BenQ W1700 / HT2550 4K HDR Projector Now Available for $1,499

We wrote about BenQ W1700 4K HDR projector a couple of months ago, as the announced retail price of 1,699 Euros including VAT would make it the most affordable “True 4K” video projector on the market.

The projector was scheduled to launch in January, and the company is right on schedule with Benq HT2550 (US model name for W1700) now listed on Amazon for $1,499 with shipping expected on January 14, 2018.

We can refresh our memory with the specifications:

• Projection System – 0.47” single-DMD DLP technology with 8.3 million pixels resolution [Note: TI website still only shows 0.47″ 1080p DLP chipset, 4K chipset measures at least 0.66″]
• Resolution – VGA (640×480) to 4K UHD (3840 x 2160 native)
• Brightness (ANSI lumens) – 2200 ANSI Lumens‎
• Contrast Ratio (FOFO) – 10,000:1 ‎
• Display Color – 30 Bits (1,07 billion color)
• Light Source – 240W lamp good for 4,000 hours (Normal), 8,000 hours (SmartEco), 10,000 hours (Economic), or 15,000 hours (LampSave)
• Throw Ratio – 1.47 – 1.76 (100″ @ 3.25 m)
• Zoom Ratio – 1.2X
• Lens – F/# = 1.94 – 2.06, f = 15.57 – 18.67 mm
• Keystone Adjustment – 1D, Vertical ± 40 degrees
• Projection Offset – 110%
• Clear Image Size – 60″ ~ 200″ (max: 30″ to 300″)
• Horizontal Frequency – 15K – 102KHz‎
• Vertical Scan Rate – 23 – 120Hz‎
• Audio – 5W mono speaker, 3.5mm audio IN jack, 3.5mm audio OUT jack
• Video Input – VGA (D-sub), 1x HDMI 2.0/HDCP 2.2, 1x HDMI 1.4a/HDCP1.4
• USB – 1x USB 2.0 port, 1x mini USB port
• Misc – 1x RS232 (DB-9pin) serial port,1x 12V Trigger (3.5mm Jack), 2x IR Receivers (front and top), 1x security bar
• Special features – HDR, ISF Night/ Day, CinemaMaster Video + and Audio+2
• Power Supply – 100 to 240V AC 50/60Hz
• Power Consumption – Standby: 0.5W; typical: 330W
• Dimensions (W x H x D)(mm) – 353 x 135 x 272
• Weight – 4.2 kg

There’s been several low cost “pseudo 4K” projectors launched on the market before, and last time there was a discussion about the 0.47″ DMD used in Benq W1700 projector, which based on TI website only supports 1080p, but at the time Benq wrote it was a “True 4K” projector, and the Amazon page still reads “True 4K UHD Resolution: 8.3 million distinct pixels”. So as mentioned by one commenter it’s quite possible that “the new DLPs are probably in short supply and TI is giving them all to Benq. That is why they are not listed at the TI site”.

The projector ships with a remote control, a power cord, a user manual CD, a quick start guide, a warranty card, and a lens cover. Benq should also offer spare lamp kits and 3D Glasses as option, but I could not find those on Amazon yet.

Thanks to Harley for the tip.

Jean-Luc Aufranc (CNXSoft)

Jean-Luc started CNX Software in 2010 as a part-time endeavor, before quitting his job as a software engineering manager, and starting to write daily news, and reviews full time later in 2011.

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