TABLE OF CONTENTS
Consumers are choosing Projectors over TV’s with greater frequency than ever before. There are two main reasons for this: bigger screen size and better portability. Many also like the versatility Projectors offer, with connections to a large number of devices including Phones, Tablets, PC’s and Games Consoles. But then they have to make a decision. Which Projector do they buy? This is the hard part, especially for people who don’t have expert knowledge. So, being the helpful reviewer I am, I try to break down in simple terms the pro’s and con’s of each one, and today we’ll be taking on the DBPOWER Tenker Q5 Projector, 1500 Lumens LED Mini Projector support 1080p. Are you ready to read all about how this device works?
PROS
- Upscales to 1080p
- Cheap Price
- 1500 Lumens
- Super-Portable
- Nice Contrast Ratio 1000:1
- LED Light Source
CONS
- Wi-Fi Dongle Sold Separately
- Not Bright Enough for Business Presentations
Size/Design
The Tenker Q5 comes in at a weight of 1.98 pounds. 4-10 pounds would be considered portable and 1-3 pounds is considered in the industry to be super-portable. So this mini Projector is a super-portable, very lightweight device in comparison with other options on the market. The measurements are 7.7×5.9×2.7 inches so it’s also on the smaller side of current market offerings. It’s easily transferable and can fit in into any Briefcase or Bag. Even a large pocket might do. Full marks for portability then and the design while basic, is functional with its connections clearly placed. Plus play, pause, stop fast forward and rewind buttons accessible on the unit and by remote control. It’s not outstanding to look at, but few are in this price range though it’s not ugly either.
Special Features
Lumens
1500 is great for the price of under 100 dollars. You wouldn’t usually expect anything over 500 in the sub-100 bracket. This means that you won’t have to wait until rooms are pitch black as you would with a 500 Lumen device. But, bear in mind, you will need darkness because any kind of brightness will produce blurry and distorted images.
Image Quality
The native resolution is 800×480 which is again, what you’d expect for this price and it’s reasonable though not amazing, and not HD. Interestingly though, the Q5 does upscale to 1080p. Upscaling is when your Projector rather cleverly guesses the missing pixels to create images in more detail than its native resolution. So since HD 1920x1080p is significantly more detailed than 800×480, the Q5 will fill in the gaps, creating something close to 1080p. Upscaling never produces images exactly like 1080p, but it’s pretty near.
Contrast Ratio 1000:1
This is something many people bypass with their eyes on their way across to resolution and screen size. But it’s important. The contrast Ratio determines how bold and stark blacks and whites will be when you’re viewing. 1000:1 is high for the price and works well with the LED’s to produce clarity when you’re watching gangster movies or playing video games. I was happy to see such a high Contrast Ratio as I wouldn’t normally associate 1000:1 with the sub-100 market.
Light Source
What is LED? Well, it stands for Light Emitting Diodes but what they do is very simple. LEDs are a relatively new technology and are much brighter than LCDs. So they help you get more vibrant and beautiful images. This kind of brightness certainly helps in the upscaling to 1080p and allows you generally to get clearer images than you’d find with an LCD light source. There’s also a wider color gamut, so more colors mean more detail. It should be noted though, that since the LED light source is passing through an LCD display then it is not considered pure LED.
Connections
Connections included are VGA, USB, HDMI, AV and you have an SD Card Reader. If you want to connect your computer you can do it directly through the VGA or HDMI ports. To connect a Tablet use the USB port. The AV port will directly mirror your Games Console. For Phones there are the following options: You have to purchase a wi-fi dongle or buy an adapter. The wi-fi dongle is cheap and easy to set up so I’d suggest you go for that.
Throw distance
Throw distance is a measurement of the distance between the lens and the screen. It’s important because it determines how far back you have to place the Projector to get optimum pictures across various screen sizes. You usually get short throws on super-portables and the Tenker Q5 doesn’t disappoint. For 100-inch screen size, you’d need to place your Projector 9.8 feet back (2.98 meters) You can get 50 inches from only 3.77 feet away or 1.15 meters. Meaning you can fit this into most small or moderately-sized rooms.
Final Thoughts
If you were to go out and spend double or triple the price of the Tenker Q5 then you’d get something with a full 1080p picture and greater brightness. But if you want to buy in the budget range (this only costs around 80 dollars), then you’re getting a great deal. The Lumens at 1500, are triple the average at this price. It also does an excellent job of upscaling no doubt helped by the LED light source and the Lumens. The Throw distance is good in comparison to any super-portable on the market and there’s a range of connections for external devices. The was very pleased with how the Tenker Q5 performed. Thank you for reading.
