Acer vs Optoma Projectors

Acer and Optoma both make projectors for home and business, but Optoma's range reaches much higher. Acer's models here run from £305.99 to £968.99. Optoma's entries run from the ZW340e at £530.99 to the ZK810TST at £9,576.99, with the ZH450ST at £1,382.99 and the ZU500USTe at £2,979.99 in between. The gap is wide, and Optoma's laser models sit in a premium tier of their own.

The biggest technical difference is the light source. Optoma's ZU500USTe and ZH450ST use DuraCore laser technology. The ZU500USTe is an ultra short throw projector with a 5000-lumen WUXGA output and 30,000 hours of maintenance-free laser light. The ZK810TST is a 4K UHD model with 7200 ANSI lumens, full motorised lens shift and an IP5X rating. The ZW340e is a WXGA business model with 3600 lumens and 300,000:1 contrast. Acer's H6830BD is rated at 10,000 hours, and its cheapest X1128H offers SVGA resolution.

Acer suits home cinema buyers on a budget, families who want a 4K picture without spending heavily, and classrooms that need a bright, cheap presentation machine. Optoma suits buyers who want laser light with little upkeep, a short throw for a room with limited space, or a large installation. The ZH450ST's short-throw lens and portrait projection suit a small room or a unit placed close to a wall. The ZK810TST is designed for immersive installations, where brightness and lens shift matter more than price.

Bottom line: choose Acer if you want a budget 4K home cinema projector, such as the H6830BD at £887.99, or a cheap projector for presentations at £305.99. Choose Optoma if you want maintenance-free laser projection, such as the ZW340e at £530.99 for business use, or the ZH450ST at £1,382.99 for short-throw installation in a smaller room.