InFocus IN82

The basics

The InFocus IN82 is a full-HD DLP projector with 4,000:1 boosting to 12,000:1 with a manual iris. On-board Pixelworks DNX 10-bit video processing includes upscaling, de-interlacing and full support for 2:35:1 aspect ratios (needs an anamorphic lens) are all included!

The good

Not everyone mounts their projector in a windowless underground bunker lit by four guttering candles. The InFocus IN82 delivers wall-spanning video in even normal rooms, thanks to an adjustable iris that can sacrifice brightness for deeper, richer blacks, or pump up the photons to work in the sunniest of rooms. (Just don’t go installing it in your conservatory). Video quality – even from upscaling standard def sources – is drool-worthy enough, but throw in a full suite of connectivity (HDMI v1.3, DVI, PC, RS232) and a gorgeously glossy black design and you’ve got a projector worth slavering over.

The bad

One of the best things about home cinema is that you don’t have kids whooping and slurping drinks through the good bits. A shame, then, that this InFocus makes as much noise as a teen Hoovering a super-size 7-Up through a garden hose. The lowest bit-rate Freeview channels can also look rather chunky. And have you seen the price?

The bottom line

Chucking down three grand on a telly might seem like the height of folly but there are actually far more frivolous purchases out there. Fabergé eggs, for instance, don’t even make a nice omelette. A very bright, very serious, very luxury purchase.