different video materials, viewing environments and personal taste. Adjustments available through the user friendly, multilingual on-screen menu include:

Display Mode: Allows video reproduction to be optomised for different image/source types. Modes include; Presentation, Bright, Movie, sRGB (standardized accurate color) and lastly User.

Saturation: Adjusts a video image from black and white to fully saturated
colour.

Tint: Adjusts the color balance of red and green.

Color: Select either the Red/Green/Blue Gain for brightness adjustments and/or Bias for contrast adjustments of the whole picture. Adjustments of individual Cyan, Magenta and Yellow colors are possible.

Degamma: This allows you to choose a degamma table that has been
fine-tuned to bring out the best image quality for the input. Selections include; Film, Video (video or TV source), Graphics and PC.

Color Temp: For adjusting the color temp for a colder/bluer look or warmer look.

While it’s best to match video source and projector native resolutions for the best quality projected image, the EP721 can handle, through scaling, video sources from VGA right through to UXGA (1600 x 1200 pixels).

Computer Compatibility: VGA, SVGA, XGA, SXGA, SXGA+, UXGA Resized, VESA, PC and Macintosh Compatible

Video Compatibility: NTSC, PAL, SECAM, EDTV (480p), HDTV (576i/p, 720p, 1080i)

Projector Setup

The EP721 can be set up in a number of projection configurations including, front, rear, ceiling mount and table mount. There is keystone correction of +/- 40 degrees to provide setup flexibility. As is common with DLP projectors the zoom is only 1.1:1.0 which does not give a lot of flexibility in regard to distance from the screen for a certain size projected image. For flexibility in connecting to a variety of video sources there is a good range of I/O connectors including; DVI w/HDCP, VGA-In, VGA-Out, S-Video, Audio-In, RS-232 and USB. As typical of most projectors the EP721 has only a 1W speaker and for anything more than a small group you need to hook into an external sound system.

Because of the high cost of replacement lamps, lamp life is an important consideration in purchasing a projector. The Optoma EP721 lamp is rated for 3000 hours in economy (less bright) mode and 2000 hours in bright mode. There are other projectors with higher estimated lamp lives (eg. 4000/3000) and it’s a matter of considering the upfront costs vs the lifetime costs.

For the presenter there is a D-Sub 15 VGA Output for monitor loop through so that they can see what is being projected on the screen behind them while still facing their audience. The remote is fully featured allowing easy adjustments while away from the projector. The built-in laser pointer is very handy.

For security in a business environment, there is a Kensington Lock Port for physical security and password protection for data security. There is also a security timer which allows the number of hours the projector can be used before password entry is required again.

Optoma provide a fairly industry standard warranty of 1 Year limited parts and labor on the projector and 90 days on projection lamp.

Other Optoma Portable Multimedia Data Projectors

Optoma has other portable multimedia data projectors and two of them are based on the same parts/features platform. Listed below are the distinguishing features of these other projectors and the EP721.

EP721 – SVGA resolution to suit older PCs

2200 ANSI lumens
Native SVGA (800 x 600)

EP727 – Higher XGA resolution to meet the current PC standard

2200 ANSI lumens
Native XGA (1024 x 768)

EP728 – Brighter to handle more ambient light
2700 ANSI lumens
Native XGA