Many Americans are looking for a home theater projector to get the ultimate movie experience at home. There are two main types of projectors to choose from: Digital Light Processing (DLP) and Liquid Crystal Display (LCD).

These two forms both have their advantages and disadvantages, although the latest models are looking to bridge some of the quality gaps to make both types of video projectors indistinguishable. Dolgoff was credited with starting the first company specializing in LCD projectors, creating the US HDTV standards using digital projection and co-developing the ANSI standard for measuring brightness, contrast and resolution of theater projectors.

home theater projector
The largest manufacturers of the LCD projector are Epson, Sony and Panasonic. The Epson Home Cinema 6500UB 1080p home theater projector is a good choice, retailing around $2,999 full price. This projector uses a new feature called “creative frame interpolation” to smooth out fast-moving motion and eliminate ghosting or rainbow effects.

Reviewers say that this Epson has some of the best black level performance of any other 1080 model, although it’s shadow detail is not quite perfect. The brightness is above average, the image is sharp and the two year warranty is solid.

While it’s quieter than a DLP projector, this model is a bit noisier than other 3LCD projectors. The Epson Home Cinema 6100 is a similar model for under $2,100.

The Epson is good, but for those consumers who demand ultra-high-contrast, there are some other portable projectors on the market to consider. It only takes one movie filmed in the dark, where minutes of the film are lost due to poor performance to inspire someone to seek out this feature.

LCD projector manufacturers were hip to this concept and, as a result, nearly all 1080p projectors have decent black level performance. The best of the bunch are 3LCD projectors, which harness new polarization techniques and dynamic irises.

The color saturation is as impressive as the luminance.

video projection
Over the years, the home theater projector has made significant advances in contrast and pixel resolution, which used to be the DLP projector’s strength. They are also bringing more affordable high-definition, wider screens to the public, with all of the 1280 x 720 HDTV projectors retailing under $5,000 classified as LCD products.

While Sharp has announced a DLP unit for $3,999, it is still double the least expensive LCD video projectors. All the projectors with the highest ANSI lumen ratings (3,000 – 6,000) are LCD, except for one DLP model by Optoma and one by ViewSonic.

It’s getting simpler and simpler to find discounted large screens today, both for televisions and computer monitors. With all the new technologies available for display devices, the old technologies are less expensive than ever. If you can endure the size and bulk, you can get really discounted large screens for much less than just a handful of years ago. The really expensive screens today are all LCD or plasma technology, which has made less demand for the older CRT stuff. Don’t worry if you don’t understand the tech talk – it’s kind of like someone with a personal trainer certification understanding more about fitness terms.

I don’t really mind the bulkiness so much. Myself, I think I’d much rather have a discounted large screen CRT TV or monitor than a more expensive, smaller LCD or plasma display. Furthermore, LCD and plasma screens are still suffering from a lot of technical issues, whereas the older CRT technology is very reliable – like niche marketing methods – don’t get caught up in all the fancy Twitter and Web 2.0, good old reliable SEO is sometimes the ticket.

There’s a lot of high-quality places to find discounted large screens these days, giving you loads of choices. I usually do my preliminary shopping on the web to get a quick feel for prices and availabilities. You can get pretty high-quality prices ordering discounted large screens directly from their manufacturers. Looking on Sharps home page, for example, I see a lot of huge deals there. Of course the down side is you have to pay for shipping, which can be a lot for such a large item. For this reason I don’t usually buy things like discounted large screens via the net, but use it mainly just to get a feel for current pricing trends.

One of my favorite places to check out discounted large screens is at Costco, or other warehouse style wholesalers. Costco doesn’t really ever have a huge selection, but they’ve always got at least a few models of just about anything you’d ever want in. I don’t usually go to Costco just to get something like a discounted large screen TV but whenever I’m there – for instance, for medication that helps with how to get rid of cold sores – I certainly look at what they have.

Fry’s electronics is an additional high-quality store to check out if you have one near you. Sadly, I don’t, so I have to drive for almost an hour to get to one. Whenever I find myself near one, however, I always make a quick stop inside to see what kind of deals they have. I always see a pretty large selection of discounted large screen TVs and monitors whenever I’m in there, and their prices are always in line with everything I see on the web, so I think they’re a pretty high-quality store to start with if you are able.

At first glance, you may think a rear projection television looks a lot like an LCD or plasma screen TV. However, to be considered a rear projection TV, the unit must contain: video projectors technology, a magnifying lens, a reflecting mirror, a presentation screen and a sealed box that houses all these components.

While most manufacturers are focusing on more expensive plasma and flat screen technology, there are still a few, like Samsung and Mitsubishi, that are making these high-quality, lower-cost alternatives.

rear projection tv
Samsung is one of the most renowned brands for rear projection television sets these days. Their 2008 line of Samsung Digital Light Processing HDTVs are noted for their excellent picture performance, wide range of features, connectivity options and reasonable price.

At 17.8 inches deep, these TVs are slim for rear projection televisions ranging between 50 and 72 inches tall. The Series 6 DLP HDTV comes with a handsome casing with hidden speakers, but also lets you connect USB cables and a number of AV cables to its extended connectivity suite. You’ll get a 2500:1 contrast ratio with the Series 6, but the 7 and 8 Series boast an impressive 10,000:1.

Samsung 7′s new Cinema Pure Color Engine is powered by a 2.4 LED light source (rather than the traditional projector lamp bulb), so instead of lasting 2,000 hours, you’re good for 60,000 hours of watching. The brightness is 40% better compared to previous models and the Samsung brand in general holds its own against competitors like Mitsubishi and Panasonic, including projection screen.

projection screens
Even so, many consumers love Mitsubishi’s top-selling projection televisions, the 60-inch, WD-60735 model 1080p DLP HDTV. Sizes for this top rear projector TV manufacturer range from 60 inch to 73 inch, just a bit larger than Samsung’s line, and the ultra-slim cabinet and bezel are similar. Aside from its appealing appearance, the Mitsubishi models employ technology aimed at reducing motion blur and creating crisper, sharper images.

There are a number of connectivity options and also a wide range of controls that allow you to adjust six colors of tint, as well as the brightness and contrast. These rear projection televisions are a bit more extensive but the WD-835 Diamond Series has been received very well by consumers.

video projectors
Economically, rear projection TVs make sense compared to their more expensive LCD flat panel or plasma screen counterparts. Generally speaking, rear projection televisions are the best way to get the largest screen for the least amount of money. For instance, the 50-inch Samsung HL50A650 rear projection (1080p HDTV) costs just under $1,000.

A plasma HDTV of the same size and quality would cost around $5000 or more. Although the price differential is even more impressive when you look at the larger models, you can expect to pay thousands more for LCD flat panel TV sets over a rear projection TV.