Acer now has a full range of 4K Projectors offering a comprehensive range of 4k options, so now it’s time to see how they perform. We have broken down the key features of each projector for this Acer 4K Home Cinema review, with an at-a-glance table and all the latest 4k terms explained.
At-a-glance comparison table of Acer 4k Projectors:
| Acer M550 | Acer H7850 | Acer V7850 | Acer V9800 | |
| RP | £1,999.99 | £2,299.99 | £2,699.99 | £3,950.99 |
| Rank | Entry | Mid | High | Pro |
| Key Feature 1 | 2900lms | 3000lms | 2200lms | 2000lms |
| Key Feature 2 | Rec. 2020 Compatible | Rec. 2020 Compatible | Rec. 2020 Compatible | Rec. 2020 Compatible |
| Key Feature 3 | Rec. 709 Compatible | Rec. 709 Compatible | ||
| Key Feature 4 | HDR Compatible | HDR Compatible | HDR Compatible | HDR Compatible |
| Key Feature 5 | Vertical lens shift | Vertical lens shift | Vertical lens shift | Horizontal / Vertical lens shift |
| Colour wheel | Standard | Standard | RGBRGB | RGBRGB |
Key Comparisons
The Acer M550 projector is an excellent entry level 4k choice, only 100 lumens behind its mid range cousin the Acer H7850 which also offers an affordable cinematic experience. Both offer vertical lens shift for improved adjustability.
The Acer V7850 is what many consider the colour purist model due to its RGBRGB colour wheel. If you want life-like immersion, the fantastic colour reproductions of the V7850 are award winning. The V7850 has won awards in the press with Home Cinema Choice and T3, proving itself a market leader in the 4k projector high end range.
At the Pro level the Acer V9800 produces similarly stunning visuals to the H7850 but has more image positioning options, allowing for more precisely adjusted home cinema. Uniquely this model also is one of the projectors to offer the rare horizontal lens shift as well as vertical lens shift so you can place the projector on the ceiling or in the corner of the room with little or no skewing of the image horizontally or vertically.
Some key technologies explained:
4K UHD
The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) definition of 4K Ultra HD (UHD, 3,840 x 2,160) states the display resolution must have at least 8 million active pixels. Acer4K Ultra HD resolution with TI XPR technology serves more than 8.3 million on-screen pixels —four times more of a Full HD. All details come alive.
HDR compatible
HDR (High dynamic range) is a technique to reproduce a greater dynamic range of luminosity. It preserves details in the darkest & brightest areas, and presents a similar range of luminance that the colour is close to how we see in real life. The expanded contrast & wider range of brightness produces true-to-life colour. Image comes to life with HDR compatible.
Rec. 2020 compatible
Rec. 2020, also known as BT. 2020, is the recommendation for UHDTV defined by International Telecommunications Union (ITU). With Rec. 2020 compatible, projector is able to read and translate rec. 2020 language into rec. 709 for superior colour reproduction.
Rec. 709
Rec. 709 is a standard of HDTV. It is also the colour standard that movie direct or adopted for post-production. Thanks to the inclusion of Rec 709, Acer’s projector is able to reproduce faithfully the original colours and tones to give viewers an authentic movie-watching experience. Recreate colours exactly as they’ve been imagined by the director.
HDCP 2.2
HDCP 2.2 is the specification required for HDMI ports to play full 4K video. If your HDMI port is older than V2 then you will need to check how well 4K video displays depending on your HDMI version. All the Acer projectors above have one HDMI 2.0 port which is HDCP 2.2 enabled for your 4K content.
The Verdict
There is now something for everyone in the Acer 4k home cinema range whether you are on a budget or looking for the best contrast ratio/features money can buy.
The award winning V7850 is also a great high end choice at a good price whilst the entry level Acer M550 and the H7850 models offer amazing value for a 4k projector.