Projectors Tests Reviews
Philips Screeneo U5: test / review / price
Published on: 09-11-2022 / Modified: 15-04-2023
Crowdfunding campaign: Philips Screeneo U5 on Indiegogo
Risk level: low
Price: 1699€
End date: December 7, 2022
I always keep an eye on what is happening on crowdfunding platforms to be aware of what is happening but also to find good deals. I'm not just a curious spectator, I also regularly buy products but given the risky nature of this kind of platform, I always try to find information about the company selling the products to avoid unpleasant surprises. This time, I will be able to do without this step because the company is a big one, Philips, and this brand has already successfully used crowdfunding for other products.
Philips Screeneo U5 projector
I test more and more often ultra short throw projectors (also called UST) and until now I had mainly tested projectors from Chinese brands like Xiaomi, Fengmi, JMGO, … The arrival of Philips in this territory is interesting on several levels. Philips is a brand that enjoys a trust factor that is probably more important than Xiaomi or Fengmi, it is also a company that designs products for the European market with all the necessary support.
So we end up with a projector running Android TV (and therefore supporting application download from the Play Store) with a resolution of 4k XPR, a brightness of 2200 lumens, HDR/Dolby Vision compatibility, an image up to 150 inches, motion compensation, DTS HD sound and Dolby Atmos… all that for… 1699€!!
This projector does not bring anything new to the market, most of these specifications are found with other manufacturers but the price is much higher than this Philips Screeneo U5 and it is this price that will be the main reason to go for this product. For 1699€ I don't see any UST projectors of the same caliber as this one, the closest among those I tested is the Optoma CinemaX D2 and the conclusion for this Philips will probably be the same... This projector will probably not be the best projector on the market but for that price, I can't see better and it will allow a wider audience to enter the world of USTs.
The strengths of the Screeneo U5
What can you expect from this projector?
- Image size:
Philips mentions an image size of 150 inches, that's already huge, I doubt that many users have a screen of this size but that's good news. The throw ratio of 0.21 is also a good thing, it's pretty low midrange, no need to move the projector too far back to get a great image. This means that with a distance of 50 cm you get an image almost 2.4 meters wide and a diagonal of more than 2.7m (in 16:9 format). The Philips does better than the Xiaomi Laser Cinema 2 which has a throw ratio of 0.23.
- Brightness:
With 2200 lumens, I do not think that use in broad daylight is possible without a significant loss of contrast, but on the other hand for a partially obscured room or total darkness, no problem. However, it is necessary to see if the 2200 lumens are available without deterioration of the colorimetry but impossible to know without testing it. There are brighter projectors but they either cost more or use more electricity (or both).
- Color Space / Dolby Vision / HDR
With a coverage of 130% of the REC709, this projector will offer a color palette far superior to entry and mid-range projectors, I only hope that the projector will really be capable of that.
Dolby Vision compatibility is surely a good argument in favor of this projector, it is not yet widespread and compatible projectors are much more expensive. Dolby Vision is a kind of HDR that unblocks images to better handle light and dark scenes.
- Contrast
Philips seems very honest with its contrast by announcing a contrast of 1483:1. For a laser projector it's not much but it's much better than most LED projectors in the same price range as this Philips. The Xiaomi Laser Cinema 2 does much better, but it also costs significantly more. For the price of this campaign, the level of contrast is therefore quite correct.
- MEMC
More and more projectors are equipped with MEMC which smooths out rapid lateral movements and avoids image tearing, but not having it would have been a problem for this projector.
- Power consumption
The announced consumption is 220W but it is possible to lower it to 140 in eco mode. If these figures are correct, it will be a strong argument for this projector because projectors of this type often consume more energy. I'm almost at 300W with the Xiaomi Laser Cinema 2.
-AndroidTV
Unlike many projector models intended for the Chinese market, here you will not have to use an HDMI dongle to control your projector. The Screeneo U5 offers a native Android TV experience which gives you access to all the applications provided for this type of device.
These are the main arguments in favor of this projector, but there are others such as 3D, autofocus, 8-point keystone correction, etc.
Beyond the purely technical aspect, Philips offers a 2-year warranty, this is very very rare for crowdfunding campaigns and I imagine that the support will not go through a return to China.
Conclusion / Opinion
With crowdfunding campaigns I often have to express reservations because there is always a risk linked to the reliability of the company. This is not the case here, we must also see this campaign as an alternative sales technique rather than fundraising to produce a new projector. Philips does not need crowdfunding to manufacture this projector, so the chances of this project not succeeding are almost nil.
The Screeneo U5 does not bring a revolution in the world of projectors, it is above all its price that will make it unique. If the price increases beyond 3000€ thereafter, I would have a much more critical opinion on this projector because for this price there are other projectors to consider.
Take advantage of this floor price!
Questions/Comments