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Philips UGO X-lite
Philips UGO X-lite
pros and cons
- Compact and lightweight
- good image quality.
- No optical zoom
- 800-lumen brightness is less than some competitors.
The Philips UGO X-lite has an XGA native resolution and a brightness rating of 800 ANSI lumens, all packed in a stylish 22.7cm wide by 17.7cm deep by 4.8cm high case that weighs just 1.3kg. The package carries a street price of £3,399 (ex. VAT), but the UGO's innovative design makes the cost worthwhile.
The case has a convenient sliding lens cover across the front. The cables that come with the projector are a bit short, but you get all you need for both computer and video connections. A PS/2 port lets you use the infrared remote control as a mouse.
Installation and setup are fairly easy. The unit has adjustable front and side legs, but the lens is fixed-focus, so you have to move the projector around to get the right image size. The lens also has a short throw, which means that the projector has to be quite close to the screen. The UGO X-lite does have digital zoom and digital keystone correction, though.
The projector has a brightness rating of 800 lumens, although in practice devices usually deliver less than their rating. Even so, the UGO X-lite is sufficiently bright for easy viewing under normal room lighting. The contrast ratio is good, as is often the case with DLP projectors. Projected images were admirably uniform, with no visible hot spots or shadowed areas.
Focus was surprisingly good for such small optics, with only some slight fuzziness in the corners. Light and dark grays were excellent, with no obvious color-tracking problems. Color ramps were smooth, and in spite of the analog-only connection, we found no apparent pixel swim or jitter. We noticed significant field breakup with white objects on a black background, which is typical for single-chip DLP projectors. Video playback was good and sound from the single speaker was adequate, although with some distortion near volume limit.
Very good image quality and a clean design are offset only slightly by the lack of an optical zoom. Even so, Philips' UGO X-lite is an impressive ultraportable projector.