Details on the HITACHI CPA100:
Offering a new level of versatility and performance to the education and corporate markets, Hitachi America, Ltd., Ubiquitous Platform Systems Division is unveiling the CP-A100 3LCD projector. This revolutionary new model features a very short throw distance, eliminating the problem of presenters obstructing the projected image by standing in front of the screen. Additionally, the CP-A100 offers networking capability, allowing multiple projectors to be controlled and monitored from a single location. The CP-A100 boasts an extremely short throw distance of 60 inches at 1.4 feet. This not only prevents image obstruction, but also means there are no shadows interfering with the image and no light in the presenter's face. The versatile CP-A100 can be placed vertically as well as horizontally, as well as inverted for ceiling mount applications, making positioning of the projector more convenient. Adding to the user's convenience is the network connectivity of the CP-A100, which allows for simultaneous monitoring and control of several projectors from a remote location. This is particularly beneficial in schools and large corporate environments, where projectors are located throughout a facility and the monitoring of each projector is a time-consuming ordeal. With the benefits of networking technology, a technician can monitor details such as lamp life for each projector from his/her computer. Additionally, the CP-A100's performance stands alone among competitive models. It offers a brightness of 2,500 lumens, XGA resolution and a 500:1 contrast ratio.
JUST PROJECTORS REVIEW OF THIS PRODUCT
The main reason for considering an ultra-short-throw projector is that you can use it in situations where you can't use standard projectors. You can, for example, project large images in a small room; mount the projector behind the screen for rear projection even where there isn't much room behind the screen; or mount the projector under a table to use the table top as a screen. The CP-A100 even comes with plastic feet you can attach (using one screw for each foot) so you can sit the projector on a table top vertically, with the front facing down, to project an image down onto the table.
The CP-A100 offers an important advantage over the NEC WT610E and another over the Sanyo PLC-XL50. Like the PLC-XL50, the CP-A100 is built around an LCD engine, so there's no possibility of seeing a rainbow effect even if you're sensitive to it—a potential issue with the DLP-based WT610E. But like the WT610E, the CP-A100 isn't limited to the PLC-XL50's maximum image size of 80 inches diagonal. (The CP-A100's maximum recommended image size is 120 inches.)
Set the CP-A100 up in two ways. I started with our preferred 98-inch diagonal (2-meter-wide) size for our standard test suite. To get the full-size image, I had to place the CP-A100 all of 15 inches from the screen, as measured from the front of the projector. (The mirror that reflects the image onto the screen is near the back). In addition, I set up the CP-A100 to use Hitachi FX duoboard—a 50-inch (diagonal) touch-screen whiteboard—which Hitachi sent along with the projector. In this case, I put the whiteboard flat on a table, added the plastic feet to the projector, and set it to project down onto the whiteboard.
The CP-A100 is much easier to set up than, for example, the PLC-XL50. Like any short-throw projector, it is hard to position correctly, since it's so close to the screen that even a slight variation in position or angle will affect the image. Once it's positioned properly, however, it's easy to adjust the zoom and focus. You can control both zoom and focus from the remote, which means you can stand far enough back to see the whole screen at once. (The zoom is strictly digital, but works like an optical zoom to adjust overall image size rather than zooming in on a portion of the screen, which is what most digital zoom features do.)
The rest of the setup is standard, consisting of little more than plugging in the appropriate cables. Like many projectors, the CP-A100 comes with only a VGA cable, but offers lots of connectors, including two VGA connectors for computer input and one pass-through monitor connector. Choices for video include RCA phono plug jacks for composite and component video and an S-Video connector. In addition, there's a USB port to connect to your computer for mouse control, connectors for both audio input and output, and a LAN connector for controlling and monitoring the projector as well as for sending relatively simple presentations to it over a network.
If you need a projector for presentations or special applications where only an ultra short-throw projector will do, the CP-A100 is one of the best choices overall, with a combination of image quality, image size, and features that earns it an our choice in the ultra-short-throw category. |
