With DLP-based home-theater projectors these days, it's all about the Texas Instruments DMD (Digital Micromirror Device)--the chip, in other words--inside. InFocus's ScreenPlay 7210 (S$11,999 (US$7,894.27) list) is one of the first projectors on the market to employ the DC3 (Dark Chip 3) DMD from the company. The main benefit of this chip is increased black-level performance, which makes the darkest areas of the picture appear closer to true black and, in turn, increases contrast ratio and other important aspects of image quality. The 7210 is definitely a step above the less expensive 7205 because of this new chip, but we think it's well worth the price.
Design of the InFocus ScreenPlay 7210 home theater projector
The InFocus 7210 looks virtually identical to its predecessor, the 7205, which remains on the market. It has a basic, no-frills design, and the case is surprisingly small (351 x 325 x 110mm), with the lens assembly mounted all the way on the left side of the chassis. We liked the videocentric light-gray finish, which should prove unobtrusive when the projector is tucked up on the ceiling.
InFocus's remote control is quite small and can be fully backlit with the push of a button on the side of the unit. It has direct-access keys for aspect-ratio control as well as input switching, which makes changing sources convenient. The internal menu system, while straightforward enough, was a bit of a pain to navigate. You need to know that the Select button acts as a Return button, bringing you back one page in the menu at a time. Otherwise you'll find yourself hitting the Menu button and backing all the way out of the menu when you wanted only to go back to the previous page.
Features of the InFocus ScreenPlay 7210 home theater projector
The InFocus 7210 lacks typical TV conveniences such as picture-in-picture, but it offers a good package as front projectors go. Its primary feature is the DC3 DLP chip we mentioned at the outset, which delivers a native resolution of 1,280x720. That's an exact match for 720p HDTV, and all other resolutions (including 1080i HDTV and computer sources) are scaled to fit that pixel count.
A number of cool picture-enhancing features are also onboard. Picture sizing (zoom) and focus controls are manual at the lens assembly. There's 2:3 pull-down processing, which works its magic as long as Film Mode is selected in the Advanced menu--happily, it comes from the factory set that way. A number of gamma settings are available; again, the most accurate, Film, is the factory preset. The three selectable color-temperature settings include 6,500K, 7,500K, and 9,300K, with 6,500K coming closest to the broadcast standard.
The 7210 has a keystone-correction feature that we recommend you do not use since it reduces resolution and introduces artifacts in the picture. You're much better off making sure that you or your installer gets the projector in the right place relative to the screen so that you don't have to use this. Unlike some higher-end projectors, the 7210 lacks lens shift, a feature that can adjust the relative position of the image without affecting picture quality.
This projector's connectivity is reasonably good, though not spectacular. The digital video connection is labeled M1-DA and looks like a standard DVI connector, except it's larger. Standard DVI cables won't fit; you'll need to get an M1-to-DVI or M1-to-HDMI cable or adapter to use this connection with your digital video gear. That's pretty irritating.
Two broadband component-video inputs are onboard, as well as a 15-pin VGA connection for computers, two S-Video connections, one composite-video input, an RS-232 control port for use with Crestron and other touch-panel control systems, and two 12-volt triggers for electric drop-down-screen control. Another unusual connection, labeled D5, requires an adapter to connect to SCART, an RGB video connector used mainly in Europe.
Performance of the InFocus ScreenPlay 7210 home theater projector
Overall, the InFocus 7210 delivers an excellent picture. Prior to calibration, its performance was quite impressive compared to that of most of the competition. Grayscale tracking in the 6,500K setting with gamma set to Film came fairly close to ideal, although grayscale calibration definitely improved the 7210's overall color accuracy (see the geek box for more).
Defaults for color, tint, and especially contrast were not ideal, but we've come to expect that; we've seen much worse from most consumer digital TVs. The factory preset of 50 for contrast clips detail in white areas a bit. We found 45 the highest usable contrast setting, producing ample light output on our 72-inch-wide Stewart Filmscreen Studiotek 130 screen. The 7210 could easily fill larger screens as well.
The video processing is good, and as long as the 2:3 pull-down option is engaged, the projector does an excellent job recognizing and dealing with film-based material. The lens is a big improvement over the one on the first-generation 7200, with far fewer chromatic aberrations and no detectable barrel distortion. Color decoding is quite good, with only a slight error in green and no red push whatsoever. Black-level and contrast-ratio performance are also better than on the less expensive 7205, thanks to the 7210's DC3 chip.
Dark material, such as space scenes from the excellent DVDs of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back and Alien revealed deep, rich blacks. We saw some low-level noise (dithering), but that is common to DLP technology, a function of the bit rate in the video processing. Star Wars also showed off the 7210's excellent color saturation and natural-looking skin tones.
The HD content from Time Warner Cable of New York City was awesome. The HDNet channel looked great, with excellent detail and rich, vibrant colors that were so saturated they almost looked wet. We also measured a full 720 lines of vertical resolution from our signal generator via the component-video outputs.
The InFocus 7210 is an excellent value in its category. The similarly priced Sharp XV-Z12000 has some additional flexibility, such as vertical lens shift, and it also has a superior lens, but it doesn't use the DC3 chip.
Design of the InFocus ScreenPlay 7210 home theater projector
The InFocus 7210 looks virtually identical to its predecessor, the 7205, which remains on the market. It has a basic, no-frills design, and the case is surprisingly small (351 x 325 x 110mm), with the lens assembly mounted all the way on the left side of the chassis. We liked the videocentric light-gray finish, which should prove unobtrusive when the projector is tucked up on the ceiling.
InFocus's remote control is quite small and can be fully backlit with the push of a button on the side of the unit. It has direct-access keys for aspect-ratio control as well as input switching, which makes changing sources convenient. The internal menu system, while straightforward enough, was a bit of a pain to navigate. You need to know that the Select button acts as a Return button, bringing you back one page in the menu at a time. Otherwise you'll find yourself hitting the Menu button and backing all the way out of the menu when you wanted only to go back to the previous page.
Features of the InFocus ScreenPlay 7210 home theater projector
The InFocus 7210 lacks typical TV conveniences such as picture-in-picture, but it offers a good package as front projectors go. Its primary feature is the DC3 DLP chip we mentioned at the outset, which delivers a native resolution of 1,280x720. That's an exact match for 720p HDTV, and all other resolutions (including 1080i HDTV and computer sources) are scaled to fit that pixel count.
A number of cool picture-enhancing features are also onboard. Picture sizing (zoom) and focus controls are manual at the lens assembly. There's 2:3 pull-down processing, which works its magic as long as Film Mode is selected in the Advanced menu--happily, it comes from the factory set that way. A number of gamma settings are available; again, the most accurate, Film, is the factory preset. The three selectable color-temperature settings include 6,500K, 7,500K, and 9,300K, with 6,500K coming closest to the broadcast standard.
The 7210 has a keystone-correction feature that we recommend you do not use since it reduces resolution and introduces artifacts in the picture. You're much better off making sure that you or your installer gets the projector in the right place relative to the screen so that you don't have to use this. Unlike some higher-end projectors, the 7210 lacks lens shift, a feature that can adjust the relative position of the image without affecting picture quality.
This projector's connectivity is reasonably good, though not spectacular. The digital video connection is labeled M1-DA and looks like a standard DVI connector, except it's larger. Standard DVI cables won't fit; you'll need to get an M1-to-DVI or M1-to-HDMI cable or adapter to use this connection with your digital video gear. That's pretty irritating.
Two broadband component-video inputs are onboard, as well as a 15-pin VGA connection for computers, two S-Video connections, one composite-video input, an RS-232 control port for use with Crestron and other touch-panel control systems, and two 12-volt triggers for electric drop-down-screen control. Another unusual connection, labeled D5, requires an adapter to connect to SCART, an RGB video connector used mainly in Europe.
Performance of the InFocus ScreenPlay 7210 home theater projector
Overall, the InFocus 7210 delivers an excellent picture. Prior to calibration, its performance was quite impressive compared to that of most of the competition. Grayscale tracking in the 6,500K setting with gamma set to Film came fairly close to ideal, although grayscale calibration definitely improved the 7210's overall color accuracy (see the geek box for more).
Defaults for color, tint, and especially contrast were not ideal, but we've come to expect that; we've seen much worse from most consumer digital TVs. The factory preset of 50 for contrast clips detail in white areas a bit. We found 45 the highest usable contrast setting, producing ample light output on our 72-inch-wide Stewart Filmscreen Studiotek 130 screen. The 7210 could easily fill larger screens as well.
The video processing is good, and as long as the 2:3 pull-down option is engaged, the projector does an excellent job recognizing and dealing with film-based material. The lens is a big improvement over the one on the first-generation 7200, with far fewer chromatic aberrations and no detectable barrel distortion. Color decoding is quite good, with only a slight error in green and no red push whatsoever. Black-level and contrast-ratio performance are also better than on the less expensive 7205, thanks to the 7210's DC3 chip.
Dark material, such as space scenes from the excellent DVDs of Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back and Alien revealed deep, rich blacks. We saw some low-level noise (dithering), but that is common to DLP technology, a function of the bit rate in the video processing. Star Wars also showed off the 7210's excellent color saturation and natural-looking skin tones.
The HD content from Time Warner Cable of New York City was awesome. The HDNet channel looked great, with excellent detail and rich, vibrant colors that were so saturated they almost looked wet. We also measured a full 720 lines of vertical resolution from our signal generator via the component-video outputs.
The InFocus 7210 is an excellent value in its category. The similarly priced Sharp XV-Z12000 has some additional flexibility, such as vertical lens shift, and it also has a superior lens, but it doesn't use the DC3 chip.
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