A projector in the conference room? Why not?

A projector in the conference room? Why not?

Projector technology has evolved extremely rapidly over the past five years. Old misconceptions no longer apply today. Is projection now the better solution in the conference room?

Before we dive deeper into the wonderful world of projection with ITdaily, yours truly has a confession to make. I have not had a TV at home for fifteen years, but I do have a projector. For years I have seen the advantage of a larger screen. Many disadvantages of projection have been overcome over the years.

The problem today is that a lot of disadvantages that were there ten or fifteen years ago are still too often taken as an argument for choosing a traditional screen. High time to review the pros and cons of projection.

Screen size

We like to start at once with the most important asset of projection: screen size. Very large digital screens today measure 70 inches in medium-sized meeting rooms and 86 inches in large rooms. When projecting, you can conveniently go to 100 inches or 120 inches, depending on the distance of the projector from the wall. That way everyone in the room has an optimal image. With digital screens, the cheap seats at the back of the room are always less lucky.

Besides, the projector doesn’t even have to hang at the back like it used to. As early as one meter from the wall on which you want to project, you can hang the projector from the ceiling. This is suddenly also a disadvantage: you have to lay the cabling up to the ceiling for the fixed installation of a projector.

However, you can solve this with an Ultra Short Throw projector, which mounts above the whiteboard with a wall bracket. This also eliminates your problems with shadows.

Important to know: projecting is fine on a white wall, but we recommend projecting on a white board. Suddenly useful for making analog notes, too. You can also take a canvas, which is cheaper.

Image quality

Today, a digital screen or a projector can both display 4K resolution. Fair: Full HD (1080p) is always enough in a conference room, in our opinion. In image quality, both technologies are each other’s equals.

The main Achilles’ heel of a projector is undoubtedly the brightness of the image. Used to be anyway, today it’s rarely a problem in most rooms. So why is that idea still so alive?

Presumably this is due to old lamp technology and lamps that were not replaced in a timely manner. After a few thousand hours of burning, the image has dimmed a lot more. This happens so gradually, you don’t realize it. Try a brand new laser projector today. That combined with an ALR screen cloth, a special cloth technology that optimally reflects the image, makes for a particularly clear image. You have to see it to believe it.

A digital screen often appears brighter due to the direct light from the display, which enhances the perception of brightness compared to a projector. In reality, however, this is not always the case, especially with the latest laser technology.

Price

An average digital screen (70 or 86 inches) costs about the same today as a laser projector. If you still need an ALR screen cloth or have to route cables to the ceiling, that price climbs.

On the other hand, the price per square meter of image is lower with projection. The whole class can see everything perfectly. You don’t have to choose between a 16:9 aspect ratio or a 21:9 aspect ratio.

Is the installation changing rooms with a remodel? Then projection has an important advantage that it can scale according to the space. You don’t have to reinvest in a new digital screen because it has become too small.

A laser projector may eventually become even cheaper than a digital screen. A laser as a light source has a lifespan of 20,000 hours.

Eye Comfort

We are already on screens all day with our laptop, smartphone and maybe another tablet. So do we also have to look at a screen throughout the day in a conference room? A digital screen radiates light right in front of it. With projection, the light is reflected does not shine straight into the eyes.

How that translates into studies, blue light and other issues, I’ll leave to one side. Yours truly does know from experience that watching a projected image is less tiring on the eyes than a traditional TV.

Sustainability

Perhaps the greatest asset of projection is its sustainable aspect. In terms of consumption, projection and digital screens (86 inches) are close to each other at an average of 180 watts. You do get a larger image in return. On the other hand, transport is a lot more efficient. You can pack many more projectors into one container than large screens.

The installer will thank you, too. No one gets happy about transporting an 86-inch screen. Fortunately, it’s only a one-time thing. As soon as it hangs on the wall, everything is forgotten.

Maintenance

You used to have to maintain a projector: change the lamp on time, clean the dust filter or the lamp overheats, you had to look at it every year. With the advent of laser projectors, all that falls away. Cleaning the dust filter every year seems to us to be the only thing left to do, if at all, every year.

With a digital screen, you have no maintenance. It either works, or it doesn’t. At most some dusting, because the hefty format with often a black border is a dust magnet.

Interactivity

Is that interactivity needed in the meeting room today? Isn’t a simple projection or digital screen with no touch options already enough? Would you rather take notes on a nearby whiteboard?

Both technologies, both a digital screen and projection, support touch. With projectors, it’s an option you have to pay more for. With digital screens, it’s actually always included. If you don’t need it, you save on the price of a projector.

Conclusion

A projector or a digital screen is a choice that is both obvious and not so obvious. For smaller meeting rooms with up to six seats, a digital screen has more upside because you can get by with 60 or 70 inches. If the room is larger and you have to reach for 86 inches or more, not everyone will have the same experience.

You do have that with projection, even though the counterpart is that, for example, the sun may not shine directly on the image or the lighting may not be extremely bright in the room. With an ALR projection screen you mitigate the most extreme scenarios, but then you have to invest in it as an organization.