All > LG HU810PW
LG HU810PW
Retail Price
$3000.00
Release Date
January 2021
The HU810PW is called a 4K UHD Smart Dual Laser CineBeam Projector, which uses a single-chip to deliver a 4K resolution via pixel-shifting and dual-laser light source to beam images with up to 2,700 ANSI lumens brightness. It’s great that LG produced a traditional projector to fill the rest of its lineup. It has a beautiful picture quality, is very bright, and is easy to use with a great operating system and motion engine that uses LG’s true motion resulting in a smooth and clean picture. It offers impressive performance and is reasonably priced for a 4K model with a laser light source. Getting pictures to look best requires a fair amount of work, but once settings are dialed in, the outcome is satisfying for regular HD and 4K/HDR sources. The streaming and voice control features are a plus when using the Smart TV interface.
Overview
- Value for Money
- Conclusion
- Reputation
- Performance
- Positive
- Negative
Value for Money - At $3,000, the contrast still has flaws, making it hard to recommend considering it's more expensive than 4K projectors with better contrast. But for brightness, color, and detail, it's tough to beat.
Conclusion - The HU810PW is called a 4K UHD Smart Dual Laser CineBeam Projector, which uses a single-chip to deliver a 4K resolution via pixel-shifting and dual-laser light source to beam images with up to 2,700 ANSI lumens brightness. It's great that LG produced a traditional projector to fill the rest of its lineup. It has a beautiful picture quality, is very bright, and is easy to use with a great operating system and motion engine that uses LG's true motion resulting in a smooth and clean picture. It offers impressive performance and is reasonably priced for a 4K model with a laser light source. Getting pictures to look best requires a fair amount of work, but once settings are dialed in, the outcome is satisfying for regular HD and 4K/HDR sources. The streaming and voice control features are a plus when using the Smart TV interface.
Reputation - The LG HU810PW and AU810PB deliver impressive picture quality with the best HDR available at their price point.
ProjectorCentral
04/01/2021
Performance - It gives great value with the crisp, detailed picture, punchy colors, and smooth motion handling, and despite the limited contrast range, it performs well as a flexible all-in-one system and installs model.
What Hi-Fi
03/01/2022
See All Sources
Cons & Pros
- Cons
- Pros
- Positive
- Negative
Cons - Some cons of the HU810PW include the inability to decode video in H.265 2, the location of the IR sensor, no main switch, installation recommendation for ventilation, inability to adjust gamma highlights, mid-tones and shadows, recommendation of not interposing anything in front of the lens, transparent dust cap, and ND filter as the laser can bounce inside and damage it, requires calibration for best performance, smart features may be overkill, colors lack subtly, shallow black level, expensive, terrible contrast ratio, confusing settings, and lip-sync issues.
Pros - The pros of the HU810PW include the great color created by lasers, super-sharp 4K detail, ample brightness and good contrast, flexible zoom and lens shift range, built-in streaming apps, detailed, bright, vibrant picture, excellent motion processing, and onboard streaming.
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Build & Design
- Build
- Chip - Contrast Ratio
- Connectivity Options
- Controls
- Design
- Dimensions
- Durability
- Home Cinema Box
- Inclusions
- Laser - Chip
- Laser - Color Accuracy
- Laser - Rainbow Artifacts
- Laser - Uniformity
- Lens Shift
- Mount
- Remote
- Size & Weight
- Speaker
- Positive
- Negative
Build - The projector lens and IR sensor are located in the front for focus, and zoom adjustments, and below are the ventilations on each side. Under the lens are the horizontal and vertical lens shift dials, while the bottom has adjustable legs and mounting holes for a ceiling mount.
Chip - Contrast Ratio - A green phosphor aids 2 lasers to let the 810P create life-like colors and a sharp image with the 4K DLP chip.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
Connectivity Options - Connectivity options include 2 HDMI 2.1, 1 HDMI 2.0, 2 USB ports, 1 Digital audio output, Wi-Fi and LAN, and a backlit remote. Specifically, the HDMI eARC allows audio routing, including Dolby Atmos soundtracks, directly from the projector to an outboard receiver and a Bluetooth output for a wireless connection to the soundbar. The USB inputs are rated for 0.5 amp, which may cause streaming stick problems.
Controls - In the menu, the Black Level control reads, "Correct contrast and brightness by adjusting black levels," It has 3 settings separate from the actual contrast and brightness controls. The focus control is tricky due to the stiffness of the lever. Although the manual controls made it cheaper, considering the high price, one would expect electronic lens adjustment to be on the menu.
Design - The design is clean, simple, and minimalistic. Also, it's compact and light for a long-throw projector and narrower. The matte white, sharp-edged finish gave it a 'lifestyle' design. Shape-wise, it has a square design different from other manufacturers, but the lack of buttons and dials at the top makes it look cleaner.
Dimensions - It's big and heavy and measures 16" long, 13" wide, and 6" tall.
JoelsterG4K
06/21/2021
Durability - It has a great image quality out of the box. However, it's unreliable and hard to deal with when it needs repair.
ProjectorCentral
04/01/2021
Home Cinema Box - It includes onboard streaming because of LG's Web OS and built-in speakers.
What Hi-Fi
03/01/2022
Inclusions - It comes with documentation, a power cord, edge guards to protect the corners of the projector, magic remote batteries, and the projector.
Chris Majestic
03/08/2021
Laser - Chip - The laser light source is not only bright but is rated to last up to 20 000 hours, meaning it can be used 8 hours a day for up to 7 years while preserving the initial brightness without needing bulb replacement. Specifically, there are 2 lasers in the 810P, 1 blue that creates blue light and sends light to the green phosphor, which produces the colors with the help of a 4K DLP chip, and 1 red.
Laser - Color Accuracy - The dual laser technology and 2,700 lumens will be used to implement an expanded pixel resolution to achieve 4k, allowing pictures to be bright with precision and detail under ambient light while having accurate colors due to the 97 DC-IP3 color gamut. For instance, the dual-laser configuration and DLP XPR chip made the opening of The Adventures of Tintin on Blu-ray washed with punchy and rich colors, while the textures and details were fairly refined.
Laser - Rainbow Artifacts - The laser engine's design reduces the chance of rainbow artifacts.
ProjectorCentral
04/01/2021
Laser - Uniformity - The laser light source offers great image quality and good uniformity across the screen that can fill a 135-inch screen from 13 feet away and a 100-inch from about 9.5 feet away.
Chris Majestic
03/08/2021
Lens Shift - The 810P has a 24% horizontal and 60% vertical lens shift that can be adjusted using the concentric wheels on the side panel. This allows versatile placement of the projector without the image getting blocked.
Mount - The setup is straightforward; it's fairly compact and supports a shelf or inverted ceiling mount for front or rear projection through the adjustable feet and mounting points. Also, there are levers on the shaft for manual focus and a 1.6 x optical zoom lens.
Remote - LG's magic remote offers a "point-and-click" capability, and it can be used as a pointer or regular remote controller, plus it has a backlight. Specifically, it gives quick access to apps, including Disney Plus, Apple TV, Britbox, Plex, Amazon Prime Video, Mubi, Rakuten TV, YouTube, Spotify, and Napster. Still, there's no iPlayer or HBO Max. LG packages the same Magic Remote as the HU810PW you get with the company's TVs.
Size & Weight - It's twice the size of lower-end projectors and significantly heavier weighing 24 pounds.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
Speaker - It comes with a dual 5-watt internal speaker that can get loud. However, they aren't serviceable or enjoyable to listen to as it produces a narrow and harsh sound, especially when pushed to a high volume. Moreover, you can take advantage of the eARC port and attach a Dolby Atmos soundbar or AVR for a more home cinema-like experience.
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Display, Image Quality & Resolution
- Black Levels
- Brightness
- Color Accuracy
- Color Temperature - Post-Calibration
- Color Temperature - Pre-Calibration
- Color
- Contrast Ratio
- Contrast Ratio - Adaptive Contrast
- Contrast
- Display
- HDR
- Image Quality
- Picture Attributes
- Picture Presets
- Picture Quality
- Picture Uniformity - Post-Calibration
- Resolution
- Positive
- Negative
Black Levels - The dark scenes in the 810P look mediocre, saddled by grayish-black levels and lack of overall punch. You can't get decent black levels out of it without dropping the entire light output of the projector, which doesn't help the contrast ratio; it just makes it dimmer. Though not noticeable in a brighter environment, but is more noticeable in a dark room.
Brightness - Brightness measures 166 nits, or roughly 1,498 lumens, with HD content producing roughly 1,500 lumens.
Color Accuracy - The warm color temperature setting is the closest to accurate but lacks green with brighter images and has too much red with darker images. Generally, for HD content, colors were accurate, with only cyan drifting blue and magenta drifting slightly red. But, in an expert darkroom, colors looked and measured well with the iris control going up, which made images look more natural.
Color Temperature - Post-Calibration - After calibration, Delta E improved to 1.3 with a high of 1.8 at 100% brightness.
Sound & Vision
05/26/2021
Color Temperature - Pre-Calibration - Before calibration, picture mode displayed a significant red/blue bias, with the Delta E averaging 18.85, with a low of 7.4 at 10 and 24.4 at 100 IRE.
Sound & Vision
05/26/2021
Color - The colors steal the show with deep vibrant reds, blues, greens, and more, all at impressively high levels of brightness.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
Contrast Ratio - The contrast ratio averaged 490:1 across multiple modes and settings, with the best result at 2,407:1.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
Contrast Ratio - Adaptive Contrast - There's a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio and adaptive contrast, which adds more depth to the picture, and optimizes brightness and black levels to create a high contrast ratio.
JoelsterG4K
06/21/2021
Contrast - A high contrast of 0.8 gain screen is needed to get good black levels and contrast.
JoelsterG4K
06/21/2021
Display - Its 4K display capability supports HDR10 and Hybrid Log Gamma high dynamic range formats spec'd for 97% DCI-P3 color space coverage. The color intensity and crispness stand out when projected to an 8ft screen.
HDR - The 810 can handle any kind of HDR, including HDR10 HLG and HGIG formats in video games. For HDR content, brightness max out at 290 nits, or 2,600 lumens in the Brightest picture mode. However, it has a visible blue/green.
Image Quality - The 810P can handle brighter scenes better than dark scenes, as the latter looks dimmer due to the drop in the light output.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
Picture Attributes - It has a 4K resolution, HDR support, 2700 ANSI lumens brightness, and a 97% DCI/P3 color gamut.
What Hi-Fi
03/01/2022
Picture Presets - The picture presets can be modified to custom images from different sources. Changing between the presets while watching on it will let you see which preset makes the experience better.
JoelsterG4K
06/21/2021
Picture Quality - It's a 4k HDR dual laser projector with a beautiful and crisp image. Plus great features and picture quality.
JoelsterG4K
06/21/2021
Picture Uniformity - Post-Calibration - Picture uniformity was excellent, with minimal brightness drops between the center and edges of the projection screen and no color shifts.
Sound & Vision
05/26/2021
See All Sources
Features
- Adaptive Contrast - Mechanical Iris
- Apps
- Cinema Mode
- Focus - Zoom
- Game Mode
- Graphics - Support
- Iris Mode
- Key Features
- Menu
- Modes
- Presets
- Real Cinema Setting
- Settings
- Standard Mode
- Streaming Support
- Tone Mapping
- Voice Control Support
- Positive
- Negative
Adaptive Contrast - Mechanical Iris - It doesn't have the best black levels. Still, the adaptive contrast and mechanical iris allow it to produce better black levels by setting overall brightness for each picture mode to match preferences and accommodate different lighting conditions.
Apps - It has some built-in streaming apps but no Netflix or HBO.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
Cinema Mode - The cinema mode is the most color accurate, while the default settings have a slight blue hue in images, though it gives a ton of white balance and color control settings for customization.
Chris Majestic
03/08/2021
Focus - Zoom - There are 2 levers below the lens for the manual focus and a 1.6x optical zoom.
Game Mode - In Game Mode, there's an input lag time of 48-52ms at 1080P, which makes it suitable for casual gamers. Overall, it's bearable and faster than most 4k pixel-shifting projectors with high color accuracy.
Graphics - Support - The limitation on the 4k graphics from a PC may be due to the graphics card itself.
Chris Majestic
03/08/2021
Iris Mode - The iris mode allows brightness adjustment depending on lighting conditions without losing color detail.
JoelsterG4K
06/21/2021
Key Features - The key features include a dual laser light source of up to 20 000 hours of lamp life, 4k resolution using pixel shifting with the 0.47-inch texas instruments DLP chip, 2700 lumens, great color accuracy covering 97% DC-IP3, 60% vertical and 20% horizontal lens shift, mechanical iris, HDR10, HLG, and HGiG support, eARC for uncompressed audio, HDCP 2.3, HDMI 2.1 port, webOS 5.0 interface, and access to Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, Peacock, YouTube, Showtime, Starz, and other streaming apps via a wired or Wi-Fi connection.
Menu - It has a metric butt-ton of settings of sub-menus that are difficult to navigate with illogical terminology. It includes settings for Adaptive Contrast, Dynamic Contrast, and more.
Modes - It lacks a dynamic iris but has Dark Room, Bright Room, and user-adjustable Iris modes, aided by an Adaptive Contrast setting that helps maximize picture contrast depending on room lighting. Standard mode is great for TV and SDR content, the Game mode for gaming, and Cinema Home mode for HDR content. In contrast, Filmmaker mode optimizes all settings for a viewing experience closest to what the movie director expects you to see.
Presets - The preset picture modes offer a good jumping-off point for tweaking.
What Hi-Fi
03/01/2022
Real Cinema Setting - In the menu, the Real Cinema setting reads as "Adjust the frame ratio in the same way with the movie, and it provides the feeling of the movie theater," which probably shows 24p content at a multiple of 24.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
Settings - The settings include Energy Saving, Brightness Optimizer>Iris Mode, Brightness Optimizer>Adaptive Contrast, Advanced Controls>Dynamic Contrast, Picture Options>Real Cinema, Picture Options>TruMotion, Picture Options>Black Level, Dynamic Tone Mapping, and True Motion adjustments.
Standard Mode - The standard mode offers a bright and sharp display.
Chris Majestic
03/08/2021
Streaming Support - There's an airplay feature for IOS devices, which is easy to connect to any Apple device, and a Miracast for PCs and Android devices for screen mirroring.
Tone Mapping - The HDR content has great colors, while the dynamic tone mapping maintains shallow details and details in bright areas. However, there's no user-adjustable HDR tone mapping.
Voice Control Support - The voice control supports Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa, and LG's ThinQ+.
Sound & Vision
05/26/2021
See All Sources
Performance/Specs
- Bandwidth
- Gaming
- Input Lag
- LG’s OS
- Lip-Sync Delay
- Noise
- Performance
- Rainbow Effect
- Setup - Usage
- Specs
- Positive
- Negative
Bandwidth - This port has a 4:4:4/RGB 10-bit output but has an input bandwidth capped at 24Gbps, so next-gen consoles from Sony and Xbox can't take advantage of 4K@120Hz gameplay.
Gaming - Games are Xbox series X has great pictures that look sharp and colorful. Some gaming features include auto logging latency, HDIG for HDR gaming, 1440p at 60Hz, and 1080p at 120Hz.
Input Lag - In Gaming mode, the input lag in 1080p source measured 80ms, making LG below-average for high-def gaming.
Sound & Vision
05/26/2021
LG’s OS - The operating system is great, making the projector feel like a Smart TV with many native apps and easy to navigate layout. Plus, AirPlay, Mirrorcast, and Bluetooth support.
Chris Majestic
03/08/2021
Lip-Sync Delay - The lip-sync delay seems unfixable with any setting; although the audio timing can be adjusted, it only addresses the projector's internal speakers. Therefore, when using an external speaker system, it must have a lip sync adjustment.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
Noise - Fan noise is low at 28dB for Minimum Energy Saving, with a 2dB difference between the Minimum and Maximum modes. It's not silent but has a more ignorable lower pitch to its fan noise.
Performance - The black detail gets compromised when trying to gain a richer, more balanced picture. For instance, in Aquaman, some of the murkier elements of the sea bed are lost, and images look a little over-processed, making the characters in the scene look like flat cardboard cut-outs against the background. But these flaws don't detract from the experience with vivid colors and slick motion handling in the positive column.
What Hi-Fi
03/01/2022
Rainbow Effect - The rainbow effect varies depending on the person's sensitivity to such.
Chris Majestic
03/08/2021
Setup - Usage - Start-up only takes a few seconds, and power-down is also almost instant.
What Hi-Fi
03/01/2022
Specs - It has a native resolution of 3,840x2,160 pixels, 16:9/Original/Full Wide/4:3/Vertical Zoom aspect ratios, and is HDR and 4K-compatible but not 3D compatible. It has 2,700 lumens, 1.6x manual zoom, ± 24% horizontal and ± 60% vertical lens shift, and is illuminated by dual laser with 20,000 hours of lamp life. Dimensions are 13.2 "x5.9" x16.1", weighing 24.2 lbs, producing a noise of 28dB, and supporting HDR/HDR10/Dynamic Tone Mapping/HLG/HGiG. The connectivity offered is 2 HDMI 2.0 and 1 HDMI 2.1 with eARC, Wi-Fi, AirPlay, Bluetooth, USB-A, and a 5W sound output. Its processor is a quad-core, DLP XPR chip, screen size is 40" to 300", and has an image projection of 150-inch at 4.3 - 6.9m; 100-inch at 2.9-4.6m. The projector is sold for $2,999. Additionally, it runs on Web OS, which features applications, smart assistants, picture setting options, voice assistants, and streaming support.
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Comparison
- Comparison vs AU810
- Comparison vs BenQ HT5550
- Comparison vs BenQ W5000
- Comparison vs Epson 5050UB
- Comparison vs Epson EH-TW9400
- Comparison vs Epson
- Comparison vs QN90A
- Comparison vs Sony VPL-VW350ES
- Positive
- Negative
Comparison vs AU810 - The extra thousand spent on the AU810 will provide you with network control, ethernet, RS232 serial port, and a 12V trigger output.
ProjectorCentral
04/01/2021
Comparison vs BenQ HT5550 - The input lag in LG (48ms) is better than BenQ (100ms), but the latter is not marketed as a gaming projector. In contrast, the benefits of the BenQ include slightly better color accuracy and 3D support. However, LG is 2x brighter, has a laser light source, Web OS, and better HDR performance.
Comparison vs BenQ W5000 - At 1080p, LG is no better than W5000 with big rainbow effects that keep popping up in certain scenes with high contrast and is more noticeable than on W5000. At the same time, the white background tends to be a bit too blueish, and setting it on a warm tone will result in a yellow/red cast; cold results in blue and medium are best but still a bit too blue. Although there's a function to adjust the "tint," it also messed up other colors. In movies, color levels are about right, although the lasers tend to cast a bit of a glittering effect, especially on red colors. On the other hand, it has great brightness levels, and movies look good with colors that pop out; black levels are good enough in dark movies with the iris mode, decent contrast ratio, and long-lasting lasers. Plus, it's better to disable TrueMotion to keep the look and feel of movies.
JoelsterG4K
06/21/2021
Comparison vs Epson 5050UB - The LG has a better laser light source, long-lasting bulb, bright standard mode, runs on Web OS, better clarity with the 4K, quick on/off, ability to view 300" pictures, and good HDR. However, it lacks automatic lens shift, has too many picture adjustments, has a high-pitched sound when turned on, and is less vibrant. On the other hand, Epson also has a 4K but has a higher contrast ratio, great flexibility with a powered lens, better black levels, and detailed dark scenes. However, it will eventually require a bulb replacement using outdated technologies.
Chris Majestic
03/08/2021
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Comparison vs Epson EH-TW9400 - Comparing the LG to Epson EH-TW9400, there's not much gradation in how LG handles light shading, resulting in a flatter-looking image. In contrast, the Epson comes across as looking more natural and convincing.
What Hi-Fi
03/01/2022
Comparison vs Epson - Having black walls will help the image to be portrayed better than when on white. On the other hand, Epson has a better image, even on a white wall.
r/projectors
07/21/2021
Comparison vs QN90A - The LG has a high contrast ratio of about 2000:1, deeper blacks than the QN90A, great color pops, and a local dimming that will increase the contrast ratio up to 30,000:1.
JoelsterG4K
06/21/2021
Comparison vs Sony VPL-VW350ES - Sony uses 3 liquid crystal on silicon (LCOS, or SXRD in Sony parlance) chips, which is known for its excellent contrast, making the LG look too far behind.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
See All Sources
Price
- Price
- Value
- Positive
- Negative
Price - The LG HU810PW is priced at $2,999.
Sound & Vision
05/26/2021
Price - The HU810 has a great price point value.
r/projectors
07/08/2021
Price - The LG HU810PW is a dual laser 4k home theater projector that retails for $3000.
Chris Majestic
03/08/2021
Price - The LG HU810PW is the first affordable 4k laser projector made by LG for dark room home theaters, and it comes in 2 versions; the black AU810 costs $3999, and the white HUA10 with identical performance costs $2999.
ProjectorCentral
04/01/2021
Price - The LG HU810PW is at the top of LG's CineBeam range of projectors for domestic use. The ProBeam series is designed for business installations, and this is LG's first model to focus on a 'proper' home cinema. Variants include HU810PW, which costs £3000/$3000/AU$5670, and AU810PB, which costs £3500/$3999/AU$6616.
What Hi-Fi
03/01/2022
Value - Some projectors cost much less than the 810P from smaller companies, which are easier to use and far more polished.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
Value - It has stunning picture detail and brightness. Overall, it's worth the price because of how customizable it is, and there are many settings for the betterment of the experience.
Chris Majestic
03/08/2021
See All Sources
Miscellaneous
- Issue - Accurate Picture
- Issue - Bright Objects
- Issue - Speckle
- Issue - Lens Shift, Calibration & Tone Mapping
- Lack - 3D
- Setup Suggestion
- Positive
- Negative
Issue - Accurate Picture - When attempting to get an accurate picture, the color temperature varies with the iris setting, drifting to blue at a lower brightness level.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
Issue - Bright Objects - It has a rich picture but a tough time with bright white objects, though turning down contrast seems to fix the issue.
ProjectorCentral
04/01/2021
Issue - Speckle - It has a speckle, where certain pixels are brighter than others. However, it's hard to notice at a normal viewing distance of around 10 feet, and you'll eventually adapt to it.
CNET - Geoffrey Morrison
03/19/2021
Issue - Lens Shift, Calibration & Tone Mapping - The LG HU810 has lens shift and calibration issues, its dynamic tone mapping doesn't have a manual adjustment, and its contrast measures are mediocre to poor.
r/projectors
07/08/2021
Lack - 3D - It doesn't have 3D support, which is essential in projectors.
Setup Suggestion - Setting it up in a bright room with white walls will make the images washed out. Thus, painting the walls black may help offset it. Also, fiddling with the settings, such as turning HDR off, may help.
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