Casio XJ-350 DLP

Casio's XJ-350 DLP data projector is a well-designed product to suit both business and home users. We tested a shipping version with everything from PowerPoint presentations and digital photos to DVD movies and broadcast TV, and found plenty to like.

The most impressive feature of this native XGA resolution (1024 x 768) projector is a powerful 2X optical zoom lens that enables it to display larger images than models with fixed-focus lenses. The XJ-350 can project a 60" image at just 1.6m from the screen, and a huge 100" image at a distance of 2.7m.

The XJ-350's brightness rating of 2200 ANSI lumens makes it brighter than most lightweight projectors, which generally top out at roughly 1800 ANSI lumens. As a result, it's ideal for delivering colourful presentations with vibrant graphics and sharp text, either with the lights on in a small room or with the lights off in a larger room or small auditorium. These same capabilities (plus a low-noise mode) also make the unit a solid choice for home theatre viewing. The unit's remote has no laser pointer, and its built-in speaker is weak, but these are about the only drawbacks.

The XJ-350 is suitable for both the conference room and (to a lesser degree) the living room. Its strong illumination and powerful zoom lens make it quite a compelling option.