Projectors are all the rage for home theater enthusiasts, but you don’t hear as much enthusiasm from the gamer crowd, and with good reason. Projectors are notorious for having input lag when playing games, leading to poor gameplay experience and lagging skills in competitive matches. While there are some projectors are better than others for gaming, Benq’s new short-throw projector, the TH671ST, is designed specifically with ultra-low input lag in mind.
For gaming, anything lower than 40-millisecond input lag is going to give the best experience. Benq claims the TH671ST’s input lag is measured at 16.67 milliseconds, which is extremely low for not just projectors, but even high-end TVs. This is combined with a microsecond DMD (digital micro-mirror device) response time that eliminates unwanted motion blur and image lag while you’re playing.
Those specs are sure to be exciting for gamers on the hunt for a projector that will suit their hobby, but the TH671ST also has several other features that should appeal to an even wider audience.
Being a short-throw projector, the TH671ST can project an up to 100-inch, full HD 1080p image from less than five feet away. This is great for those with spacing considerations and could make setup much simpler than with other projectors. Installation gets even more flexible thanks to vertical keystone correction, which allows the image to be aligned and corrected even at off-center placements, and will prevent the “trapezoid effect” or “keystone effect” that sometimes plagues projector images, wherein the projected images looks like a, well, trapezoid.
Room consideration is an important element to keep in mind with considering a projector purchase, and that’s mostly because of lighting. Thankfully, the TH671ST’s 3,000-lumen brightness makes it a great projector for environments with ambient lighting, even rooms with all the lights on. It’s also equipped with Benq’s exclusive LumiExpert technology, which adjusts brightness automatically to account for ambient lighting.
Should this all sound a bit overwhelming, don’t worry: A simple setup wizard comes standard on the TH671ST and will guide users through the entire installation process.
For those who want to do more than just game, a USB-A port on the back of the TH671ST can be used to connect streaming sticks and dongles like Chromecast or Chromecast Ultra, Fire TV, and Roku Streaming sticks. Other ports include two HDMI connections, 3.5mm audio-in and out ports, PC-in and monitor-out, RS-232, and mini USB. The projector also includes a built-in 5W stereo speaker with custom modes for different content types, such as Cinema, Music, Sports, and Game mode, making it an all-in-one setup.
The TH671ST is available for $750 from Benq’s online distribution, or from third-party retailers like Best Buy, Fry’s, NewEgg and B&H. You can read more about the TH671ST and all of Benq’s projector line on the company’s website.
