BenQ CinePrime W5700 review: Once properly set up, the projector gives an excellent cinematic feel

Price: Rs 2,99,999
Rating: ****

Specifications: DLP projector with 4K UHD (0.47” DLP, 3840 x 2160 pixels), 1800 lumens brightness, 1,00,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, 6 segment colour wheel, 30-bit colour with 100% DCI-P3 & Rec. 709 colour gamut, 240 watt lamp, 1.6x optical zoom, lens shift


Pros: Properly colour calibrated at factory, placement flexibility with optical zoom & lens shift, bright and colourful image
Cons: Is not native 4k (uses DLP pixel shifting), vent design does not allow for shelf placement

With 4K content becoming more easily available on streaming platforms, you need the right kind of display device to get the best possible picture. For many, it’s the new wave of affordable 4K TVs in the market. However, none of them can match the sheer impact of a 150 or 200-inch screen created by a good projector. The CinePrime series from BenQ was created to deliver a high resolution 4K experience at home, complete with HDR (high dynamic range) and wide colour gamut.

You’re probably wondering about the price though. There are 5 things that make this projector more expensive. First is the higher resolution. It uses technology from DLP to give you over 8 million pixels on the screen. Second, it offers 100% coverage of the super wide DCI-P3 color space and 100% of Rec. 709 — simply put, this means that it can recreate a higher number of colours in a manner that was intended by filmmakers and studios.



Third, each projector is individually colour calibrated at the factory, making sure that you receive something that’s going to give you the best possible picture right out of the box. Fourth, it offers placement flexibility because it has keystone adjustment, 1.6x optical zoom (10-element allglass lens) and horizontal + vertical lens shift. This means the projector doesn’t need to be perfectly parallel to the screen. And finally, there’s a bunch of different inputs/ports including dual HDMI, Ethernet, SPDIF and three USB ports with a built in media reader. And yes, it can play 4K video files straight from a USB drive too.

Brightness for the 5700 is rated at 1800 lumens and contrast ratio is a massive 100,000:1. But there’s a caveat — that high contrast is achieved by something called a dynamic iris. Think of it like an aperture that contracts/expands to control the amount of light. It does give a big boost to contrast levels but the problem with dynamic iris is that you can ‘see’ the changes (it’s not very fast to switch) and sometimes hear it too. We found it best left off, even at the expense of lower contrast.

In terms of performance, it certainly does not disappoint. The visuals are bright and colourful straight out of the box. There’s no ghosting, lag or judder to speak of and the entire image is evenly lit with no visible bright spots. It’s also particularly adept at keeping sharpness intact from edge to edge. Once properly set up, used with a good screen and fed with the right content, this projector will give you an excellent cinematic feel.

We appreciated the matte black colour — it’s less distracting in a dark room. One thing you should know though — it’s not native 4K but uses pixel shifting technology to upscale a 2 million pixel native DLP chip up four times to create 8 million pixels. Other similar 4K projectors you can consider include the ViewSonic PX747-4K (Rs 1,49,999) and Epson EHTW8300 (Rs 2,15,000).