With business moving to cloud workplaces have become more dynamic than ever, dependencies on fixed machines are only considered as a restriction. Laptops and Wi-Fi connections allow business meetings to happen anywhere anytime. The projectors, however, lacked portability and hence were purchased in bulk by businesses so that they can be installed in all the meeting rooms.
But over the years projectors have been reduced in size, making it possible for professionals to project their data and video anywhere they go. The new age projectors offer a wide range of cost, size, brightness, and features that were not available before. See the complete list of Best Projector Under $100 in 2020.
Buying any projector is a sizable investment and a careful assessment of which type of projector suits best for your needs is hence very important. This article will help you in deciding, if you need to buy a pico projector which costs less but has lower image quality or if you are ready to shell out a lot more money for a full sized projector and get the impressive picture quality?
Pico or pocket projectors
The pico projectors are minified versions of normal projectors, and some are roughly the size of a calculator or smartphone. The pico projector runs on batteries and uses a laser or a LED light to project an image. A typical pico projector weighs below 0.6kg and can be run from a battery power supply. Due to the small size, they generally don’t have many features or the brightest bulb.
The pico projectors in addition to slides and charts also accommodate videos and photos for on-the-go entertainment. Even though they are convenient and snazzy, they tend to be of low brightness and relatively expensive given their performance.
Advantages
- The pico projector’s small size makes them ideal for travelling or for those who have to hold meetings on the run. They are light weighted and can easily be carried in pockets; this further adds to their popularity as on the go projectors.
- The pico projector uses LEDs which helps them last longer without the need for new parts or an external power source. The pico projectors are designed with a USB input or an SD memory card reader, and users can use a USB stick or memory card to connect with the projector. The pico projectors come at a relatively cheaper price as compared to the regular projectors.
- The pico projectors can be considered as a budget solution for those who prefer the experience of watching images on a projector than small screens but lack the necessary funds.
Disadvantages
The pico projectors work on batteries that die off eventually and need recharging; this makes pico projector an unattractive option for those who like an interruption-free experience.
While a conventional projector measures in the 1000 to 3000 Lumens and sometimes, even more, a Pico Projector seldom goes above 200 Lumens and most of them are around 100 Lumens. This causes the images displayed through pico projectors low in brightness and quality, and many details are lost in the background. When there is ambient light present in the room, the pico projector fails to outshine it, and you will notice a drop in picture quality.
The pico projectors have integrated audio which makes them superior over conventional projectors, however, sometimes the audio quality is poor, and the user has to hook up stand-alone speakers.
Portable Mini Projector
Portable mini projectors are larger and cast brighter images as compared to pico projectors. They also have provision for more ports, built-in sound, and extra storage space, and yet they are lightweight enough to be carried in laptop bags. Like pico projectors, the palmtop or mini projectors also come fitted with USB input or SD card reader. Also, some mini projectors also have 1GB or more of internal memory for storing media files.
Advantages
- Many of The mini projectors come with a built-in rechargeable battery. This means you don’t have to be concerned with having an extension cord or outlet to run your presentation. The micro projectors also have a long-lasting lamp life, up to 30,000 hours and adds on a good cost-saving element to it.
Disadvantages
The mini projectors are smaller in size compared to the conventional projectors. Hence, they don’t have enough space to pack all the components required to display bright images with clear contrast. Their use depends heavily on the lighting conditions of the room, the visibility of images is better in dark rooms for mini projectors. Even though the mini projector’s display quality is better than the pico projector’s for some people their size vs image quality is not right.
For those professionals that require more flexibility from their projectors in terms of where and how they are used, it is worth analysing just how portable you need your projector to be.