Short-throw projectors are great, allowing you to beam a big screen TV on your wall without needing to be positioned a dozen feet away. Problem is, they tend to run on the loud side, as those built-in lasers require some strong fans to stay cool while you enjoy your movie. The HP BP5000 wants to change that by swapping the fans for a quiet cooling system.
Equipped with liquid cooling tech (you know… the kind they use on high-end gaming PCs), the laser projector is able to stay cool without the accompanying noise, allowing you to enjoy whatever you’re watching without the constant rumbling of fan propellers in the background. According to the outfit, it’s the first short-throw projector to be equipped with such a cooling system, making it a unique option in the high-end projector category.
The HP BP5000 uses a Texas Instruments DLP chip and an ALPD 3.0 laser light source, allowing it to beam images in native 4K UHD resolution that, the outfit claims, delivers corner-to-corner sharpness at every angle, along with a maximum projection size of 150 inches. With an ultra-short throw projection ratio of 0.23:1, the device can beam a 120-inch image while being placed just 13 inches away from your projection surface, allowing you to watch in a big screen without having to situate the projector all the way to the back of the room.
It supports 90 percent of the cinema-grade DCI-P3 color gamut for more realistic color rendition, as well as HDR10 decoding for dynamically enhancing shadows, highlights, and overall picture quality in every frame. There’s also MEMC motion compensation to reduce blur during fast-moving scenes. The projector, by the way, delivers 6,000 optical lumens of brightness, so you don’t need to turn down the lights to get a clear picture, while an eye protection sensor automatically disables the light source when it detects a person approaching its path to avoid unwanted accidents.
The HP BP5000 has both autofocus and keystone correction, so you can get a proper picture with no distortion at all times despite dealing with uneven wall surfaces, improper placement, and accidental nudges. To make it a proper TV replacement, it houses a full-range 30W stereo speaker system with subwoofer, which, the outfit, claims, will deliver a smooth mid-range, clear vocals, and a deep bass all on its own, with no need to hook up the rig to your existing sound system (although you can with S/PDIF, 3.5mm, and ARC-capable HDMI connections). And yes, you can use the speaker on its own, in case you want to take a break from binge-watching an intense series to listen to your relaxation playlist.
It runs Android 8.0, so we’re guessing you can side load a bunch of apps on this thing (it has 32GB open storage) to further expand its functionalities, too. If you don’t want to mess with that, not a problem as it’s bundled with the Roku Express 4K, so you get instant access to the digital media service’s ever-growing number of streaming channels.
The HP BP5000 is currently taking preorders on Indiegogo. You can reserve a unit for pledges starting at $2,799, with shipments slated for September.