What are LCD projectors
If you have a little knowledge of projection, you will know that there are many kinds of projection technologies, such as LCD, 3LCD, DLP, etc. However, the differences between these projection technologies may not be clear. Today we will talk about LCD projection technology. Understand the principles.
What are LCD projectors
The full name of LCD projection technology is liquid crystal display, which is what we often call liquid crystal display technology. It mainly uses the photoelectric effect of liquid crystal molecules to change the light transmittance or reflectivity of the liquid crystal unit to achieve screen display.
LCD projectors are divided into three-chip LCD and single-chip LCD projectors, so what is the difference between the two?
Single-chip LCD projection is composed of a liquid crystal plate. The white light emitted by the light source passes through the Fresnel lens 1 and becomes regular parallel light, and then passes through the polarizer to form polarized light. Then, after passing through the middle LCD panel, image light of different colors is transmitted, and is focused and enhanced by the Fresnel lens 2. Finally, The projection display screen is projected through a total reflection mirror.
The three-chip LCD projection is technically enhanced and is composed of three liquid crystal panels. The LCD chip consists of two glass substrates and a liquid crystal cell filled in the middle. The surface of the glass substrate is attached with thin film transistors (TFTs), linear polarizers and scanning circuits. Among them, the thin film transistors play a major role and are responsible for controlling the liquid crystal pixels. .
Three liquid crystal panels of different colors are controlled by TFTs to control whether light can pass through the liquid crystal, and how much light can pass through the liquid crystal. The three LCD panels R, G, and B respectively control the transmittance of red, green, and blue liquid crystal pixels of different colors. Light rate, the final colors interweave together to show the changes in light and dark colors we see.

Thanks to the imaging principle of LCD projection technology, the three independent LCD panels can flexibly adjust their own color channels and contrast. Therefore, the image imaging effect of LCD projection technology is relatively good and can better restore colors.
However, LCD projection technology also has some shortcomings. Because the liquid crystal molecules are affected by the magnetic field, it takes time to deflect, so it has a certain hysteresis, so the picture sometimes appears smeared, and it is difficult for LCD technology to completely block light. Therefore, the contrast of the picture is not high, and the rendering effect of dark details is average.
Currently, LCD and 3LCD are just two of the common projection technologies on the market. There are many relatively low-priced projection equipment on the market that use single-chip LCD projection technology. 3LCD has been technically upgraded, but its popularity is not high. In contrast, DLP technology is more widely used, but the price is also relatively high. , only suitable for a small number of consumer users.
However, there are also some brands that have gradually improved and upgraded their technology, which not only solved the pain point of high price of DLP, but also used the same fully enclosed optical engine as DLP in the entire product line. The user experience has been improved by more than one level and is suitable for most consumers. It can be said to be the king of cost performance.
Advantages and disadvantages of LCD projectors
Advantages of LCD projectors
- Brighter, more realistic display: LCD projectors have higher brightness and contrast, so they can present fuller colors and brighter images.Mainstream LCD projectors are all three-chip machines, using independent LCD boards for the three primary colors of red, green and blue. This ensures that the LCD projector can adjust the brightness and contrast of each color channel separately, resulting in very good projection and high fidelity color. This is an advantage that other types of projectors cannot achieve.
- Larger display size: Due to the excellent brightness and color of LEDs, LCD projectors are currently the only digital projectors that can achieve both large screen size and brightness.
- Easy to install: Compared with DLP projectors, LCD projectors are lighter and simpler, do not require correction and adjustment, and can be installed almost anywhere.
- Display details are clearer: This process of LCD projectors can output more pixels, thereby presenting finer image details.
- High light efficiency. LCD projectors have higher ANSI lumen light output than DLP projectors using light source lamps of the same wattage. In the high-brightness competition, LCD projectors still have an advantage. Among the projectors weighing around 7 kg, those that can achieve a brightness of more than 3000 ANSI lumens are all LCD projectors. At the same time, LCD projectors are small in size, light in weight, and easy to carry. Rich in color, almost all LCD projectors can provide true color with 16.7 million colors and are easy to operate. Therefore, LCD projectors can meet most of people’s needs.

Disadvantages of LCD projectors
- The disadvantages of LCD projectors are poor black level performance and not very high contrast. The black color displayed by the LCD projector has a hazy feel, and the details are not processed enough. This makes LCD projectors unsuitable for playing videos such as movies.
- The pixel structure of the picture produced by the LCD projector is visible, but the resolution is not enough. LCD projectors in the SVGA (800×600) format can clearly see the pixel grid regardless of the size of the screen image, unless a product with a higher resolution is used.
- Not as good as the contrast and black performance of DLP projectors: Since there is always a certain backlight intensity and thickness in liquid crystals, their black performance is weaker than that of DLP projectors and laser projectors. You can see it more clearly under dark field conditions. Background noise and shadows.
- A rainbow phenomenon may occur: Some low-end LCD projectors use RGB three primary colors, and the white light will be divided into three color bands, so when the displayed content contains details such as fast movements and rapid changes, it may cause visual fatigue or Visual interference.
- The display effect is greatly affected by ambient light: the display effect of LCD projectors is more dependent on the surrounding ambient light, and the effect will be greatly affected when the light is weak or strong.
Now LCD projectors are beginning to use more advanced microlens arrays (MLA), which can improve the transmission efficiency of the XGA format LCD panel, soften the pixel grid, make the pixel grid subtle and not obvious, and will not affect the sharpness of the image. to any impact. But it is still at a disadvantage compared to DLP projectors.
DLP Projector (Digital Light Transfer Projector) Advantages and Disadvantages
DLP Projector Advantages
- Reduces the phenomenon of light explosion in low grayscale fields: Compared with LCD projectors, DLP projectors do not need a backlight to present brightness and brightness, thereby reducing the phenomenon of bright spot explosion in low grayscale fields.
- Lower cost: Since DLP projectors are cheap to produce, they are a cheaper option for digital projects.
- Better chroma performance: Due to the use of three auxiliary color wheels to project colors, the color performance of DLP projectors is clearer and fuller.
- Long life: Because DLP projectors do not use filters, they can run longer without having to replace parts compared to LCD projectors.

DLP Projector Disadvantages
- The “iridescent effect” appears: Since DLP depicts three basic colors of red, green, and blue, an “iridescent effect” may appear visually during high-speed movement.
- The display effect is not as bright as that of laser projectors: Compared with laser projectors, DLP projectors have a slightly lighter display effect. It is presented by projecting an image onto a wall or screen using reflection technology.
Laser projector advantages and disadvantages
Laser projector advantages
- High brightness and bright colors: Laser projectors use laser light sources, which have higher brightness than other ordinary digital projectors, resulting in more realistic and accurate color performance.
- Long life: Laser light sources generally have a longer life than other light sources and can run for a long time without the hassle of bulb replacement.
- Stable development effect: Since the light source of the laser projector has been stabilized, its development effect is very stable, unlike LCD and DLP projectors, which require calibration during long-term use.
- Easy installation: Laser projectors are generally easier to install and control than other digital projectors, and can be quickly installed in any location.

Laser projector disadvantages
- Relatively high price: Laser projectors are more expensive than other digital projectors, and are sometimes more expensive than similar models of LCD and DLP projectors.
- Slightly lower initial brightness: Unlike other digital projectors, the initial color performance and brightness of laser projectors may be relatively low, and you need to wait for a period of laser warm-up time or adjust related machine parameters.
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