When you’re hunting for the best cheap projectors, keep it simple: look for brightness, image quality, and connectivity. Aim for over 1500 SDR lumens for good brightness, decent contrast, multiple connectivity options, and portability for easy setup and movement.
Our unique evaluation covered over 28 projectors, analyzing 10,176 reviews. Only five projectors earned a spot in our buying guide. Using our AI-powered True Score methodology, we certified products as tested and filtered out fake and low-quality reviews. These top-performing projectors performed superbly in testing, offering exceptional value and performance.
Samsung Premiere LSP9T – Best Overall
The Samsung Premiere LSP9T is an exceptional short-throw projector that excels in delivering unparalleled brightness with SDR and HDR measurements of 2716 and 2782 lumens, respectively. It stands out with best-in-class color accuracy, covering 240.50% of the Rec.709 color gamut, making it ideal for immersive viewing experiences in both home and professional settings. This projector offers a superb balance of high performance and value, making it a top choice for anyone seeking versatility and quality.
Epson Home Cinema 3800 – Best for Church
The Epson Home Cinema 3800 is a strong contender for those seeking a budget-friendly projector, especially for gaming. Its impressive input lag of just 28 ms delivers bright visuals with 2176 lumens of SDR brightness and covers 113.7% of the Rec. 709 color gamut, offering vibrant colors and deep blacks. This projector is a fantastic choice for those needing a reliable, color-accurate display solution without breaking the bank.
Epson Home Cinema 2350 – Best Value
The Epson Home Cinema 2350 stands out with its best-in-class input lag of 26 ms, making it perfect for competitive gaming. While it has a lower SDR brightness of 1582 lumens, it is sufficient for most home environments, and its 92.5% coverage of the Rec. 709 color gamut ensures decent color reproduction. This is a great projector, offering good performance across various settings, from gaming to streaming, at an affordable price.
Optoma CinemaX P2 – Best for Daylight Viewing
The Optoma CinemaX P2 offers a balanced performance with SDR and HDR brightness levels of 2488 and 1990 lumens, respectively, making it a strong contender for budget-conscious home cinema enthusiasts. Its 117% coverage of the Rec. 709 color gamut ensures rich and vibrant colors, ideal for movie nights in dimly lit rooms. Though its 69.8 ms input lag may not satisfy hardcore gamers, it provides substantial value for streaming and general entertainment purposes.
Hisense PX2
The Hisense PX2 is a budget-friendly option with impressive SDR brightness at 2488 lumens and built-in Google TV for easy streaming. It offers good color accuracy with 117% coverage of the Rec. 709 color gamut, making it suitable for casual gaming and general home theater use. While its input lag of 69.8 ms may not be ideal for competitive gaming, it excels in providing a solid viewing experience in well-lit rooms.
How We Rank Projectors and What is the Gadget Review True Score
Gadget Review is known for its True Score, the web’s most accurate product quality rating. The True Score blends expert reviews and human assessed Trust Ratings with customer feedback, underpinned by a sophisticated AI tool. This tool utilizes advanced machine learning algorithms and Bayesian models to analyze and synthesize data, ensuring accurate, unbiased, and comprehensive scoring. You can read more about it here.
