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It is literally everyone’s dream to own a good entertainment system at home. After a long day, all you always want to do is sit back and enjoy your favourite content on a huge screen. And yes, having a big screen is not overrated at all. But the cost of getting that screen is what sets people back most of the time.
But what if projectors began becoming a norm among Kenyan households as much as TVs? You would not believe it but projectors have actually been getting better over the years and still remaining affordable and accessible.
So which between the two is worth having?
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Cost
When it comes to price, TV projectors are much more effective. An 80-inch TV in Kenyan stores would cost you about KES 150k or even more depending on the make and model. On the other hand, a decent HD projector with a 100-inch screen can be found for less than KES 100k.
While screen size tends to be the starting point for most shoppers, other features quickly drive up the cost, like OLED technology in TVs and lasers in HD projectors.
Winner: Projectors
Resolution & Screen Size
Any TV enthusiast knows that 4K is all the rage these days. Interestingly, both large screen TVs and HD projectors can handle it wonderfully. But there’s more to resolution than just a number. 4K can particularly be hard to experience unless you’re watching on a huge screen.
Cramming that many pixels into a regular TV size make them disappointingly small and hard to distinguish.
Meanwhile, HD projectors surprisingly tend to shine in this department. This is mostly because the screen is usually large enough to show the impressive amount of detail that comes with 4K.
That is not to say that the gap isn’t closing since TVs are getting bigger every year. But projector screens are more likely to provide a bigger field of view compared to TV screens.
Winner: Projectors
Brightness and Contrast
There are projectors that are capable of very high contrast ratios. The only issue is that contrast is also a function of brightness. This is mainly why most projectors always require a dim room to produce a quality image. So, you will notice the picture getting washed out a lot during the day if your room is well lit.
TVs, on the other hand, easily put out plenty of brightness. This is especially more common with LED and QLED TVs. Nevertheless, you have to keep in mind that brighter isn’t always better. This is why OLED TVs come in and just blow the competition away when it comes to contrast.
Winner: TVs
Sound Quality
Almost every modern TV now comes in with built-in speakers. In fact, the competition is getting so stiff that some like TCL pack soundbars so you don’t have to bu a whole new sound system.
Some projectors also feature built-in speakers but they are rarely any good. If you truly wish to set up a home theatre with a projector, you will need to invest in a quality speaker system. That said, projectors don’t always come with built-in speakers and when they do, they are even worse than what you’ll find in TVs.
Winner: TVs
It is surprising to see how much TVs and projectors would compete in various categories. So now that you were only looking at TVs as the only choice, you might want to re-evaluate your variety. In the end, the one that’s better for you really comes down to personal preference and how you plan to use it.
Feature Photo by Chauhan Moniz on Unsplash
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