When you’re shopping for projectors, you’ll see a lot of product information – among them are projector features.

The quality of images you’ll get and the ease of use depend on their features.

Here are some important projector features you should look for:

1 – Resolution 

Resolution measures the number of dots or pixels per inch. More pixels mean better-looking images.

If you want sharp and clean images, look for a projector with high resolution.

Resolutions look like this: 800×600, 1024×768, or 1280×800 pixels.

The first number indicates the number of dots horizontally. The second number indicates the number of dots vertically.

Multiply the two numbers and their product is the total number of dots that make up the image.

Home Theater Projector 

If you’re looking for a projector for your home theater, these are the resolutions you can expect to see:

720p (1280×720 pixels 16:9 aspect ratio): matches the HDTV standard.

1080p (1920×1080 pixels, 16:9 aspect ratio): matches the 1080i/1080p HDTV broadcast and Blu-ray formats. The standard format for home theater.

For Business Use

SVGA (800×600 pixels, 4:3 aspect ratio)

They are considered low-resolution projectors. But they are already good enough for simple presentations and video clips.

XGA (1024×768 pixels, 4:3 aspect ratio)

They are mostly used by computers.

WXGA (1280×800 pixels, 16:10 aspect ratio)

They provide more horizontal resolution than XGA.

This is a common resolution for notebook computers and smartphone.

WUXGA (1920×1200 pixels, 16:10 aspect ratio)

They’re used in high-end notebooks and computers.

They guarantee high-definition images.

2 – Contrast Ratio

Contrast ratio is the difference between the blackest and the whitest on images.

It is vital in delivering clear images especially in a room where there’s ambient light.

Contrast ratio plays an important role if you’re looking for a projector for viewing purposes.

3 – Ease of Set-up

Projector connections can be through a USB, VGA, component, HDMI, and display port.

4 – Wireless Projection

Do you want to project images without using wires?

Configure your projector to project wirelessly.

You can select a wireless-enabled projector. Or choose a wireless optional projector and get a wireless LAN module.

5 – Brightness

Brightness is measured by ANSI lumens. Lumens measure the brightness of the light of the projector.

The brighter the light, the better the images can be projected.

If you’re going to use it for a room with ambient light, choose a projector that has high lumens.

6 – Color Fidelity

Any projector buyer looks forward to seeing good quality images from their projector.

This includes color clarity. Blue should be blue – not bluish green.

7 – Throw Distance

Throw distance refers to the distance from the projector to the screen.

When choosing a projector you need to consider the throw distance and the size of the room.

These are your options for throw distances:

Long Throw Projectors

They can project very large images.

Short Throw Projectors

They project large images. But they need to be near the wall or screen where they will project the images. The throw distance is about 3-8 feet away.

Ultra-Short Throw Projectors

They have a distance of about 0 – 4 feet from the projector to the screen.

8 – Image Position and Adjustment

Aside from projecting clear images, a projector with easy controls makes a good projector.

With manual adjustment buttons, you can easily make adjustments without having to go into the settings menu.

On the other hand, automatic adjustments do the work for you without having to do trial and error manually.