This week I had the chance to take a 4K HDR gaming projector for a spin, and to put it to the test, I immediately hooked it up to my PS5 to see how it displayed some of the best gaming I've ever seen. you can play. Generation. And I was very impressed.
To be more specific, the projector was the BenQ TK700STi. The company has been churning out projectors for every budget for years, but the TK700STi marks its first attempt at a gaming-focused 4K HDR projector, and at €1699 (about $1249), the price is comparable to a 55-inch LG OLED TV. . C1. , which we think is among the best gaming TVs you can buy.
And that's what brings us to this topic: why consider a 4K gaming projector when you can buy one of the best gaming TVs for the same price? Before trying the BenQ TK700STi, this is a question that I would have, perhaps foolishly, weighed in the spotlight. Now though, I can think of several reasons why a 4K gaming projector like the TK700STi is absolutely a worthwhile investment if you want an impressive gaming setup.
Let there be light
What immediately surprised me with the BenQ TK700STi, apart from the extremely simple initial setup, was how well its image displayed in a bright environment. Projectors, typically those priced under €1,000, often have a reputation for displaying a darker image in good lighting conditions.
This is something that even some of the best 4K TVs can struggle with, depending on how much glare you can bounce off the display panel. OLED panels in particular aren't as bright as LCD or QLED screens, so they're not ideal if your room gets a lot of natural light.
This is not the case with the TK700STi. To my delight, the projector was able to display games of different lighting tones and conditions, such as Demon's Souls and Cyberpunk 2077, with little to no issues. From the deepest blacks of the oppressive Upper Latria of old to the searing skies surrounding the Badlands of Night City, the projector effortlessly displayed various environments and times of day as effectively as if displayed on a television screen. HDR-compliant.
This is largely due to the TK700STi's light source. At 3000 lumens, it's bright enough to capture every inch of the projected image, even in brighter rooms with natural lighting. That's even brighter than some of the best 4K projectors you can buy, like the Epson EH-TW2600's excellent 9400-lumen output.
A versatile victory
During my time using the TK700STi, I've also found it to be much more versatile than a 4K TV. It's more portable, for example, and with a little effort it can be moved from room to room. Its short throw capabilities mean you don't need a large room to get the screen to line up properly either. A distance of about 6,5 feet is all you need to see a massive 100-inch image. In addition, you can move it closer or further away from the wall or ceiling to reduce or enlarge the screen size according to your preferences.
And even when your screen size hits triple digits, the projector still produces a sharp 4K image. This is crucial to consider, as most large TVs approaching this size typically cost thousands of dollars, especially when new. If you're looking for a truly giant screen size without an equally high cost, then a 4K gaming projector like the TK700STi could give you an easier path to your dream screen size.
Considering versatility, 4K gaming projectors like the TK700STi are good for more than that. Depending on the projector you choose, you can also download and watch a variety of top streaming apps. And doing it with a 4K HDR compatible projector means you could have a cinematic experience in your own home, especially if you increase your screen size beyond 100 inches.
The perfect couple?
So far everything has been positive for 4K gaming projectors, but it's important to note that my experience wasn't entirely perfect. While I'd love to say that a 4K HDR compatible gaming projector is a total improvement over a 4K TV, that won't always be the case. One area where the projector failed, which could actually be quite detrimental to the gaming experience, is input lag.
If you don't know, input lag is the time, measured in milliseconds, between an action sent from your controller to the screen. The LG C1 is a fantastic example here, with a base input lag of 10ms. This means that if you press a button on your controller, the action will take place on the screen approximately 10 milliseconds later.
Most 4K gaming projectors can't keep up with 4K TVs in this regard, though at 16ms the BenQ TK700STi is among the best projectors with minimal input lag. That's actually pretty remarkable for a projector, but there will be edge cases where input lag of more than 10ms can be somewhat detrimental to the experience.
As an example, I tried the new The King of Fighters 15 and the results could have been better. This is because fighting games like The King of Fighters, Street Fighter, and Mortal Kombat generally require precise inputs to execute special moves, such as swinging the analog stick in a quarter circle before immediately pressing a button. .
The relatively high input lag means that the game sometimes has trouble registering those inputs on screen, even if your execution was perfect. It's even less ideal if you're playing online against other players, where spotty internet connections can also hamper performance.
Other than that, using a 4K HDR gaming projector's game modes is key to keeping input lag as low as possible. But it is not without caveats. The TK700STi's Game Mode HDR, for example, isn't as rich or sharp as HDR10, which is also supported by the projector. So the tradeoff is that HDR10 looks better, but it affects input lag.
That's potentially not a problem if you're playing a game where the action is a bit less instantaneous, like in an open world game like Horizon Forbidden West, or a racer like the upcoming Gran Turismo 7. Keep going though. the realm of fast-paced games like Call of Duty: Vanguard, Doom Eternal, or the aforementioned The King of Fighters 15, and the relatively high input lag is starting to become an issue.
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