BenQ X500i Projector Review: Hail to the Short (Throw) King

In the projector world, there are three broad categories. On one end are traditional (long throw) projectors, which sit about 10 feet from a 100-inch screen, sometimes even farther. On the other end are ultra-short throw projectors that sit just a few inches from the screen. In the middle of the two are short throw models like the BenQ X500i. It sits about 5 feet from the screen, potentially offering coffee table placement and larger images in smaller rooms.

8.4

BenQ X500i

Like

• Excellent contrast
• Accurate colors
• Bright

I don’t like it

• Duration
• Short throw not for everyone

The X500i also packs a 4K resolution, a quad-LED light source with the potential for some serious brightness output, and built-in Android TV, so on paper the BenQ has a lot going for it. It also has a pretty hefty $1,700 price tag.

Impressively, the X500i justifies its price with excellent performance across the board. It has one of the best contrast ratios I’ve measured in my many years of testing, it has above-average brightness, excellent detail, and generally creates beautiful images. Due to the “leg room” required, the BenQ X500i only fits into certain rooms, but for the rooms it does fit into, it delivers impressive image quality.

Specifications and such

• Resolution: 3840×2160
• HDR Compatible: Yes
• 4K compatible: yes
• 3D compatible: yes
• Lumen specification: 2,200
• Zoom: 1.2x
• Lens shift: no
• Lamp life (normal mode): 20,000 (30,000 in ECO mode)

The X500i is a 4K HDR projector with all the typical features. It is 3D compatible if you are still interested and have compatible glasses. No projector can really benefit from HDR contentbut BenQ’s tone mapping has been decent so far, so it doesn’t hurt to have that compatibility.

The unit does offer some optical zoom, about the same as most other projectors in this range. It’s enough to give you some flexibility in how far away you need to position the projector to fill a particular screen size. There’s no lens shift, which is admittedly quite rare among DLP projectors, although BenQ’s own, and cheaper, HT2060 And TK860i both have some of it.

Since it’s rated at 2,200 lumens, I was expecting a fairly bright projector. In the most accurate mode, I measured 911 lumens, which is decent but not great. In the brighter-but-greener Bright mode, I was able to get 1,549. I’ve certainly measured brighter projectors, especially similarly priced ones Xgimi Horizon Ultrabut this is more than enough for 100-inch screens, and even slightly larger.

Where the X500i really excels is its contrast ratio. I have measured an average of 1,990:1, which is the best I’ve measured since the $4,000 Epson LS11000 BenQ HT2060:1 vs. X300G:1 two years ago. That’s a seriously impressive figure, over six times better than the aforementioned Xgimi, and almost 50% better than our Editor’s Choice winner, the BenQ HT2060. Only the BenQ X300G (review soon) can give its label-mate a run for the money, at 1,762:1. Like the X300G, I suspect there’s a slight brightness boost going on from the LED light engine to help bump this number up a bit, but subjectively it looks every bit as fantastic when viewed with actual content as that number suggests.

Like most new projectors, the X500i eschews a mercury-filled UHP lamp and instead uses the aforementioned LEDs. In this case, it’s a quad-LED design, with an additional LED on top of the typical RGB to add extra brightness. This configuration is rated for 20,000 hours, which is essentially the lifespan of the projector. That’s nearly 14 years if you watch four hours per night.

Connections

• HDMI Inputs: 2
• USB port: 1 USB-C, 1 USB-A
• Audio Output: Speakers (5Wx2), HDMI ARC, Optical, Bluetooth, 3.5mm Analog
• Control: RS-232
• Internet: 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac (2.4G/5G)
• Operating system: Android TV
• Remote control: backlight

The dual HDMI inputs are actually generous considering that the X500i houses an Android TV streaming stick, which doesn’t need HDMI – it has its own connections, hidden behind a removable panel on the rear of the projector.

The two 5W speakers are sufficient. They don’t have much bass (not surprisingly), but they are clear and loud enough to enjoy a movie. With any projector, a sound bar or recipient and speakers are a valuable addition.

The remote control is backlit, connects to the streaming stick via Bluetooth and provides quick access to frequently used functions and settings.

Image quality comparisons

BenQ TK860i

BenQ X300G

Behold the rare head-to-head between projectors from one brand! The TK860i is a recent 4K projector that is a bit cheaper, but did well in our tests. It’s not short throw, but it could be a tad brighter. The X300G has very similar specs to the X500i and comes in a cute cube shape, but it’s not short throw. I hooked all three of these up to a Monoprice 1×4 distribution amplifier and watched them side-by-side on a 102-inch 1.0-gain display.

Starting with light output, the X500i and TK860i are about evenly matched, putting out just over 900 lumens in their most precise, Cinema mode. Remove that limitation and they’re both capable of considerably more in their visibly green Bright modes, with around 25% more light output from the TK860i in that mode. The X300G is a step behind, around 25% dimmer when they’re all in Cinema mode. In its more greenish Bright mode, it’s capable of around 25% more light than the others in their precise modes, but far less than they can produce in their brightest modes.

What really sets the three apart is contrast ratio. The TK860i is slightly below average. I measured around 551:1. That’s not terrible, but it’s up against two of the best performers of recent years. The 1,990:1 I measured from the X500i is excellent and the best I’ve measured in years. The X300G is right behind it at 1,762:1. So both seem to have a lot more depth and realism than the TK860i.

The X500i’s colour is also more vibrant than the TK860i, with rich, natural-looking greens, blues and reds, as well as really accurate in-between colours that result in healthy-looking skin tones, realistic variations in the green of grass and so on. The X300G is similar in these respects, but not quite as good, with the TK860i falling a step behind. Not bad, but just not as colourful or accurate. Its colour temperature is also a little less “true”, making the image appear a little cooler compared to its more accurate X-siblings.

Detail is about the same across all three, although that’s not too surprising since they’re all 4K. All three are also DLP, so there’s no motion blur, which can’t be said of other current display technologies. So they all look sharper than an LCD projector of similar resolution in many situations.

Overall, the X500i simply commands more attention than the others here, with its punchy contrast, excellent colour and above-average brightness. The TK860i’s extra brightness could be useful in some situations, but for all but the largest screens the X500i would deliver a better image.

Candidate up close

The performance of the X500i is so good that I wish it wasn’t a short throw projector. This is entirely due to the way my home theater is set up, which makes it impossible to properly position a projector like this. The contrast is fantastic, it’s more than bright, and the colors are accurate and vibrant. It has all the makings of a great projector, with the small caveat that short throw projectors aren’t for everyone. The same can of course be said for ‘regular’ projectors too, but if you already have a room set up for a projector you can find it a pain to reconfigure it for something like the X500i.

And then there’s the price tag. With top-tier performance, 4K, and included streaming, the BenQ was never going to be cheap. Add in a mundane (but unnecessary) short throw “tax” and suddenly the X500i looks pretty expensive compared to some other 4K projectors. If you have a smaller room, or can only place the projector reasonably close to the screen, however, the X500i can produce absolutely fantastic images. So fantastic, in fact, that the few hundred dollars extra cost over lesser short throws is worth it.