I’ve tested a few BenQ products lately. My favorite has been their Mac monitor with Apple Studio Display specs and a more affordable price. The most fun? A new category for me: projectors. The GP520 4K HDR model BenQ loaned me to test alleviated my concerns about the practicality of a projector instead of a TV.
Why this projector feels fun to use
What’s so fun about a projector? Watching movies and TV shows with Apple Vision Pro is great. You can recreate the experience of watching video on a gigantic screen from anywhere. It’s my favorite way to watch stuff I really care about on my own.
The BenQ GP520 does a great job at recreating that cinematic viewing experience, but in a shared environment. Important to this experience is that it doesn’t require much configuration. I didn’t need to build a movie theater at home. I just used a flat surface to place the projector, a mostly unobstructed view, and a blank wall. I never used any mounting hardware, and I didn’t have a blank projection screen.
First, this worked great in the playroom for movie night with a house full of kids. Then I wanted to try it on a larger wall at a greater distance. Upgrade, but too much daylight. Later, I rearranged some furniture to try it on the largest wall possible. This room had more windows but less direct sunlight. Worked like a charm, day and night.
How the BenQ GP520 fits into everyday life
Specs like 4K resolution, 2600 lumen output, and lots of built-in intelligence make the BenQ GP520 wonderful. In each room, there was no setup required. If I wanted to play with what was possible, however, I could dial in size and focus. The automatic tools for sizing, focus, and color were fantastic, allowing me to move the projector between rooms without a lot of configuration.
Like many TVs, BenQ GP520 has a built-in Google TV system for doing Google TV things. Naturally, I connected an Apple TV 4K over HDMI and enjoyed all the benefits of 4K HDR, CEC with a single remote, and all the benefits of tvOS. Every day was movie night, day or night, which was great for summer break.
From Apple TV 4K to iPad gaming
BenQ GP520 is also tuned for gaming. My family got a lot of use out of it as the Xbox Series S display. Later, when the console had a sleepover at another house, I used a PS5 controller with my iPad Pro and connected to the projector over USB-C to play along with them without battery drain.
At $1499, the BenQ GP520 (BenQ / Amazon) is probably more projector than someone projector-curious like me would consider. After testing, though, I think the BenQ GP520 specs and features like auto obstacle avoidance, digital keystone correction, and auto focus make the difference between a decent experience and absolutely considering it fun. It also quite competitive to other models in the 4K resolution range, offering a great starting point for anyone serious about video projectors.
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