Few questions about a good projector on my PC and TV?

Question

I have always wanted a projector for my TV services (satellite, cable) and PC in a spare bedroom. Well it's more of a home office that I spend most my time in.

The catch here is it's a small room. The room is only the standard 8 feet tall, and is about 13 feet wide on the wall where I would like to mount the projector and the wall where the screen would be for it. So only about 13 feet from projector to screen. Fortunately, there is no sunlight in the room either to worry about.

I would like to know...

1. From experience or knowledge what would be a good projector I could hook up to my satellite box and also my PC? Cheaper is better in this case but I would still like the best image for my buck and something reliable.

2. From 12-13 feet away, how large and clear can I expect the picture to be?

3. What kind of cables would I need to purchase and run through my attic to my cable/satellite receiver box as well as my PC?

4. These cables in question 3 would most likely need to be a good 15-20 feet in length to reach. Would I need anything special (signal booster, repeater, etc) for that to work at those distances?

Answer 1

You can get an excellent entry level 720p projector for around $700 and entry level for 1080p is now less than $1000. You can go way higher if you want but these inexpensive units are really good, better than stuff that cost 10 times as much 5 years ago. The increase in quality as you go up from there falls drastically on a quality per dollar basis.

You can use a white wall or get a basic screen for a couple hundred bucks.

An HDMI cable is what you would want to run. You don't need any sort of repeater or booster at those distances, and you shouldn't spend much for the cable if you get one somewhere like newegg.com or a dedicated cable seller like monoprice.com.

A good site for more information on all this and reviews of all kinds of projectors is http://www.projectorcentral.com .

Answer 2

1. You'll have to research a bit, and see what you can buy cheaply where you live - use Herbert Sitz's link

2. Clear, as long as you go HD, large if you get a "short throw" lens or projector that already has one. Herbert's linked site has a nice calculator for exact sizes.

3. Yes HDMI, as long as your satbox and tv have it

4. Don't think so

Answer 3

With such a small room, look for "short throw" projectors. These are designed to be closer to the wall than ordinary projectors but still produce a large image.