The down turn in the economy has everyone feeling the pinch. People are working longer hours, spending longer on their commutes to and from work, and finding it more difficult to balance career life, and family life. When there is time away from work, families spend a great deal of it, and a great deal of money on family entertainment. One way to offset the cost of entertainment, at least in the long run would be to invest in home theater/entertainment.

It is said that the average family spends around $200 per month in entertainment. It is not hard to see that this is an average amount, as the cost of a professional sporting event would eclipse that dollar figure rather quickly, for a family of four. The average coast of admission for a movie is $10 for adults, and $8 for kids under 12. The math on this suggests that just getting to a movie a few times a month would also pass the average monthly figure for entertainment. For argument’s sake though, lets use the $200 number and show how home theater would be a great way to entertain your family and be a great value in the long run.

$200 per month over 1 year would be $2400. Using that $2400 to invest in home theater equipment would allow for a wide range of options to choose from. Choosing the gadgets you want is a matter of budget, taste, and personal preference. Flat panel televisions are a great option. They are low to no maintenence, relatively affordable, and they produce extremely clear images. Mounting options for flat panels can range from simple fixed mounts on the wall to pivoting wall arm mounts. The lone drawback in selecting a flat panel tv as the centerpiece for your home theater would be the cost of the tv. There may not be much left over from the $2400 budget to get accessories like surround sound, or the mounting option you choose.

For the most bang for your buck, and if you have the space in your home, try the projector and screen. The advantages here are that you can have a much larger display than a plasma or lcd tv. In addition, the look and feel of a movie theater is easily accomplished with a screen and projector. Here is a great example of an all inclusive home theater package that falls well within the $2400 budget.

There are do-it-yourself options for home theater enthusiasts. You can also choose to select each piece individually. Choosing the all-in-one package leaves enough room to hire an installer as well. So, even though the economy may be challenging for all, family entertainment does not have to suffer because of it.

If you are in the market for a new television, it can be a daunting task in sifting through all of the choices in size, technology, etc.. Check out these tips in deciding what technology is best for you.

1. Projectors do not have RF cable or antenna connections the way a TV set does. However, if you have cable or satellite and the box has either S-Video, component, and/or DVI, or HDMI connections you would be able to hook them up to a video projector.

2. Video projectors have a limited lamp life. If you use your projector every evening for a few hours (or more) you’ll have to replace the lamp every 1000-1500 hrs of use, which could cost a few hundred dollars per lamp.

3. A projector requires a large screen. TV programs do not look as good on a projector screen as they do on a television. If you have HDTV-cable or HDTV-satellite, however, you will get a much better result with the projector screen. Ideally, video projection works best with DVD, Blu-ray, or HD-DVD movies. To extend the lamp life, you could use a television for everyday viewing, and save the projector for movies, gaming, or sports events.

Soon all TV broadcasts will be digital. Whether you choose a projector and screen, or a television, be sure to choose one that is HD compatible for best viewing results. Remember that television programs look a little better on a television than they do on a large projection screen.

There are a lot of circumstances in which outfitting your home theater will dictate the type of viewing method you choose for it. With television technology being what it is today, the visible difference can be almost un-measurable to the human eye, at least from a plasma vs. lcd standpoint. As it relates to projectors and screens vs a flat panel tv, the line of better or worse is even less clear. Here are a few things to consider in compairing the two.

First, the size of your home theater room will be the first indicator as to which method to use. If you are in a small room, with limited space, a flat panel may suit your needs best. Projectors, and the screens they are played on have some limitations like the “Throw Ratio”, or how far away the projector can be to still show a good image. Closer is not always better in this case, but having a projector capable of quality images and greater distances from the screen can affect the price of the projector.

Next, consider what you are watching, or playing on your equipment. Movies and general television may appear to be a bit sharper on a plasma tv, and projector/screen. It is said that plasma tv’s can produce rich and full blacks and darker colors. Movie viewing would be enhanced in this delivery method. Projectors also produce great image quality for movie viewing. If you are a sports fan, or video gamer, LCD televisions may be your best bet. LCD tv’s and projectors produce bright vibrant colors, and LCD’s do not have the “sports blur” effect like plasma tv’s occasionally do.

Last, consider the lighting, both natural and electric. Light has a dramatic affect on picture quality, regardless of the method of image delivery. LCD tv’s are a little less challenged by ambient or natural light, as well as some projectors with high Lumens output. In general, the darker the room when displaying images, the better the images appear.

One other thought, $1000 is enough to get a flat panel or a projector. Flat panels are often mounted on the wall, so plan on purchasing a mount if you chose that option. Projectors work best when the images are shown on screens, so budget for a screen of some sort as well. You may also want to mount your projector to the ceiling, and you can buy a universal projector mount for under $100. Projectors also have a renewable light source, a replacement lamp, that must be changed every 1000-2000 hours of use.

All things considered, choosing any of these options will work well for a home theater. Looking closely at the features for each peice, and thinking about viewing uses will help narrow the list of options to choose from. Follow a budget, and do your homework about each technology you are considering, you really can’t go wrong.

Depending on the type of presentation, you can use either a DLP (Digital Light Processing) projector or a LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) projector. For Powerpoint presentations, LCD projectors are the best choice because LCD has a sharp, bright picture and higher lumens output. For video DLP projectors give better quality. If you are looking for portable solution then LCD projector is not suitable in that case DLP projectors are best.

Brightness is another factor to consider when choosing a projector. 5000 lumens is the brightest while 1000 lumens is the lowest level projector. 6000 lumens projectors are the best for large trade shows in convention centers where you are trying to reach thousands of visitors. The most commonly used projectors are 2000-3000 lumens. For a classroom you should consider using a projector with more than 1000 lumens. If the projector will be used for larger presentations of 100 or more people a projector with more than 3000 lumens may be needed. The higher the lumens the costlier the projector becomes, however. Projectors with high lumens are also heavier.

Remember that when buying a projector you should analyze your needs first. You may not need to spend as much money as you think or you may have to spend the extra cash to get a projector that suits your needs.

So you’ve purchased a 40″ wide screen TV, a surround sound speaker system, a DVD player with DTS or Dolby Laboratories compatibility. What you now have is your basic home theater system, which is arranged to mimic movie theater environment, and make movie watching at home an enjoyable experience.

A consideration in addition to the equipment is the space because the next step is to fit all your equipment into your designated home theater space. There are certain ideals you might want to achieve. A home theater set-up is quite a bit different from the typical arrangement in a family room with a TV set. Surround sound for home theater is best achieved to be in an enclosed room. Of course, working with what you have is key, therefore a room less enclosed will still work, but may alter the sound or viewing experience.

Carpet and curtains work well in a home theater to help improve acoustics as well as keep out unwanted light. Good ventilation is important for the longevity of your equipment and reduction of dust. Consider installing a dimmer switch for the lights in the room. This will provide the ability to precisely adjust the lights for maximum viewing pleasure.

The Projector Screen Experts at Big Screen Center put together a terrific article on choosing the right projector screen size for a room. The article goes into detail about the math involved selecting a projector screen that is proportionate to the room.

Feel free to browse the full text article on Squidoo.com: How to Pick the Right Projector Screen Size

Three Keys to the Right Screen Size

1. Projector Native Resolution lets you know which aspect ratio to select for your screen . What is the native resolution of the projector that you have?
2. Ceiling Height allows you to determine the screen height that will fit gracefully into a room. What is the ceiling height of the room that you are outfitting?
3. Screen Distance to Audience. The people sitting farthest away from the screen determine the minimum screen width. A screen should be at least as wide as 1/6 of the distance between the screen and the viewer farthest from the screen. How far away will the viewer be sitting?

With answers to these questions, you can estimate an appropriate screen size for a given room.

First, we want to look at the native resolution (aspect ratio) of the projector being used in the room. This will help you determine what screen format you should use. Most all projectors nowadays will do both 4:3 and 16:9 aspect ratios. Projectors with 16:9 aspect ratio, like these available at Big Screen Center, are designed for playing High Def movies in home theater settings.

As shown below, a projector with a native 16:9 aspect ratio can letterbox to show a smaller image in 4:3 format. You will want to go by the native aspect ratio in order to get the biggest and best picture.

Second, we will want to look at the ceiling height in the room. A screen should be at least 1 ft. down from the ceiling and 3 ft. up from the floor. For example, in an 8 ft. room, a screen should be 4 ft. high at the most. If the room has a slanted ceiling, the screen should be placed at least 1 ft below the ceiling at the point where the screen is going to be installed. This rule of thumb gives you a screen that is gracefully proportionate to the wall and the room. This is especially true for classrooms, boardrooms, and conference rooms where people will be sitting in front of one another.

If you are mounting your projector to a central location on the ceiling, you want to mount the projector so that it is even with the top of the the screen. Now this rule of thumb is for a maximum screen size. It is OK to go smaller. People tend to focus on what they can see in the center of their field of vision. A person’s gaze tends to travel from one portion of the screen to the next when the screen is too big (or the person is sitting too close) to see it all at once. You don’t want your audience to get tennis neck.

Finally, we need to look at the distance the audience will be sitting from the screen. If the screen is bigger, people can see it from further away. For auditoriums, conference, and boardrooms the width of the screen should be no less that 1/6 the distance of the farthest spectator in the audience. For example if the back row of an auditorium is 48 ft. away then the width of the screen should be at least 8 ft. wide. This rule of thumb is for minimum screen size. It is OK to go larger. The important thing is to get a screen that is large enough for the audience in the back row to view comfortably.

Enjoying the Finished Installation Makes It All Worth While

Photo Courtesy of Epson and CruchGear.com

Example: Applying the Projector Screen Size Rules of Thumb

Projector Resolution. I will pretend I have a Panasonic PT-AE2000U projector, 16:9 aspect ratio for playing Hi-Def movies in a home theater. That means I should use a 16:9 HDTV format screen to get the biggest and best picture.

Ceiling Height. My ceilings are 8 ft. high. So my screen should be 48 in. high at the most. That means the largest screen I can fit in my small home theater is 92 in. diagonal 16:9 HDTV format (45 in. H x 80 in W).

Distance from Screen to Audience. If I prefer a smaller screen, the rule of thumb that screen width is based on the distance between viewer and screen offers some guidance. For example, if I set up the couch 10 ft. or 120 in. away, then the screen should be at least 20 in. wide (1/6 of 120 in.). That means a screen that is anywhere between 20 in. and 80 in. wide with a 16:9 aspect ratio will fit in my home theater.

Remember these rules are just a guide. It is important to have a clear idea of how the screen will fit with architectural features at the installation site. Discussing the screen installation with a knowledgeable professional like the experts at Big Screen Center (1-800-314-8955) may help clarify details of the the project.

Projector Screens Can Harmonize with Architectural Features - Like Stained Glass Windows

Photo Courtesy of recycledtoys.wordpress.com/

For example, a screen is the right size by the numbers might overlap some architectural feature like a window or door frame. In this case, it really helps to plan your purchase with someone who knows all the right questions to ask up front. Knowing your screen will be the right size the first time can save money and time up front.

We had a customer call in recently who had planned to install a screen between two windows but had not included the width of the window frame in his measurement of the distance between the two windows. The measurement was 80″ from windowpane to windowpane. The window frames were 2″ wide. That means that a 60″ x 80″ screen would have the viewing area exactly flush with the glass of the windows completely hide the window frames on both sides.

That’s OK for a manual or electric screen mounted to hang in front of the window frames. However a fixed frame screen designed to mount flush to the wall would be crowded out of position by the window frames. Sometimes it helps to work with a professional.

Big Screens Come in Small - And Long - Packages

Photo Courtesy of HomeTheaterBlog.com

It would be worthwhile to ask your sales rep about the size of the shipping carton the screen arrives in. Once you know the carton measurements, before you buy, check to make sure the screen carton will fit through the door into the room where it will be installed. For example, one reason the 108″ LCD television never caught on is because it is too large to fit through the doorway of a conventional house and turn down a 3′ hallway.

Sharp 108″ LCD Television - Towering over the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas

Photo courtesy of Sharp and Foxnews.com

Measure any doorways, hallways, stairwells that the projector screen carton would have to pass through from the place it leaves the delivery truck to the place it should be installed. Do your best to measure or imagine how the carton would fit through. If the package is too long to fit through the door and around all the corners, check to see if there is a window that can open to let it through. Or get creative. As a last resort, it may be appropriate to consider a smaller size.

Shipping or freight is a significant cost of a projector screen. Companies who sell projector screens will either charge the full amount of the shipping, add shipping cost to the screen price, or absorb all or part of the cost in order to reduce their margins and save the sale. It is also worth consideration that screens with a higher shipping cost also have a higher carbon footprint because of the higher quantities of fossil fuels and packaging materials required to deliver the screen.

Efficient Shipping Reduces a Projector Screen’s Carbon Footprint

Projector screen retailers are diverse and fiercely competitive in their methods of dealing with shipping costs. This diversity gives customers substantial leverage in finding the best bargain or making choices with a favorable impact on the environment. In this guide, you will learn how to reduce the cost of your screen with Free Shipping, identifying screens with naturally Low Shipping Costs, and fully informed Comparison Shopping.

Free Shipping

Companies like Big Screen Center and Projector Screen Center offer free shipping. According to Atlanta bargain guru Clark Howard, looking for a web site that offers free shipping is one of the most important ways to save money shopping online this holiday season.

Be aware that some companies may look like they offer free shipping at first because they add shipping charges toward the end of the transaction. It is common for online shopping carts to have shipping calculators where customers to fill in a state and zip code to calculate shipping. Be careful. Some sites may hide the true shipping costs until after customers have entered payment information.

Industry leaders like Big Screen Center and up and coming Projector Screen Center confirm free shipping or detail shipping costs on the first page of the shopping cart. This elegant feature allows you to comparison shop without entering confidential address or credit card information.

Projector Screen Center Offers Full Disclosure of Shipping Costs without Confidential Information

It pays to make sure you have a company’s offer of free shipping in writing before assuming it is true. Take a screen shot of the free shipping offer including the URL and date for reference in case they try to charge you later.

Be cautious with web sites that do not disclose shipping costs before a customer registers or enters confidential information like addresses and credit cards. It is perfectly acceptable to enter a fake address and credit card information with your same zip code to verify shipping costs before making the decision to share your protected information. Then you will be able to compare the free shipping claims of all your online shopping choices accurately.

Screens with Low Shipping Costs

Shipping costs do not disappear with the offer of free shipping. It is common practice for online retailers to add all or part of the shipping costs to the product before offering free shipping. Therefore customers have an advantage when they know that for their size, certain screen designs cost less to ship.

For many customers, Fixed Frame Projector Screens are an ideal combination of elegance and shipping efficiency. Fixed Frame Screens have a flat screen surface and a frame that collapses into a very small and efficient shipping carton. Electric Screens on the other hand have complicated and bulky packaging needs because of their large cases and delicate motors. The packaging requirements raise the shipping price. A Fixed Frame Screen can cost 50 to 80 percent less to ship than an Electric Projector Screen of equal size.

Fixed Frame Screens Offer Style and Value
Installation Instructions for the Da-Lite Cinema Contour Fixed Frame Screen

With Fixed Frame projector screens, simple assembly is required at installation. Assembly is like building a kite and then hanging it like a picture. Fixed Frame Screens are the style used in movie theaters.

Manual Projector Screens have some of the look and function of electric screens while costing less to ship. Manual Screens have fewer moving parts while still offering users the ability to hide the screen from view when it is not in use. It is important to remember that lower shipping costs is another way of saying the product requires less packaging and consumes a smaller quantity of fossil fuel for delivery. In this case, choosing the lower cost option is better for the environment as well.

Manual Screens Ship Efficiently and Hide Away Neatly
Installation Instructions for the Da-Lite Model B Manual Projector Screen

Certain customers at offices and schools choose a manual projector screen because they can install it over a whiteboard, blackboard, or map to increase the number of uses for the same wall space. For home use, it is tempting to install a manual screen over a window to enjoy the choice of a window view or a view of the screen. Typically, it is difficult to place a television on a wall with prominent windows.

A Manual Projector Screen Could Fix this Awkward TV Placement

A choice between window and screen can unite nature and high tech entertainment in an enjoyable way. It is worth remembering that light from the window might create a halo effect around the picture. Careful experimentation beforehand or thick blinds are important to pulling off this home decorator idea.

If an electric screen is the best choice for your installation, then check the total price of the screen size you need (perhaps 100″ diagonal 4:3 video format) with several electric screen models across competing brands. Da-Lite, Draper, and Classic are competing national brands. Better online retailers hire experts to do this research with you. The toll free number for Projector Screen Center is 1-800-314-8955.

As an example of the shipping cost savings between electric screen models, a Da-Lite Contour Electrol electric screen measuring 84″ diagonal (50″ x 67″) ships freight at a cost of $80 to $125. Even if an online retailer offers free shipping, it is likely that some portion of this high shipping cost is added to the price of the item.

The Da-Lite Designer Contour Electrol is another electric screen by the same manufacturer designed to ship in more efficient packaging. The exact same 84″ screen ships for $20 to 30. That is a savings of 75 percent.

Da-Lite Designer Contour Electrol at Projector Screen Center
Installation Instructions for the Da-Lite Designer Contour Electrol Electric Screen

Although both screens are electric screens, of the same size, by the same manufacturer, with free shipping, the Da-Lite Designer Contour sells for over $175 less.

This proves it is worth while to uncover hidden shipping costs when searching for the best deal.

Comparison Shopping Review

Paying the lowest possible shipping costs involves careful investigation to find these key factors.

• Competing vendors offering Free Shipping
• Shipping charges added at the end of transaction
• Hidden shipping costs within the price of items
• Alternate products that meet the same requirements at a lower total cost

Look for free shipping claims and read them carefully. Assume you know the true price of a product only after you see a line item for shipping in your shopping cart or order summary. With luck, that line item reads “Free Shipping!” Although, keep the competition in mind. Even if a vendor charges for shipping, the total price may be less than the price at competitors offering free shipping. Add up product price plus shipping and handling and compare that total to judge the business with the lowest price.

Low shipping costs are a close predictor of environmental responsibility as well. Reducing the cost of packaging materials and fossil fuels used in shipping a screen reduces your cost as well as reducing the impact on the environment.

I was looking into whether or not I needed a projector screen to get an acceptable image out of a projector. At work, we project onto a white board, and it looks fine. During meetings, we can view a draft on the projector and edit the draft by marking on the white board. It is the world’s cheapest electronic white board. I enjoy the arrangement very much. I have seen other people project onto a matte white wall. Matte acrylic paint on a flat surface looks alright for a projected image, so most homes can get by without a projector screen.

It is a little trickier to project onto walls made of cinder block, wood paneling or brick. Paint type and color is important too. An image projected onto glossy acrylic paint results in a glare. I remember a geography class where my teacher projected a topographic map of the Himalayas onto our cinder block wall with glossy gray paint. I had trouble distinguishing the valleys from the seams between bricks, and squinting into that glare gave me a headache. In that case, it was much easier to deal with an image on a projector screen, like this.

Schools seem to go on the cheap, and it only cost about $60 fix the issues with clarity and glare on the wall by adding a small projector screen to the classroom.

For the price, the Classic Regal manual screen is pretty good. The Da-Lite Model B is so popular and so cheap, that I am used to online screen companies burying it in the search results so customers have to look past 15 or 20 more expensive screens before they find it.

Home decorator wall finishing, like colorful paints and wallpaper, is another projected image killer. I sat through an epidemiology conference at this hotel where our PowerPoint presentations were projected over imperial Fleur de Lis wallpaper. Imagine trying to read disease incidence rates in small print through this.

That will teach me to go to a lecture that was scheduled at the last minute. In that case, the projection screen was an essential part of the setup, and I believe I missed a few important points because I could not see the presentation.

So what if a projector screen comes in handy?

I read this article on ProjectorCentral.com about making a projector screen out of wood, velveteen fabric, and photographer’s seamless roll paper for less than $100. I have not tried this myself, but it looks like the project would take about three hours. According to the people who tested this DIY projector screen, color accuracy is the most difficult feature to get right. The best projector screen manufacturers can adjust the surfaces to maintain the white color of white light without over-reflecting other colors like blue or yellow. But to an untrained eye like mine for a casual home theater application, I am not sure I could tell the difference. Look at the photograph paper screen compared to the Stewart Grayhawk screen for over $1,000 more. Paper screen is on the left. Grayhawk screen is on the right. The testers boosted the blue gain and bias on the projector to correct a weakness in the paper when they tested the paper projector screen.

For the price, that quality is good enough for me. The team that tested this projector pointed out that contrast and color saturation is better on the more expensive screen. It is hard to capture a deep, rich black on the paper projector screen, as seen here.

That do it yourself projector screen is interesting. Still, I am not sure when to use it. I might build it at home one day. I think if I were in middle school again, my classmates would tear it down easily. I wonder if schools buy instead of DIY for the durability.

The people I know who own projector screens have both an image to project and an image to project. I mean, people who are willing to spring for a projector screen wish to present a certain sense of wealth and intelligence in addition to the content of their presentations. It is easier to believe sales are up if the quarterly report is projected on an elegant ceiling recessed electric screen, like this Da-Lite Professional Electrol.

The screen manufacturers are ready to help people spend lavishly on their image. Would you believe the MSRP on these guys?

Da-Lite
Draper
Stewart

The consulting firm where I used to work would book presentations in hotel meeting and convention facilities because we got a powerful projector and a huge, flawless projector screen for less than if we had purchased them and brought them with us to simpler meeting spaces. Most of the time, we would try to get our clients to pick up the tab, so we did not pay either way.

Another way to manage the cost of using a projector screen to improve presentation quality is to look into less expensive brands. Quite a few brands are rushing to market with less expensive screens. Brands like Classic Screens, Mustang, Elite, and Grandview are gaining some buzz.

I am waiting for the dust to settle to see who wins in quality and price.