Canon REALiS SX60

Two LCOS Projectors In One

David English

February 1, 2007    Source: Studio Monthly

In an era of increasingly specialized devices, can one projector serve two different high-end markets? That’s the goal of the Canon REALiS SX60, which could well be an excellent choice if you’re looking for a high-resolution projector optimized for technical documents— and if you also want it to double as a home theater projector.

The 2500 ANSI lumen SX60 is especially well suited to the needs of the medical, scientific, engineering, photography and design communities, which often require unusually sharp and color-accurate images. For these markets, Canon’s LCOS imaging system offers distinct advantages over DLP or LCD. Along with the SX60’s native SXGA+ (1400 x 1050) resolution, the biggest advantage is the fact that the pixels (or more precisely, the spaces between the pixels) are nearly invisible. The screen-door effect is much more of an issue with LCD projectors, but even DLP projectors can exhibit this problem when filling a large screen. I had to move within six feet of the screen when projecting a 120-inch image before I could distinguish the individual pixels on the SX60. And because there’s no spinning wheel in an LCOS system, the SX60 doesn’t suffer from the rainbow effect seen in some single-chip DLP projectors.

Even though they don’t have the contrast range of DLP projectors, LCD projectors have been popular in the medical and scientific fields because of their sharpness and color fidelity— qualities LCOS shares with LCD. Here, Canon has taken the inherent advantages of LCOS and added its own technologies, including a newly developed PBS (Polarization Beam Splitter) that the company says provides more precise light control. Projecting a spreadsheet at the native SXGA+ resolution, I was able to see clearly very small text with no telltale smearing or stair-stepping. This projector would be a good match for high-resolution photos, medical scans, maps, blueprints or other detailed content.

Wide Eyed

Canon produces some of the finest lenses in the world, and while that doesn’t guarantee a Canon product will have a more-than-adequate lens, in this case, the precision and uniform brightness of the projected image is due— in large part— to the Canon-manufactured 1.7x powered zoom lens. Featuring a six-group assembly with 12 elements and four moving groups, this lens is definitely a cut above the lenses you typically find on 10-pound projectors. The zoom is also more wide-angle than usual (the range is 21.7 mm to 35.8 mm). It lets you fill up a 40-inch screen at just 3.9 feet or a 100-inch screen at just 9.8 feet. Canon claims an impressive 88-percent image uniformity from corner to corner, which is a function of both the lens and optical imaging system.

For home theater applications, contrast is usually more important than brightness. At most locations, it’s relatively easy to turn off the lights or draw the blinds. LCOS can’t compete with DLP strictly in terms of contrast, though owners of Canon’s previous REALiS SX50 projector discovered that placing a neutral density filter in front of the lens significantly increased the contrast by lowering the threshold for the deepest blacks. With the SX60, you won’t need an external filter. Canon has included a Home Cinema Mode that automatically decreases the brightness level in exchange for increasing the contrast range from 1000:1 to 2000:1.

While the Home Cinema Mode contrast ratio is still less than that of many DLP projectors, the SX60’s superior color fidelity and sharpness help to compensate for the difference. Skin tones showed a subtlety that’s extremely rare for a sub-$10,000 projector. Gradual shades of color— especially gradient grays— exhibited seamless transitions from one tone to the next. And when I projected 720p video through the SX60, objects remained distinct even when moving relatively fast across the screen.

Cut and Run

Other notable features include no-wait shut-off (an internal charging system powers the fan even if you pull the plug), low noise operation (27 dB in quiet mode; 30 dB in normal mode), HDCP (High-Bandwidth Digital Copy Protection) support for compatibility with copy-protected Blu-ray and HD DVD discs, a DVI-I input for a direct digital video connection and a presentation mode that produces a bright, high-contrast image for more legible text and numbers.

If you need a video projector that simultaneously combines superior brightness with an unusually wide contrast range, the Canon REALiS SX60 wouldn’t be your best option. However, if sharpness and color accuracy are your main objectives, the SX60 does a great job of fulfilling those needs without sacrificing too much brightness or contrast. Just as you could argue that LCOS combines some of the better features of LCD and DLP, you could make a case that the SX60 builds its strengths on top of the LCOS advantages.