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AV Systems
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New Panasonic projector shines
Nov 12, 2007
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by Mark J. Pescatore
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The 3200-lumen Panasonic PT-F100NTU has a rather large footprint, 17 inches wide and more than a foot deep. Thankfully, it weighs just under 14 pounds, so sharing it between conference rooms isn't a major hassle.
Because of its size, the projector has plenty of room on the left side of the front panel for the projector controls. It features large power and input select buttons, along with directional controls for on-screen menu navigation. A small group of lights serve as power, lamp, temperature, and filter indicators as well.
Rather than a lens cap, the F100NTU has a front panel cover that goes across the entire front of the unit. The area surrounding the lens is clear, so you can actually cover the controls while you use the projector.
I like the simplicity of the interface, and I appreciate the idea behind the cover. If the projector is permanently installed at ceiling height, this is truly a great idea. However, on a tabletop, if you face the controls, you don't face the screen, so you can't see what you're adjusting. And trying to access the controls from the side of the projector while you're looking at the screen is awkward.
Back to the front panel, I really like the lens shift lever. Once the projector has its home, you can manually adjust the position of the projected image (up to 50 percent vertically or 32 percent horizontally off center), then lock it in place. There are also easily accessible manual zoom and focus levers, too.
As far as inputs, the F100NTU has plenty on its back panel. There are three video inputs, S-Video, RCA, and component, which share stereo audio inputs. Two RGB computer inputs share stereo audio inputs as well. In addition, there's a LAN connection for remote monitoring, as well as RS-232C and remote ports. The F100NTU features wireless LAN capabilities, but only supports PC-based systems. Mac support would be a nice upgrade.
The remote control with built-in laser pointer is well designed without a lot of clutter. You've got access to your inputs, with an "auto setup" to make things even easier, plus there digital zoom and volume controls. There's no audio mute button, but the "shutter" control blanks the screen and audio, and audio is muted when you "freeze" an image on screen. The middle of the remote is dedicated to on-screen menu navigation controls.
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| The Panasonic PT-F100NTU sports a built-in closed caption decoder, among other user-friendly features. |
Six sub-menus offer a variety of setting changes. In "Picture," there are four image modes at your disposal (including blackboard), or you can manually adjust contrast, brightness, color, etc. "Position" provides access to digital keystone correction and positioning tools, along with aspect ratio choices. The "Option" area includes test patterns and other technical information. Additional sub-menus cover language, security, and network options.
The surprisingly quiet F100NTU offers 3200 ANSI lumens and native XGA resolution. The 3-LCD projector did a fine job with my laptop -- crisp images and text. The S-Video and RCA video sources were also pretty good, even better after I reduced the sharpness.
Its built-in closed caption decoder is a very nice touch for Section 508 compliance. However, the projector's three-watt speaker isn't particularly loud or dynamic. If you're going to be projecting sources with audio, make sure your room has a sound system.
In its press materials, Panasonic emphasized its dust-free optical system, re-engineered airflow, and rolling filter system, all designed to minimize maintenance and brightness loss over time. I can't really comment on these innovations after a short evaluation period, however, I can tell you that the Panasonic PT-F100NTU offers quality images, plenty of inputs, and well designed user interfaces.
The MSRP for the PT-F100NTU is $4,999, though a similar unit, the PT-F100U, is about $400 less without wireless or networking capabilities. Also available is the PT-FW100NTU, a native widescreen version with slightly lower brightness and an MSRP of $5,499.
MORE INFO
Panasonic panasonic.com/projectors
Editor’s note: According to Panasonic, the PT-F100NTU projector now offers wireless LAN capability for Mac users. The “Wireless Manager” software can be downloaded from:
http://www.panasonic.com/business/projectors/ss_software.asp.
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