Sony Pearl VPL-VW50 1080p projector price confirmed at CEDIA

Our man on the scene at CEDIA has just gotten the official price confirmed for the new Sony Pearl VPL-VW50: it'll be $5,000, and will be available later this month, besting our previous information. We had thought that we'd have to wait until October and pay a bit more -- we suppose that this price drop is to compete with its other 1080p brethren, no? As we mentioned last time we drooled over this oyster-shaped projector, it's got a 200-watt lamp that throws out a respectable 900 lumens and on its non-projecting side, the Pearl has two HDMI inputs, one component input and is ready for 1080/60p, 1080/50p or 1080/24p, so you're totally decked out. Oh, and did we mention its staggering 15,000:1 contrast ratio? We've got all the shots of the beast on a CEDIA demo stand on the flip side.

[Via HD Beat]

[Dario @ Sep 13th 2006 8:50PM]

Nice... imagine playin PS3 with full 1080p on the wall... *drool

[OPTICAL OUT PLEASE @ Sep 13th 2006 8:56PM]

This is a pretty incredible price considering that only a few years ago its predeccesor, the Qualia 004, was going for 25k.

[Vinni @ Sep 13th 2006 9:00PM]

Jerry...read?

[TheGuy @ Sep 13th 2006 9:20PM]

Finally, Sony manages to not mess-up on something.

[ark_v2 @ Sep 13th 2006 9:39PM]

A PS3 with that would be awesome! And that contrast ratio is insane!

[Chris Lunter @ Sep 13th 2006 9:43PM]

This will sound sort of stupid, but can someone break down what contrast ratio really is? Break it down really far, I mean...into laymen's terms please.

[Chris McDowell @ Sep 13th 2006 10:03PM]

Contrast ratio is difference between the white and blacks so it gives it a richer more vibrant look instead of being washed out.

[kOa7 @ Sep 13th 2006 10:05PM]

Contrast ratio is the difference between the whiteness of your projection surface, and what the projector delivers as white.. since a projector can't make a black darker than the surface (which is usually white in a darkened room), your white is its dark, and this is a challenging task, but it's all relative.

[ark_v2 @ Sep 13th 2006 10:17PM]

The brighter and darkest color that thing can produce. An example, this sony baby http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/SY_DisplayProductInformation-Start?ProductSKU=KDL46XBR3&Dept=tvvideo&CategoryName=tv_flatpanel_46to52 has a maximum contrast ratio of 7000:1...and that's a lot for a LCD, a lot, and then this insane projector of 15000:1

[Gromit @ Sep 13th 2006 10:22PM]

That's actually a really good price, actually very good.

As 15,000:1 1080p sets go thats very competitive, 900 lumens is only decent, but for $5k its a full size home theater on the cheap.

[Ig @ Sep 13th 2006 10:27PM]

Sure, a 15,000:1 contrast ratio...even though (1) there is no set standard for measuring contrast ratios and therefore no way to verify manufacturers claims, and (2) the human eye is incapable of detecting contrast ratios greater than 800:1.

[Perrey Z. @ Sep 13th 2006 10:28PM]

Never mind this overprice piece of Japanese crap., But is that Chuck Woolery the famous game show host?

TheGuy: We haven't test it yet to verified that Sony has screw it up... once again.

Chris Lunter: Contrast Ratio is the balance between Blacks and Whites., the higher the Contrast Ratio the better., Blacks will be deeper instead of Dark Gray also you'll notice brighter pure Whites instead of Blueish Whites.

[Andrey @ Sep 13th 2006 10:29PM]

It does look like the difference in price from VW100 comes from almost half-intensity lamp.. + It won't have any "upconvert technology" - meaning all DVDs and not HDTV materials will be displayed in the box in the middle, I guess all 720p signals will also look not at their best. Hopefully HDMI input will be 1080p compatible and not only accept 1080i...Otherwise it might be wise to spend another 3K and get VW100

[Jackson @ Sep 13th 2006 10:59PM]

Ig- you commented:
1- There is no way to measure contrast ratio
2- The human eye can only see 800:1

Can you clarify this? I'm no expert, but I'm assuming that if there is no way to measure the ratio, there is no way of knowing the limit of human comprehension of it either. Am I missing something?

[kOa7 @ Sep 13th 2006 11:11PM]

I just 'clicked' the [!] link, and the referenced post was reported for review.. sorry, it wasn't really controversial.. what a system engadget is. I almost feel like engadget should be censored from some sites, or that engadget is missing the point, but still... thanks for bringing the mysticism of this product to me, its truly monstrous.

[HoboJoe @ Sep 14th 2006 12:57AM]

Ugh. People talking about things they know nothing about...

1. Actually, contrast ratio is very measurable, and there are standards. Manufacturers, however, choose to be vague with their specs. Undoubtedly, this 15000:1 ratio of the Sony is a "dynamic" ratio, meaning the projector adjusts the iris on a frame-by-frame basis to create deeper blacks and whiter whites. Its "static" contrast ratio is likely much, much lower, meaning the absolute range of the chips without any futzing with the iris.

2. The human eye is unsurpassed by film or by digital technology (at least, not in the real world, as opposed to an R&D lab somewhere), and works differently than the chips in projectors. However, if one were to compare them roughly, the human eye has a "static" contrast ratio of around 10000:1, and a "dynamic" ratio 100 times that.

Now, where's the guy who says the eye can't detect more than 60 frames per second?

[Branden @ Sep 14th 2006 1:35AM]

15000:1 to bad the human eye can only see to about 800:1. These contrast ratios are just marketing hype.

[Ig @ Sep 14th 2006 1:55AM]

Hey, HoboJoe? I never claimed that contrast ratios can't be measured. Also your second point is specious at best and contradicts virtually everything I've read or heard about the limits of human visual capabilities. Do you have any data to back up your claim?

[Rishard Chapoteau @ Sep 14th 2006 9:18AM]

Wow thats a good price! I was thinking it was going to cost at least 7-9k msrp. If its 5k msrp you can probably get it for 4k or less if you really try after a few months.

[dave @ Sep 14th 2006 9:41AM]

900 lumens? Do you have to have this in a cave...a lot of the projectors I've seen lately are 2000 lumens? maybe even higher. I'd like to see how bright this thing really is.

[cdc @ Sep 14th 2006 11:39AM]

lg, Branden, you guys really need to konw what you're talking about (you don't). Look up full on-off contrast ratio and then look up ansi contrast ratio. They are completely different mesurements. The spec mentioned is full on-off. The limitation on the human eye is better measured by the ansi contrast, which is tested with a checkerboard patter static image. Then you measure the light from the full white square and compare it to the light from the full off square. Even on the best projector, it maxes out around 800:1. Full on-off is measured by showing a full screen of white, measuring the light, then all black, measuring. Both mesurements are important, but for different visual reasons.

[prodigal_son @ Sep 14th 2006 11:46AM]

i googled contrast ratio and on the first page i think, it gave me this paragraph

"It is the same with the eye; at any given instant, the eye can possibly see over a range of 400 to 800:1 in contrast detection. Here, there is a whole debate about this with some saying this is 100:1, others say 1000:1, and some even mention 10,000:1. As soon as the eye moves (saccades), it re-adjusts its exposure both chemically and by adjusting the iris. Over time, it is possible for the eye to resolve a contrast ratio range of between 1,000,000 and 10,000,000:1, but...

The eyes' ability to detect contrast depends on the scene brightness, with the contrast sensitivity of the eye decreasing to about 8% of its maximum at low light levels; the eye sensitivity also decreases with lower contrast subjects."

[John Sununu @ Sep 14th 2006 12:31PM]

"the higher the Contrast Ratio the better"

Only to a certain point. You wouldn't want the brightness of the Sun and the darkness of a black hole. That would make your eyes hurt.

[vulcanman @ Sep 14th 2006 2:54PM]

After half-heartedly trying out a Infocus 4805 at home ,instead of a RP / LCD TV, ... and becoming an instant convert to the concept of a very large screen with high entertainment feel ... as compared to a much sharper but relatively very small regular TV ...... this new of a $5000 1080p projector makes me want to leave work early and go to my car ... turn on the A/C ... shut my eyes ... and dream about how my wife and I plan to spend the impending cold winter nights.

[David Woodward @ Sep 23rd 2006 3:02AM]

lumens shumens......here are two cold hard fact formulas to commit to memory....

It has HMDI 1.3 = I am going to buy it.

It does not have HDMI 1.3 = I am not going to buy it.

'Nuff said

[jabazan @ Oct 2nd 2006 6:47PM]

le falta lens shift horizontal como el hs 60