Epson PowerLite 6500UB 1080p Home Cinema Projector Review

November 10, 2009

Epson’s PowerLite Home Cinema 6500UB is considered the premier home theatre projector available from Epson. The projector is Full HD (1080p – 1920 x 1080 pixels) and you can check the suitability of this resolution for your situation with our 1080p vs 720p guide. The Epson 6500UB is built around Epson’s latest D7 C2Fine technology for the best picture quality.

Epson PowerLite 6500UB Projector

For smoother fast action onscreen such as during sports broadcasts the PowerLite Home Cinema comes with 120Hz FineFrame technology. This technology interpolates extra frames providing smoother transitions between frames. Movies can be watched at the same frame rate as they were filmed (24 frames per second) near eliminating any judder.

The brightness of 1600 lumens matches a home projector which will tolerate some ambient light and still produce suitably bright projected images. Epson’s AsoluteBlack technology, auto iris and D7 TFT micro display panels deliver a high 75,000:1 contrast ratio (highest of Epson home cinemas) with the associated picture quality. Epson’s new 1080p Full HD D7 HTPS LCD microdisplay panels have significantly higher contrast ratios, smoother images and deeper black reproduction capabilities. The 12-bit panel driver is capable of rendering smoother gradations in color.

With a weight of 16.5 lb/7.3 kg the 6500UB cannot be considered portable and is more suited to permanent installation. The 22dB (ECO mode) operating sound level is notably quiet – great for home cinema

To assist with projector setup the Epson 6500UB has Vertical ±96% and Horizontal ± 47% lens shift which produces better picture quality than digital keystone correction. The Fujinon lens delivers an optical zoom of 3.1x making this projector the most flexible in regard to distance from the projector to the screen.

There is a good range of connectivity options available including twin HDMI, USB, Component Video, and S-Video digital connections. HDMI is convenient as it provides audio and video connection with just one cable.

The energy efficient, long-life E-RORL lamp used in the PowerLite 6500UB has a rated life of up to 3,000 hours dependent on use.