Explaining the meaning of common

projector terminology

This guide is useful for those who are new to the world of
projectors. All of the common terms are explained in
simple English, to help you learn how to choose the
projector that is right for you. Feel free to contact me for
further information or advice on choosing the correct
projector to suit your requirements. Originally posted on
www.projectorsnz.co.nz
ANSI refers to the American National Standards Institute. ANSI is the body that the industry
has adopted who have set standards for the way light output from a projector lens is
measured.
ANSI lumens are measured in candles are a measurement of a projectors brightness. The
higher the ANSI lumens measurement, the brighter the output. Lenses with higher output are
suited to higher ambient background light.
Aspect ratio denotes the ratio of the width of a screen to the height. Common aspect ratios
are 16:9 (widescreen) and 4:3.
Back room projector has a long-throw lens that is used from the back of a room. These
are typically projectors that project distances of greater than 6m.
Chrominance refers to the colour saturation and hue of a projected image.
Component video delivers high quality video image via YPbPr or RCA connected cables.
Contrast ratio refers to the ratio of brightness to darkness.
DLP (digital light processing) DLP is the display technology developed by Texas
Instruments which uses mirrors to display an image this is often used for projection of 3d
images using specialised software and glasses.
DVI (digital visual interface) connects digital sources without the need to convert to
Focus is used to ensure a clear image at various projection distances.
FPS - Frames Per Second.
Frame is one complete video image. When all lines of the video image are delivered
sequentially, it is called progressive video. When the odd lines and even lines are delivered as
separate fields, it is called interlace video.
Full HD 3D A projector that is Full HD 3D compatible can use any of the 3D formats
enabled in the HDMI 1.4 3D specification: frame packing, top/bottom, or side-by-side. These
projectors are compatible with the 1080p 3D signal from a Blu-ray player, set-top box, or
other HDMI 1.4 device, but may not be compatible with 120Hz frame sequential 3D from a
computer.
Halogen bulbs are often used in low and medium priced projectors. They last only about 40
hours. This why Projectors NZ only provide high quality LED projectors at low and middle
range.
HDMI (high-definition multimedia interface) is a standard for video interfacing, with a
bandwidth of up to 5 gigabytes meaning it can easily support all HDTV standards.
HDTV (High-Definition Television) is a generic term that indicates a higher resolution
format than previous standards. At present it denotes anything higher than a 480p signal.
Most common formats are 720p, 1080i and 1080p.
HTPC stands for Home Theatre PC. Usually these have native home theatre software such as
XBMC or Netflix
Keystone is a method of adjusting an image either horizontally or vertically to correct images
that have been projected from an angle.
LED stands for Light Emitting Diode. A light generating technology that uses a
semiconductor diode that emits monochromatic (single colour) light when charged. LEDs are
used in remote controls that are used to control electronic devices such as large displays.
They are extremely cheap to run and emit very bright light at high lumens.
LED Lamp is a type of projector lamp that uses one or more LEDs as its light source. The
benefit of LED lamps is their long life and cheap running cost. Projectors NZ specialise in
LED projectors.
Lumen is a measurement of light. The higher the lumen count, the brighter the projection.
Some lower end models use non-ANSI lumens to give the impression that the projected
image is brighter than it is.
Luminance measures the colour intensity of an image.
Lux is a standard for measuring light equal to the amount of visible light per square meter
incident on a surface. 1 lux = 1 lumen/square meter or 0.093 foot-candles.
Maximum Distance is a description of how far from a screen the projector can be to cast an
image that is useable (bright enough) in a fully darkened room.
Maximum Image Size is the largest image a projector can reasonable throw in a darkened
room.
Maximum Resolution refers to the highest resolution that a given display device can
support. If the Maximum Resolution exceeds native resolution, the image is usually scaled to
match or approximate the Native Resolution of the projector. Some display devices allow pan
and scan where rather than scaling the image, the display devices allows you to use the native
resolution of the display to view portions of the higher resolution image. Scaling reduces the
image resolution and produces some artefacts in the image that are more apparent when
viewing text than graphics or video.
Metal halide bulbs give off a much brighter image and last longer than halogen. High-end,
and some medium projectors now use metal halide bulbs although this technology has largely
been superseded by quality, long life projector bulbs.
Pixels are a small dot that represents a single element of a display which is made up of
hundreds of thousands of pixels.
QXGA is a resolution of 2048 x 1536 pixels.
Resolution is defined by the number of dots a display uses to create an image, expressed in
pixels. The following standard definitions exist: VGA of 640 x 480, SVGA of 1280 x 1024.
Resolution is often expressed as 720p or 1080p etc. The higher the resolution, the sharper the
image.
Short throw lens is designed to project the largest possible image from a short distance.
These are most often used in situations where there is limited space.
SVGA (super VGA) is the standard 800 x 600 computer video signal in IBM-compatible
PCs.
S-VHS (Super VHS) is an improved resolution version of VHS that stores luma and chroma
in separate signals.
S-Video is a video transmission standard that uses a 4 pin mini-DIN connector to send video
information on two signal wires called luminance(brightness, Y) and chrominance(colour, C).
S-Video is also referred to as Y/C. Considered a higher quality video source than composite
video.
Throw distance refers to the distance from the centre of a projector lens to the centre of the
screen onto which its projecting. On projectors with no zoom function the screen size can be
increased or decreased by increasing or decreasing the throw distance.
UXGA is resolution of 1600 x 1200 pixels.
VGA (video graphics array) is a resolution of 640 x 480
WSXGA is a class of SXGA resolution, 1920 x 1600 horizontal pixels, and 1080 x 900
vertical pixels.
Zoom lens A zoom lens is a feature on higher-end projectors that allows the image size to be
increased or decreased using an adjustment knob.
Zoom Ratio is the ratio between the smallest and largest image a lens can projector from a
fixed distance. For example, a 1.4:1 zoom lens ratio means that a 10 foot image without zoom
would be a 14 foot image with full zoom. Conversely, a 10 foot diagonal image at 15 feet
with no zoom would still be a 10 image at 21 feet at maximum zoom (15 x 1.4 = 21 feet). A
zoom lens is "not as bright" as a fixed lens, and the higher the ratio, the less light output.