After spending a month on looking for a projector that provides quality at an affordable price, I decided to go with GooDee's YG600 model. A friend of mine owns the previous, YG500 model, and I can tell that there has been a major update since, both in the resolution (this one is a WXGA projector) and the brightness of the light source.
The photos attached were taken with a smart phone. The second picture shows how the image is like with night light on (6W LED, comparable to a 40W standard bulb). As one can see, the image still has enough contrast to it. In a dark environment, it truly renders a cinema experience.
There are several options available in the menu. Amongst others, one can set the colour temperature (there are preset options, such as cold, standard, warm), colour balance (e.g., dynamic, user defined), there are audio filters that boost bass if needed (the audio quality is pretty decent given that the projector has only two 3W speakers; one is seemingly dedicated to drive bass; altogether, they fill a room with no problem), and one can also set date, time and sleep timer.
As for the quality of the image, the resolution of the LCD panel of the projector is the same as that of a standard 13"-15" monitor. At a projected size of 100" (the one claimed to be the optimal), one can enjoy HD contents without losing detail. I found that there are two useful contrast options: standard and dynamic. The former gives a bit more detail to the picture, whereas the latter stretches the contrast, making bright parts of the image stand out and deepening dark areas. Also, with dynamic contrast and adjusted, slightly reduced green tint and raised red level, the colours are very close to how my computer's screen renders them with calibrated colour profile. Please mind that the Keystone correction is optical, so the edges of the picture may be blurry when projected at an angle. This, however, is known to affect all similar projectors (just like slight chromatic aberration around the edges does).
The fan of the projector is of course audible, but it is in no way disruptive. The tiny holes in the front panel are not just part of the stylish design but also help heat dissipation. The fans seem to cool the device efficiently, pumping out a lot of hot air (while leaving the case itself cold to touch). I am sure it prolongs the life of the light source.
As for the in-built OS, the OSD seems to have been translated to many languages, but there is room for improvement. I could not find an option for changing the volume; one could change it though using the remote control. Also, while the device plays MKV files with no problem, I could not seem to find an option for changing the language of the subtitles shown. Should one use a computer or a media stick to stream content, these issues do not emerge; they might, however, if one plans to play media files from a micro SD card or via USB.
On balance, I think this is the best projector currently available on the market in terms of quality/price.
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