Cheap Projectors Will Probably Leave You Disappointed - Here's Why

If you search on Amazon for a projector, you'll be bombarded with an endless list of options with thousands of results for projectors. Most of the results for projectors on Amazon are cheap models that cost as low as $100, or even less, without any discount applied. These cheap projector models are mainly from generic brands that you may never have heard of before, some of which don't even have dedicated pages on Amazon to showcase their items.

But if you're willing to invest in a projector from reputable brands such as LG and Epson, you quickly realize that you'll need a good amount of money to grab any of their best offerings. For example, LG's CineBeam S 4K projector costs $1,300. Or Epson's Lifestudio Flex Plus, which has been crowned as the best budget model as of this writing by independent tech review site RTings, costs $999. This doesn't mean there aren't any good, affordable options. In fact, our list of budget-friendly projectors under $300 that are recommended by experts is worth checking out if you have a limited budget. However, you should be wary of very cheap projectors.

Their pocket-friendly prices might tempt you to buy them, but most of these projectors will do nothing but give you buyer's remorse. The main catch you should be aware of is that cheap models typically exaggerate what they offer to make it look really impressive on paper and deceive uninformed buyers. As the saying goes, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. And for most of these cheap projectors, that statement couldn't be truer, as some claim to offer the same specs as the more expensive options.

One of the key differences between cheap and expensive projectors is their maximum brightness (measured in lumens) and the resolution supported. Given how important brightness is when shopping for a projector, cheap models are notorious for falsifying their figures. That's why Epson, a major projector maker, has sued multiple projector brands over what it termed as "deceptive advertising practices," specifically related to brightness claims. 

The company has so far sued AuKing, XGIMI, Wemax, Vava, Nebula by Anker, Vankyo, WiMiUS, GooDee, and Bomaker over brightness. For example, one of AuKing's projectors tested by a third party only provided 1% of the 9,500 lumens claimed by the brand. As part of the settlement of the various lawsuits filed by Epson, these companies were ordered to correct their misstated lumen figures on at least one of their projector models. Cheap projector brands may try to trick you into believing they support a higher resolution than they actually do, using deceptive language in marketing materials. 

For example, this $30 Geylnxng Mini Projector claims to support 4K and 1080p in the product title, which might give you the impression that it can display videos in 4K resolution. Yet, closer inspection of the product's details reveals it maxes out at 1080p resolution. The 4K in the title only means you can input a 4K video. In addition to low brightness and resolution, cheap projectors also cut corners in other areas to arrive at their highly attractive throwaway price points, such as durability, sound quality, and color accuracy.

The two projector models from LG and Epson that we've used as examples in the first section might give you a false impression that you can't get solid options that are budget-friendly. However, you don't need to spend $1,000 or more to get a good projector. There are relatively affordable yet excellent models on the market that cost less than $1,000.

Since this market has shown issues of false advertising in the past, we wouldn't recommend that you buy any projector without careful consideration. If you need a projector, you can restrict your search to known, reputable brands. Common recommendations for the best projectors include models from brands such as Epson, BenQ, and Sony. Another key consideration is to check online for reviews about a given projector from independent websites.

But don't rely solely on reviews that you see on sites like Amazon. There are many fake reviews online that unscrupulous businesses use to make their products stand out as better options in a market that is filled with similar-looking items. If you invest a little bit of time in reading reviews from reputable independent sites, you stand a chance of getting a great projector without spending much money.