Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector Review

The Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector is worth a look if you’re in the market for a portable, XGA-resolution business projector. Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector project features are its HDMI-in port and the port for a USB thumb drive, and the slider-based horizontal keystone correction is also a nice touch.

For an XGA projector for larger conference rooms, the Editors’ Choice Epson PowerLite 1880 MultiMedia Projector $1,399 direct, 4 stars) is brilliant at 4,000 lumens, even if you’ll pay a premium for it.

The projector’s 2-watt mono speaker was loud enough to fill a small room, even if at full volume there was occasional distortion that could be remedied by turning the sound down.

There are plenty of decent XGA-resolution business projectors around; the key is finding the right balance between features, image quality, fee, and portability based on your own needs. TheInFocus IN114 ($399 direct, 3.5 stars) provides similar image quality to the Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector for business presentations at a budget fee, even if it lacks some useful connections like a port for a USB thumb drive or an HDMI-in port. 

I tested the Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector using the DisplayMate (www.displaymate.com) software test suite, and found data image quality to be acceptable for typical business presentations, with the one caveat being text quality. White on black text showed some blur at the two smallest sizes—in most projectors I’ve tested, only the smallest size has any visible blur. Similarly, black on white text was slightly blurred at the smallest size; it’s unusual to see any blur. I’d recommend that anyone using the projector for presentations use a relatively large type face.Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector  Another, less serious issue was tinting: thin white lines at times appeared yellowish, while some gray areas had a slight greenish tinge.

It has both vertical and horizontal keystone correction; while the vertical correction is involuntary, the horizontal uses a user-friendly slide-based system. The Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector connections include VGA/component video; HDMI; S-video; 3 RCA jacks for composite video; USB type B (for connection with a computer) and USB type A (which fits a USB thumb drive).

Video quality, based on selected scenes in our test DVDs (Terminator 2 and The West Wing) was usable for small or even medium-length video clips as part of presentations. There was often some loss of detail in bright areas, and flesh tones at times looked a bit too red.

Image quality is excellent enough for a typical business presentation, although I wish the text had been a small sharper in our test images.

Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector

The Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector is based on 3LCD technology, which was developed by Epson and uses three LCD panels, which each process light of a different primary affect. This projector has native XGA (1,024 by 768 pixel) native resolution, a 4:3 aspect ratio befitting a data projector. At a rated brightness 2,800 lumens, the Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector is bright enough to throw a reasonably bright image onto a large screen in a conference room, even with considerable ambient lighting.

The Optoma Pro260X ($600 road, 3.5 stars ) provides decent image quality and has an HDMI-in port. The Dell 1410X ($599 list, 3.5 stars) provides solid data image quality and a modest feature set.

Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector

For a bit more money, the NEC NP64 ($1,099 direct, 4 stars) is light, bright, and offers a solid feature set and excellent image quality. The Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector ($549.99 direct) is a handsome, portable business projector that’s simple to use and has some nifty features. Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector image quality is decent for data, as well as for video clips—just avoid using small text in your presentations.

The Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector is a handsome projector, black with a textured top and rounded corners. On the top, near the lens, are the focus wheel, zoom wheel, and slider for horizontal keystone correction. The projector measures 3.0 by 11.6 by 9.0 inches (HWD) and weighs 5.1 pounds, making it easily portable. Epson EX5210 Multimedia Projector comes with a soft carrying case, and as you can run a presentation from a USB thumb drive, you don’t even have to bring your computer with you.