I see what you mean, but its using something called ansi lumes wich seems to be a diferent mesurement. Dont know if 200 is good with that messurement.

But im not worried. I work at night, so Im already prepared for  that and have full black out room. Living room is mostly blacked out but is an easy done.

Already got a 4k 60" hdr. I want a projector cuz I travelel for work and wanted something I can move around with. I rented a basement around where I work so darkenning it is easy. So as long as I get native 1080p and is small enough to pack in a bag im good.

My first projector was also a Panasonic (model PT-AE700E, 1280x720), which I bought in 2004.

In 2008 I added my beautiful Sony "Pearl" VPL-VW50 (1920x1080), but I still kept the Panasonic around for a while for 720p games and DVDs:

Well in that case then you should look up 1080p Optoma or BenQ Short throw projectors. You would be looking at around $700 for them though but their non short throw equivalents can be had for as little as $500.

ANSI lumens just means they used a standardized method to measure the light output. There is no conversion going on. ANSI lumens sounds more reliable in marketing. However you can trust ProjectorCentral. They provide a throw distance calculator which will tell you the end result what to expect in terms of brightness for any screen size and type of screen. It will also show how much ambient light you can have for the screen size you are aiming for.

In the dark it will work, just expect a dull image more suitable for 65" projection. For example a 250 lumen pocket projector
https://www.projectorcentral.com/LG-PH30JG-projection-calculator-pro.htm
Max screen size is 75" for a 15 fL (50 nits) image brightness, that's on a screen. Below that they recommend a brighter projector. So for 200 lumens you want a smaller screen.

LED projectors generally do provide a brighter end result than LCD. My projector is rated at 1100 lumens, yet comes up with 15 fL at 102", 28 fL at 75", not even double for 4.4 times brighter lamp. Lumens is not the end all measurement hence why projectorcentral is so useful. FYI halving the screen diagonal size, quadruples the image brightness and vice versa.

A buddy got a $200 unit for xmas and while it can go from 90"- 150" I believe, it's only 1080p in max and 480p display out. The big screen is nice, but really only for split screen. The reviews for it are solid, and it's a decent unit, has almost no noticeable lag, and is plenty bright, but the low res just kills it. Games, movies, doesn't matter. When I go from looking at that screen, to my 50" 1080p plasma, there's no comparison. I'd rather live with the smaller screen size, but that's just me.
I'd personally go for 720p out minimum. The price seems to jump quite a bit from 480 to 720, but considerably less from 720 to 1080, so if I ever decided to go 720, it would be tough not to spring for the 1080, unless my budget was super specific.

If you want to know if a projector is for you in the first place could I recommend firstly looking at the second hand market on sites like CEX or similar in your area, the first projector I got from there was as a proof of concept for my setup something like https://ie.webuy.com/product-detail/?id=sprogen800600b&categoryName=projectors&superCatName=electronics&title=generic-800x600-projector-b is going to be fairly pants in terms of quality, but for a small amount of cash you can find out if you would make use of a projector, as they're not the same as just a regular screen when it comes to sound output and placement in a room... you pretty much need to dedicate a lot more space in some ways for a projector to work correctly (but then you save space in others such as cabling near your "screen")

After I tested the waters I upgraded from a 768p epson up to this guy right here https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B075ZX5M2K/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o08__o00_s00?ie=UTF8&th=1 500sterling at the time of posting so around €570 and honestly it's just amazing, full 1080p output at 3.1k lumens (that said, I run the projector in a far lower eco mode which is easy on the eyes but also means the projector runs a heck of a lot quieter at a level of brightness still perfectly visible even with a lot of ambient light in the room) Epson projectors do not use DLP projection instead going for 3LCD which they claim (and I think correctly) gets rid of any colour rainbowing effects which DLP tends to cause, the only time I've had image issues was when a daft mate touched the lens with a greasy finger... that took some cleaning with a fine cloth but otherwise absolutely perfect image at 130", this projector also allows for multi projection so you can split that screen size with some options so I've used it with a smaller image on one side from my PC for watching media while giving a larger portion to my Switch or PS4 on the other side for gaming, also works okay if you connect a PC to both inputs and use it as a multi monitor setup but resolution suffers a bit in that mode so you wouldn't be doing too much text entry and editing.

One issue I've found with this projector is that it lacks a audio out though so getting sound from your device to the sound system you use will have to avoid going through the projector, it's easy enough for most devices to output sound in different ways, the ps4 has optical/controller 3.5mm jack, switch has it's headphone jack which works while docked and the PC is a PC lol.

In terms of bulb life too the epson is pretty hard to beat with a suggested lifespan of upwards of 4-5k hours in Eco mode, I have already clocked up 1148h in that and just 45h of full brightness mode (mostly before delving into the settings or by accident) but really if you have the space for it and you have the cash burning a hole in your pocket I say go for it, there really is no comparison imo for playing games on 130" of "screen" and if you're living in 1080p gaming still like I am PS4/Switch/780TI then the epson I linked here is just a perfect fit for those devices, keep in mind as well when it comes to going above that to a 4k display just how much of the content you consume is actually 4k such as UHD blu ray discs or 4k netflix, if you're still mostly enjoying regular blu ray or 1080p streaming services you wont be losing any quality in going with a native 1080p projector.




Oh- regarding those €100 region tiny 480p and worse projectors that you find dotted all over amazon... they're worthless, really they're just too dull and washed out to get any real idea of a true projectors value imo, they'll just put you off the idea of getting one, you'd be better off going to a second hand store and buying a cheap but good quality projector in the 768p range for that same price, at least you'll get a slightly better idea of what to expect from a good unit while forgoing some modern conveniences like HDMI and 16:9

Have to go all (1080p) or nothing. It would be cool to replace monitor with projector.

If you're certain you'll make use of it then for 1080p the projector I linked really does an amazing job, in picture quality for movies it's just beautiful and with gaming I've used it for hours of fps and fighting games with zero noticable latency difference between it and a TV.

Just do be careful if you're buying cheaper, you're going to get less and also some projectors say they handle 1080p content but all they mean is you can put a signal that res into it, their output resolution is what matters and some that suggest 1080p playback will output at 480p or worse, don't cheap out with a no name brand imo

Actually been thinking about going the other way... And getting a cheap 4:3/5:4 LED 480P projector for my older gear. (Nintendo 64, Original Xbox, Playstation 2 etc'.)

I just always found that at the firebase's 1080P projector that the image always looks washed out unless the room is pitch black. - And that is a several thousand dollar unit.