Modern projectors are amazing devices that are capable of manipulating light in ways that some would think impossible just a few decades past. Years of research and advanced experimentation have led us to understand light and many of its properties and characteristics much better, and this knowledge has not gone unnoticed by projector manufacturers like Vankyo.
It is thus inevitable that we have chosen to integrate the latest brightness features in our projectors, as it is a technology that enhances the usability and quality of our projectors exponentially. Our devices are now able to deliver a much sharper and clearer image to living rooms, classrooms, and conference rooms everywhere in the world.
In this article, we will answer why brightness matters so much when choosing your Vankyo projector. First, as we explore the different characteristics of brightness and light that are important to projectors, we will learn what they are and how we can measure them. Then, we will explore the best way to choose between these brightness features to find the ones you need and suit you best.
In its most essential form, brightness is defined as a characteristic of visual perception where a source (e.g. a metal, a rock, a screen, a lens, a star, etc…) appears to be radiating or reflecting light. Brightness is not proportionally bound by luminescence, which means that it is a subjective phenomenon that needs to be attuned for comfort by any given observer.
This is why projectors (which are devices that rely on light to operate and project their respective images into surfaces) need to be tuned with a complex and varying array of brightness settings and features that cater to the subjective variations in visual perception. Variations of brightness settings that are important for projectors are:
This is one of the most popular questions people have when attempting to understand the different brightness features offered by Vankyo projectors. It probably happened to you too, as you scroll down the list of features of a projector and encounter a shiny graphic accompanied by some text that showcases the incredible image quality and brightness that the projector in question can supply to you thanks to X lumens, lux, brightness number.
However, if one does not know what any of these features are, then it is completely natural to ask ourselves: “Are Lux & Lumens the same thing as brightness?” Let us look at what each of these features means and do before we go ahead and answer this question.
Lux and luminescence are connected because luminescence is the phenomena that describe how light scatters on a surface over time when its source is a singular point (e.g. a projector). Lux is the unit of measurement of luminescence that determines the amount of bright light that is scattered on a surface with a numerical value that oscillates between 10 and 7000+.
A projector that showcases a high lux value as one of its high-value features (e.g. 5000 Lux) is a projector that is capable of scaling up its projection on a surface without losing much in terms of image quality. If you are, however, looking to sustain image quality from further away, then you probably want to get a projector with a high lumens value.
Lumens are the unit of measurement of luminous flux, which is to say, the amount of light that is emitted by a source over time. Contrary to popular belief, a high lumens count does not mean that your projector features high brightness settings, it means that your projector can emit much more light in terms of quantity and quality (i.e. power output).
Projectors use lumens counts because it allows users to understand how powerful their projector is in terms of image quality. A general rule when it comes to lumens is to look at the numerical value applied to it, a higher value will always indicate that said projector has a powerful light source that can sustain a high-quality image over long distances of projection.
At first glance, lux & lumens might appear to be describing the same properties as brightness, but they are a set of measurements of the properties of light itself. This means that lux, lumens, and brightness are related yet separate aspects of light as it travels out of a projector and into a surface.
To quickly recap, Lux describes image quality scattered over a large surface, lumens describe the power of said light as it is emitted into that surface, and brightness dictates the inherent reflective and radiating properties of light as it hits said surface.
Another question that might pop one when browsing through a varied catalog of Vankyo projectors is that of contrast ratios. At first glance, they might appear as this complicated couple of numbers that are separated by a “:”. We know they have something to do with light and brightness as much as we know that they help us achieve a “cinematic” or “personalized” experience.
If you want to be able to make an informed purchase then you probably should know what this important feature means. Firstly, let us have a look at what brightness and contrast ratios actually have in common by understanding what contrast ratios are and how to read them.
A contrast ratio is a way of measuring the differences in brightness between the colors black and white. Let us take a contrast ratio of 1000:1 (i.e. 1000 & 1) as an example. This number is telling you that the brightest white that the projector is capable of producing is 1000 times brighter than the darkest black.
The importance of contrast ratios lies in the type of projector and its place of operation. A high contrast ratio is very useful for home theater projectors because it allows the bright colors to stand out much better against the already dimmed and relatively dark ambient light of a living room or a chamber.
Low contrast ratios are better suited for academic or office environments because the ambient light of those contexts tends to be much higher, this makes the necessity for projectors to contrast the brighter white colors of the spectrum much less of a priority.
As you can see, brightness and contrast ratios are very related. Contrast ratios are simply a measurement of the overall brightness differences between 2 base colors, which makes contrast ratios a type of “brightness comparison number”. Knowing their relationship will help you understand what type of projector will better suits for your use cases and environments.
Now that you know what brightness is and what features & characteristics it can provide to your new Vankyo projector, you are ready to start deciding how much value you want to use out of those features. To choose the right type of brightness features for your Vankyo projector, you will need to establish a few parameters that can help you determine what type of features you will need to get the best experience.
When it comes to projectors, the way you choose to position them in any space is one of the most essential parameters for an excellent experience. Lux & lumen apply differently to different environments and different positions of the projector, so let us have a look at some positioning use cases that can help you determine what better suits you.
Lux: If you are planning to use a projector to enhance the size of the picture, then you probably need a projector that has a high lux value. It is usually better to keep a projector that is upscaling a big image close to the projecting surface.
Lumens: Looking to use a projector far from your projecting surface? You will probably be better off using a projector with a high lumen count.
Ambient light is a parameter that you should always keep in mind before choosing between different contrast ratios. As a rule of thumb, a dark place would benefit greatly from very high contrast ratios, while places where ambient light is relatively high and very much present are better suited for low contrast ratios (you won’t need the extra brightness since ambient light helps you achieve a clear image).
How about places where ambient light varies? (e.g. outdoors, in a room without curtains, etc…) If this is the case for you then you will probably need to establish the times where you will probably be using your projector. If you use the projector at night and you prefer an immersive experience then you should probably go for a high contrast ratio projector. If you prefer to use your projector during the day then you should probably choose a projector with low contrast ratios.
Now that you know why brightness matters when choosing your Vankyo projector, you will be able to confidently browse through the Vankyo catalog feeling happy that you know exactly what types of brightness features to suit you and your environment.
We not only saw what brightness is and how it is related to projectors, but we also explored what lux, lumens, and contrast ratios are and what they have in common with brightness as a whole. We then used this knowledge to establish some parameters that can help you choose the right type of brightness features for your situation.
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