I am new to the world of projectors, but before spending thousands of dollars I did quite a bit of homework on various websites, reviews, buying guides, youtube videos, etc. I think my usage is pretty typical: movies with the kids, 4k action/sci-fi movies for myself and my wife, sports, and a fair amount of gaming. I wanted a projector that could handle all of this admirably without the heftier price tag of some of the higher end machines. Also, while I do have a dedicated room for the projector, it is not a fully light controlled theater room. Rather it is in my finished basement, which will let some ambient light in from a couple window wells and a nearby staircase. So, it had to hold up well in those medium light conditions too. It was hard to look at a bunch of specs on a page (e.g., contrast ratios, lumens, etc.) and know what would work for my needs.
Well, I'm happy to say that the formovie theater projector is everything I hoped it would be. I was a bit nervous during setup because there was a big blurry spot in the upper left corner--which was a problem I had seen about this projector online during research. I tried to adjust the image during setup and nothing was getting rid of it, but as soon as the projector did its firmware update, the blurriness was gone. From that point forward, I have had only minor issues, and I am truly impressed by the visual I get during some 4k movies and my ps5 games. Again, I'm a novice, and I don't have all the light/color readers to do perfect calibrations and all that. I did eyeball some minor calibrations but for the most part I shift it between the pre-programmed movie/game/sports settings. Honestly, some images are just breathtaking. I don't have a lot of experience to compare it to, but I am extremely satisfied with the picture and it is everything I was hoping it would be. I think the machine is more than bright enough for my needs. I do have two bright overhead lights right in front of my screen. And you can see from the pictures, when they are on there is an obvious difference in quality. That said, I think it stands up to that bright light very well without even adjusting any image settings. I'll still turn off the lights for the best movie experience, but the brightness/contrast is good enough to leave the lights on when I when I watch football on Sundays.
I thought the sound coming from the projector was good. It filled the room well, and had a quality presence to it. That said, my plan was always to use a home theater to get high quality surround sound so I didn't test the projector's sound too much. Setup was easy enough, although following the on-screen instructions: I set the projector up, it did a firmware update, and then I needed to set it up again. That was a little annoying, but relatively quick in the grand scheme. I did have problems linking the remote to the projector, which took much longer than it should have, but again this was a one time problem that I eventually solved just by trying to link it over and over again and finally got it--no issues since setup. The wifi connection to the projector has been the most frustrating aspect overall. I want to use streaming apps (disney, amazon, etc.; sadly netflix is unavailable) directly from the projector so networking was critical, and try as I might, I just could not get a stable wifi connection on the machine. My network is solid, and my router is only about 20 feet from the machine. I am certain have zero coverage issues there as evidenced by a laptop and other smart devices in the same exact area that are always connected. The projector would connect, but then just kept losing the connection for some reason. I never solved that issue, but I was able to create a hardwired network solution that worked for me.
Pros:
-Image quality is outstanding to my untrained eyes. Clarity, contrast, color range; when I feed it quality content, I come away very impressed
-Brightness holds up reasonably well even with bright, direct, overhead light shining on it
-I do not notice any lag when playing ps5 (though, I'm only a casual gamer)
-Menu and settings are easy to navigate
Cons:
-Wifi networking was a real issue for me. Good to have a hardwired solution as a backup
-Some frustrating setup issues (i.e., redoing setup after update, linking the remote should have been easier)
-No access to a working Netflix app on the machine
Verdict: I would strongly recommend this projector. If you absolutely cannot have a hardwired network and you care about having apps on the machine, I would be a little weary as I did spend some time trying to get the wifi connection stable and was unable to do so--this is the main reason I gave it only 4 stars. That said, the couple other issues I had were minor and short lived, which was a small price to pay for an absolutely beautiful picture which holds up well even in brighter conditions.