Compact projectors with tilting, ceiling-friendly form factors have gained a good amount of popularity in the last few years. They make for ideal projectors to keep in bedrooms, while the compact size and versatile projection angle also make them viable to use in most areas of the house. The BenQ GV32 is a new entry in the category that combines mid-range pricing with a rich set of features.
The latest addition to the GV series, the compact projector takes on the same familiar form factor as previous releases in the line, taking on a drum-like shape mounted atop a base that allows for various tilting and swiveling movements. The feature set is similar to last year’s GV50, albeit with the use of an LED light source instead of laser, which should enable a more compact size and better energy efficiency.
The BenQ GV32 can beam 1080p images in 24-bit color at screen sizes of up to 120 inches, making it viable not just for bedrooms, but living rooms and other spaces. It’s adequately bright, coming with 500 ANSI lumens of brightness, with a 100,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio for crisp and clear images, regardless of scene lighting. The projector supports HDR10 content, so you can watch compatible movies in vivid color, while coming with 95 percent coverage of the Rec.709 color space. There’s built-in audio, too, courtesy of an 18W 2.1-channel speaker system, complete with a woofer chamber to ensure a well-rounded and robust sound.
Like other projectors in the GV line, it’s mounted on a base that allows it to tilt 135 degrees and pan a full 360 degrees, allowing you to simply place the projector on one surface while beaming it to any area in the room. The big use-case for this, of course, is for use in the bedroom, where you can put the projector in the nightstand and adjust it to beam images on any part of the walls or ceiling.
The BenQ GV32 comes with all the usual correction features found in modern projectors, including autofocus, keystone correction, fit-to-screen, and easy resizing. There’s also digital zoom and image shifting, so you can adjust the visuals without having to move the projector, as well as a night shift mode that offers a sleep timer and adjusts colors to reduce eye strain for those times you’re watching something to help lull you to sleep. It has gaming support, too, allowing you to hook it up to your game console for 1080p 60fps gaming with a decent input lag of 22.4ms.
The projector is preloaded with Google TV, so you get access to the over 10,000 streaming, video, and all sorts of other apps on the platform. Oh yeah, Netflix is preloaded as well, so you don’t have to jump through hoops to get a Netflix app, as is the same case with some projectors in the market. Other features include dual-band Wi-Fi, screen mirror support (Google Cast and Airplay), and Google Assistant onboard. Sadly, there’s no onboard battery, so you’ll have to keep it plugged in at all times (BenQ says it can run off a 60W USB-C port).
The BenQ GV32 is now available for preorder, priced at $599.
