Home > Consumer Reviews > Epson S5 2000 Lumen 3LCD Multimedia Projector

What can I say? I manage the Western US for our firm. I present industry seminars to groups of 10 to 50. Being in the graphics industry, I'm pretty saavy with inkjet and other printing technologies, and have been in photography since high school. I thought I knew digital projectors. However, I wasn't prepared for all the new advances in portable digital projection technology.....at least not for under $600. Not only can you electronically zoom in or out on total picture size, but you can electronically "tilt the image" forward or back, to compensate for raising the front of the projector to elevate the image on your screen or wall. It takes care of the "trapizoidal distortion" in optical projectors of yester-year. I was blown away. And by the way, this projector really is "physically super-light", a good thing if you dread carrying your equipment around a building, etc. As for setup "out of the box", I test drove it within minutes. I didn't even need the quick-startup manual, although it's a 5 minute read, and gives you all the info you need to get going. Connecting to my corporate Dell laptop took seconds, and I simply used the monitor output cable they supplied with the projector. I'll be ready to use this tomorrow AM if I want. I'm totally satisfied. I even got a remote control.......I honestly wasn't even thinking about that little extra. What a deal.

After weeks of researching different brands and types of multimedia projectors, I purchased the Epson S5 3LCD. Very pleased with all the features. Epson S5 was easy to set up. The picture is clear and the colors are true. It does well in a small room and equally as well in larger venues. Lightweight and comes with a handy carry case. I'm using a laptop to drive clips and power point, a DVD player for an occassional movie and it connects to handycam for instant playback. This one is versatile. Bulb life is longer than other brands. I highly recommend the Epson S5 2000 3CD.

Unless I missed a review it loooks like everyone is buying this for running Powerpoint or something similar at the job. Just because it says it's for meetings doesn't mean it won't work as your TV. ;)
I bought this thing for the entertainment room in my basement. I can't recommend it enough. $588?! Are you kidding? TOTAL BARGAIN! Do NOT waste hundreds more on something that might have a 5% better picture. Just throwing money away if you do.
I run my regular TV through it as well as a Hi-Def connection for the Xbox. I connect my laptop to it and we watch Netflix movies on the big screen.
Picture is excellent. 2000 ANSI is perfect for nearly all lighting conditions. Xbox is STUNNING. Made a huge difference in picture quality. Runs hi-def with an optional cable (buy a generic cable. Epson wants $100 for the cable. I paid $15. Wake up Epson, no one is paying $100 for that cable. At least I hope not....) It's ONLY 1080i through the HDMI port, but for less then $600? Totally worth it.
300 hours on my bulb and it's rated for 2000 hours at the HIGH setting. I use the low setting which makes very little difference in the brightness of the picture but it is supposed to add another 1000 hours of bulb life.


LOVE Epson, but their accessories need to be repriced. Cannot recommend this enough.

This is a good buy, you likely will find little to complain about. I'm pretty picky about video displays, but this projector passes the test. I use it primarily for movies and video games, and they look great (it is set up at a distance that yields a 120" screen). Display quality is excellent for a lcd projector in this price range, and lamp life is much better then comparable models from other manufacturers. Epson claims 5000 hours in the low brightness mode (which looks fine), but even if its useful life is less, it is still better then what most other brands offer. Plus, replacement lamps are only $200, which is 2/3-1/2 the price of most others-remember to consider lamp life when buying!
So, bottom line:

-Great image quality for price, though because its lcd, dark scenes are a little washed out, but still acceptable.

-Thank goodness for 3 lcd systems. This projector uses a separate panel for each color, which eliminates the distracting "rainbow" effect other lcd types produce, before this I never would have even considered using a projector for entertainment.

-Fan noise is acceptable, and is very quiet in low brightness mode. You will need an external sound system, though the projector does have a little built in speaker. Also buy one of the RCA Component to 15 pin adapters, media looks MUCH better through the component video.(Like many projectors, component video is fed in through a VGA input, the adapters are around $10-$15)

-All in all, this is probably the best value on the projector market right now. The only thing you may want to consider is stepping up to their next model, as it offers 1024x768, over this models 800x600. I would say it would be worth the extra money, and would have gotten that one had I know better. Still, this is one of the few electronics I have ever purchased that I have been completely satisfied with. Don't expect it to replace a nice HDTV, but as a second "specialty display", it delivers, and under $600 is a steal.

The Epson S5 2000 Lumen 3LCD Multimedia Projector has worked perfectly since received earlier in September 2007. Things you should note are the projector comes with a carrying case and it creates a lot of heat. So operate it in a cool environment. Hook up is a snap and is truely very light.