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The Pocket-Sized Projector Has Arrived

mallumax writes "David Pogue of New York Times has reviewed the Pico, which is a pocket projector from Optoma. The review is quite entertaining (Pogue projects the images on to a plane's ceiling, leaving passengers baffled) and detailed. The highlights are: It is a pocket-sized projector which runs on batteries and can project images and videos from a variety of sources like iPhone, iPod and DVD players with a 480x320px resolution, with a maximum screen size of 65 inches at 8.5 feet. It uses a non-replaceable 10,000 hour LED lamp and a DLP chip from Texas Instruments. The battery lasts for 90 minutes and can be recharged through USB or with its own power cord. The device weighs 115g and comes with an inbuilt speaker which is practically useless. If you want one, it will set you back by $430."

14 of 220 comments (clear)

  1. AC/DC by uvajed_ekil · · Score: 5, Funny

    Angus Young has already said he wants one. Something about it having its very own power chord, I guess.

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  2. Re:The lamp is non-replaceable? by Chairboy · · Score: 5, Funny

    It's an LED with an anticipated life of 20,000 hours. That's, like, a war-crime's amount of PowerPoint.

    Can 'War Crime' be a unit of measurement for terribleness and quantity?

  3. Re:The lamp is non-replaceable? by Gr33nNight · · Score: 5, Funny

    It sure is replaceable! Only $430!

  4. Re:The lamp is non-replaceable? by vux984 · · Score: 5, Informative

    A non-replaceable lamp on an LCD projector? No thanks.

    Given that its a "10,000 hour LED" it should last over a year of continuous use. At 8 hours a day every day it will last 3 years.

    At more realistic (but still high) levels of usage... say, 4 hours 4 times per week, we're looking at 12 years.

    In other words, you'll probably have upgraded multiple times before the bulb burns out.

  5. 'nuf said by fermion · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Or you can lie in bed and point the thing straight up. In a dark room, you'll have yourself a huge, bright movie playing on the ceiling.

    --
    "She's a scientist and a lesbian. She's not going to let it slide." Orphan Black
  6. Re:does size matter? by Overzeetop · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Being able to carry one in your laptop bag for impromptu meetings is a key use. Having one to project the latest episode of [insert favorite show here] from your cell phone is one of those cool applications you buy it for, even though you'll probably never use it that way.

    BTW - not every presentation occurs where there is a mounted projector. In the architecture field, for example, we often give presentations to smaller clients (churches, non-profits, individuals) in class or meeting rooms with nothing but a table, some chairs, and four white walls. These people don't have their "dream buildings" yet...which is why we're working with them.

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    Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
  7. Re:Our New Leader Has Arrived by fuzzyfuzzyfungus · · Score: 5, Funny

    Poor form sir, poor form. What good is a paranoid rant without some mention of jew bankers, the international money cartel, black helicopters, and the plan to turn Mississippi into an al-quaeda training camp?

    -1: discredit to the white race.

  8. Baffled by terbo · · Score: 5, Funny

    "The people on the plane were baffled when they saw *porn* on the ceiling . ." and you thought cell phones were annoying when they came out . .

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    If you're interested in facts I'll tell you what they are and I'll give you sources - Chomsky on The Big Idea
    1. Re:Baffled by ozbird · · Score: 5, Insightful

      and you thought cell phones were annoying when they came out . .

      They still are.

  9. 3M did it first. by Facegarden · · Score: 5, Informative

    3M makes and sells a very pocketable battery powered projector already. It has been for sale for a couple of months. Has better specs too, and it's cheaper. I'm not sure why we have articles that ignore stuff like this. I know we can't be experts on everything, but man, the author couldn't do a quick google search for pico projectors?
    -Taylor

    --
    Worldwide Military budgets: $2100 billion. Worldwide Space Exploration budgets: $38 billion. Really, world? Really?
    1. Re:3M did it first. by Smauler · · Score: 5, Funny

      Yes, and I should also point out it's cheaper as well.

  10. Re:The lamp is non-replaceable? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It sure is replaceable! Only $430!

    The $430 price is only for new adopters. It'll be $19.95 by the time you have to replace it.

  11. It's been done. by TofuMatt · · Score: 5, Funny

    No HD, no wireless, no shaver. Lame.

    This is where's it's at.

    --
    -Matthew Riley "TofuMatt" MacPherson
    I have a website
  12. Re:Huh... Didn't the thing use lasers... by camperdave · · Score: 5, Informative

    traditional projectors, like LCD Monitors, actually use more energy to display black, because it has to activate the cells to block light.

    That may be true in LCD shutter technologies, such as an LCD monitor. This baby uses DLP technology, which is essentially a chip covered in tiny steerable mirrors. To produce black, they simply aim the mirror off-screen. It costs essentially no more energy to produce black vs any other color.

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