Epson BrightLink 436Wi Pro Reviews

The Epson BrightLink 436Wi Interactive WXGA 3LCD Projector brings Epson's leading-edge interactive features to a more affordable projector.

The Epson BrightLink 436Wi was a strong performer in the area of interactivity, picture quality and ease of use. Although it might not seem as featureful as some of the interactive projectors on the market, it makes up for it in a big way because of the ability to learn it quickly, and take advantage of the unusual ability to still annotate without a computer hooked up to the projector. Being a 1280x800 native resolution projector, the 436Wi produced a sharp image, and it handled higher resolutions very well. Color reproduction was excellent. Yellows and reds were very accurate. Brightness levels were very close to the Epson's specifications, so you can expect to see a strong image in even the brightest of rooms. I should note that Dynamic Mode produced the 3002 lumens, but Presentation Mode is where you will want to be set to for everyday use. You should expect about 2100 lumens when in Normal brightness mode and Presentation color mode.

The 436Wi offers more than enough to earn your attention if you're in the market for a 1280x800 interactive short throw projector. In addition to excellent data image quality, better than par video quality, and a suitably bright image, it offers a slew of welcome interactive features, including automatic calibration, the ability to use two pens simultaneously, and the PC-free mode that lets you interact with any image from any source or use the projector as a whiteboard. It also gets lots of points for not dropping in brightness for interactive use, for it's flexible connection choices, and for having a useful audio system with acceptable quality and enough volume for a large room. If you need a projector for 3D content, the lack of 3D support will be an issue, but in most cases that won't matter. In every other way, the 436Wi is one of the most capable short throw interactive projectors at this writing, and at least arguably the most capable. It certainly belongs on your short list, and to call it an excellent choice would be an understatement.