Optoma HD72

The Short Form

$2,000 ($3,000 LIST) / 13.6 x 3.8 x 9.8 IN / 7 lbs / www.optomausa.com / 408-383-3700

Plus

•Bright image •Great price

Minus

•Weaker shadow detail •Less accurate grayscale

Key Features

•1,280 x 768-pixel DLP Projector •Inputs 1 HDMI; 1 DVI; 1 component-video; 1 S-video; 1 composite-video; 1 RS-232C control •PRICE $2,000 ($3,000 List) Full Lab Results

The Optoma HD72 is very compact, and its glossy white case would blend nicely into a white ceiling. The lens offers a silver zoom ring, though its range is rather small, and there's no lens shift - factors that could combine to make the HD72 difficult to place. It's worth noting that the Optoma lacks many of the more advanced setup features found on other models, such as fine-tuneable gamma (which can help bring out shadow detail) and numerous presets.

CONTRAST With plenty of light output and deep-enough blacks, the Optoma HD72 delivered that characteristic high-impact picture from the DVD of The Island, and the projector had enough brightness left to drive an even larger screen. But there was a bit of a falloff in shadow detail compared with the better performers in this area, notably the Samsung and the Panasonic. In one shot where Lincoln is walking down a darkened corridor, his face looked a bit less defined as he passed through shadows - features weren't quite as distinct as with the best in the bunch.

COLOR Both before and after calibration, the Optoma HD72 fell into the bottom half of the group in terms of grayscale accuracy, an effect visible in many of the bright-white sequences of The Island. The glare coming off the body of a newly debagged clone had a slightly bluish-green tint that wasn't intended. The darkest areas, such as the letterbox bars, had a slight greenish cast as well. On the other hand, many of the film's colors, like the blue and red lights during Lincoln and Jordan's fight, came across with excellent punch and vibrancy.

DETAIL The Optoma HD72 was the only one of the 1,280 x 768 DLP projectors to deliver perfect 720p-resolution test patterns, and its detail on DVD was also superb. Watching some of the in-studio segments of SportsCenter on ESPN HD, I appreciated all of the tiny squares in the announcer's blue tie and the gray hairs on his head. Highlights of an Ohio State vs. Iowa basketball game looked really good, from the rich blacks of the Iowa uniforms to the details in the wood court and the cheerleaders leaping in ecstasy at a buzzer-beating shot.