LCD Projectors Key Terms

Find out what you need to know before purchasing LCD projectors
By Nikki Davis Making a selection or purchase of LCD projectors can be tricky if you don't know what to look for or how to ask for what you need. Knowing and understanding the proper LCD projectors key terms can help you communicate efficiently with a sales associate or customer service representative. LCD projectors key terms can include lumens, 
 
contrast, illumination, connectivity, aspect ratio
and external peripherals. 

Lumens

Lumens are the measure of the perceived power that light gives off. They refer to the measure of brightness in an LCD projector.
Try: Find out from United Visual how brightness in lumens differs in various LCD projectors. See how the size of the room and darkness play a role in what brightness level you should be looking for.

Contrast

Contrast helps differentiate objects from their background. Contrast in an LCD projector helps differentiate the color and brightness of two objects that are within the same field of view.
Try: Find out more about contrast from Dukane Audio Visual. Learn about defining the depth of an image and more.

Illumination

Illumination refers to the application of light. Make sure that the illumination of your LCD projector fills the screen evenly and doesn't give you dark corners or dark spots.
Try: Find out about illumination in LCD projectors from Electronics-Manufacturers.

Connectivity

Connectivity refers to what items your LCD projector will hook up to.
Try: Viewsonic has many PC and video connectivity options for your presentation needs. It is also very versatile in that it will also, for example, connect to a USB flash drive and project without a PC.

Aspect ratio

The aspect ratio is the height to width ratio of your LCD projection image. Standard images used to be 3x4, but many are changing to a 16x9 ratio.
Try: See how Guides and Tutorials discusses LCD projection aspect ratios.

External peripherals

External peripherals, sometimes referred to as confidence monitors or floor monitors, are monitors that are attached to the LCD unit that allow the presenter to see what is being presented without having to turn around. This is especially helpful for large-scale, big-production events, especially those that are being recorded for rebroadcast as they allow the moderator to keep all focus forward.
Try: Evans Audio Visual shows and describes an excellent example of a speaker confidence monitor.