Price Paid:  $1299.00 from Online Dealer

Summary:
Excellent projector for the money. Features 2000 lumens of light output and a 6000:1 contrast ratio. Both of these features are very competitive for a $3000 PJ, let alone a PJ costing $1300!!

I have about 500 hours on it now and I have no complaints at all. This PJ has exceeded my expectations in every way.

I chose this particular PJ for 3 reasons:

1) I have medium levels of ambient light in my living room, so I needed a PJ with relatively high light output;

2) I was installing it into a 1st floor living room with a vaulted ceiling, so I needed a PJ with lots of flexibility in terms of possible installations. This model is VERY easy to install and can be positioned easily to get a great picture. 2:1 zoom lense helps expand the area that you can install this;

3) The price was definitely right!! I now have a 106" high def television that cost me about $1300. That's less than I could go to a big box store and pick up a 61" DLP or plasma.

Even my wife and 9 year old son tell me that they can never go back to a regular television now, and who would want to. If you are looking for a PJ in the lower end of the price spectrum, I would really take a look at this one.

Strengths:
Price, price, and price.

Oh, and also the performance is excellent. Acceptable black levels, no screen door effect at all, even on white text. Very bright and crisp image.

High lumen output, excellent contrast ratio.

Very easy to install and configure.

Weaknesses:
Replacement lamps are $395, which is about average across all brands. I'd love to see this cost go down, though.

Lamp life is rated for 2000 hours in regular mode and 3000 hours in eco mode. This could be better, but it's not out of line with Panasonic's competitors.

Similar Products Used:
Optoma, Sanyo, Mitsubishi.