Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Audio / Video
  3. News

The Premiere, Samsung’s flagship short throw projector, packs 130 inches of 4K

Nick Woodard
By

Samsung isn’t attending IFA 2020, but that hasn’t stopped the tech giant from trying to steal the show anyways.

At its virtual “Life Unstoppable” press conference, Samsung announced The Premiere, a 4K projector with an ultra short-throw design and laser technology — the company calls it the “new anchor product” in Samsung’s Lifestyle product portfolio, which also includes The Frame, The Sero, and The Terrace.

Recommended Videos

Samsung didn’t reveal a price for this new product but did say that The Premiere will be available in 130-inch (the LSP9T) and 120-inch (LSP7T) models, and will roll out globally later this year.

Here’s what we know about The Premiere.

Related

Design

Samsung The Premiere
Samsung

Samsung says The Premiere incorporates an “all-in-one, compact, space-saving design” that makes it ideal for a variety of living room settings and arrangements. Being an ultra short-throw projector, The Premiere can be placed directly in front of the wall or screen it’s projecting onto, which eliminates the need to mount a projector at the back of the room. That, of course, isn’t exactly a possibility for many living room situations.

The Premiere has powerful built-in woofers and Acoustic Beam surround sound, which Samsung says, “reduces the need for additional sound equipment in tighter spaces.” From our experiences, we’d proceed with caution in this area. The Premiere may well provide a sound that you can hear, but typically, projectors don’t have the ability to produce a sound that matches the larger-than-life screen size they’re projecting. It might be best to pair some external sound with this projector, even if the built-in sound system does sound decent.

Features

Samsung The Premiere
Samsung

According to the company, The Premiere is the world’s first projector to be certified as HDR10+, one that’s equipped with triple laser technology and delivers up to 2,800 ANSI lumens for a considerably bright picture. Samsung adds that The Premiere is first projector of its kind to support Filmmaker Mode, which is designed to let viewers watch movies as directors initially intended.

You won’t necessarily need a streaming device in conjunction with The Premiere since the projector comes loaded with Samsung’s Tizen Smart TV platform and all the major streaming services that are supported by that operating system. You’ll also get some mobile connectivity features like Tap View and mirroring to send compatible content from your mobile device straight to the projector.

Picture quality

This is a tough category to discuss since we haven’t seen The Premiere in action yet, but as mentioned above, it’s got the right features to make for great picture quality if The Premiere can live up to its specs.

If it can, and if it can be priced competitively, The Premiere could be a compelling alternative to the traditional 4K display. Projectors have long been the best bang for your buck in terms of getting the biggest screen possible. If The Premiere can add exceptional picture quality and convenience thanks to its ultra short-throw design, it could be enough to convert some TV fans into projector enthusiasts.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Nick Woodard
Nick Woodard
Former Digital Trends Contributor
  As an A/V Staff Writer at Digital Trends, Nick Woodard covers topics that include 4K HDR TVs, headphones…
TCL’s giant 115-inch QM89 is the world’s largest 4K mini-LED TV
The 115-inch TCL QM89 television.

If you're going to unveil the world's largest mini-LED TV, CES 2024 in Las Vegas seems like an appropriate venue at which to do it. The honor goes to TCL's new QM89 -- an absolutely massive 115-inch 4K, quantum dot mini-LED TV. TCL announced the QM89 along with the rest of its 2024 TV lineup and its 2024 soundbars.

First Look at TCL’s 115-Inch QM89 TV | The World’s Largest Mini-LED TV at CES

Read more
What is 4K? Everything you need to know about 4K Ultra HD
A Roku 75-inch Class Plus Series QLED 4K Smart Roku TV hanging on the wall.

High-definition content has been a TV mainstay for more than two decades now. From broadcasted cable stations to streamable movies and shows from streaming services such as Netflix and Disney+, 1080p HD is no longer the golden standard for modern TV models. It kind of feels like a no-brainer at this point, but what you want to invest in these days is a 4K TV, as most of the best TVs available are.   

4K media is also not as rare as it once was either. In fact, most new films, shows, and even video games are now engineered from the ground up with a 4K screen in mind. And not to worry if you don’t currently watch any 4K content, because most 4K TV sets do an excellent job at upscaling lower-res sources. So is it worth it to step away from your HD past in favor of a higher pixel count present and future? Let’s explore the world of 4K a little further to find the answers we seek.
What is 4K Ultra HD?
In a nutshell, 4K Ultra HD is the name assigned to a screen with a resolution that's four times that of a Full HD (1080p) TV. That translates to 8 million pixels being crammed into the same space in which a Full HD TV fits just 2 million -- achieved by making each pixel four times smaller. The result for the average viewer? A clearer image, more accurate color, and with most new TV sets, High Dynamic Range, or HDR (more on that in a bit).

Read more
The hidden costs of buying a 4K TV are way higher than you think
Toshiba 55-inch-class C350 series 4K smart Fire TV on a gray shelf and light gray background.

There’s never been a better time to buy a 4K TV. Prices have continued to drop even as screen sizes and smart TV features have continued to grow. But now that 4K TVs are priced within reach of almost anyone who wants one, are you actually going to be able to enjoy all of the extra detail and picture quality that 4K promises? The answer is, sadly, not as often as you expect, and not without some considerable extra investment over and above the cost of the TV.

Modern 4K TVs are packed with a lot of impressive technologies that can make picture quality look amazing, no matter what you’re watching. With upscaling driven by complex algorithms and often aided by AI, even watching an old DVD on a 4K TV will look way better than it did on an HDTV from 10 years ago. But to truly get the best possible results, you need access to native 4K content, preferably with some flavor of HDR, like Dolby Vision, HDR10, or HDR10+.

Read more