“It's astonishing how much brightness this projector can produce – it is streets ahead of the competition”
Solid, vibrant and with plenty of picture pop, the Epson EH-TW9400 stands on the cusp of that next big step up in price to native 4K projection. It features Epson’s 3LCD technology, with three separate liquid crystal chips (one for each of the three primary colours) used. A single 3000-hour lamp means you can watch one feature film every day on full power mode, and still expect it to last around seven years before it needs replacing.
Around the back, there are plenty of connections for your sources, including a USB 2.0, two HDMI 2.0s and ethernet, so you can connect set-top boxes, streamers and hard drives as well as Blu-ray players. It supports HDR10 and HLG formats plus active 3D processing.
With just a few setting tweaks for optimum performance, it is astonishing how much brightness this projector can produce. At a claimed 2600 lumens, it’s streets ahead of the competition, bright enough to watch films even in moderately lit conditions.
Detail levels are solid, with hairs and wrinkles superbly rendered with fine textures bringing the image to life. It’s similar with dark details, too, with night scenes still showing plenty of differentiation in the image.
Its ability to shade lends the picture a fantastic sense of depth, setting the Epson apart from the rest of the competition. There’s also a subtlety to colours that’s beyond anything our previous Award winner, the Optoma UHD65, can produce.
Drop down through different qualities of source material and you won’t be disappointed by this projector’s performance. Colours and depth are still beautifully strong and the image still pops, even without an HDR disc. If you’re looking for a great projector without the price tag of a native 4K unit, you may just have found it.