If you’re building a home theater or media room, and you’ve decided to use a projector system rather than a TV, you’ll need two things: a screen and a projector. Not all projectors are built equally—in fact, some models offer tremendously better quality than others. So which projector should you use? 

Often the decision comes down to budget. But if you want the best picture quality possible in your home theater, most professionals (including our team at Electronic Integration) suggest investing in a laser projector. 

If you’re new to laser projectors, you may wonder what they are and what makes lasers better quality than standard video projectors. Read on to learn how lamp and new laser projectors compare and how they’ll enhance your Denver, CO, home entertainment.

SEE ALSO: Immersive vs. Casual: How to Set Up Your Home Entertainment System for Both

Lamp Projectors: The Longtime Standard 

Until 2015, the only projectors you’d find in home theaters were lamp projectors. Lamp projectors use an internal light bulb to project visuals on a screen. This devices can still be high-quality, displaying HD and even 4K content. But internal lamps can fade over time and require replacing, just like regular home light bulbs. 

Laser Projectors: A New Approach 

You guessed it: laser projectors use a laser to produce visuals rather than a light bulb. So how does a laser create a movie on the wall? If we get technical, the projector uses laser diodes to shine on a phosphor-coated wheel. The colors are then sent to a chip that beams through a lens onto your projector screen. 

Which Is Better? 

If you compare the two, you’ll find that laser projectors are much brighter than lamp models. Lamp projectors appear much more muted and dull, and the internal light bulb takes a few minutes to warm up and brighten. 

Brightness is essential for projectors because, unlike TVs, the light isn’t coming from inside the screen. If you’ve ever visited a drive-in theater before the sky turned black, you’ll understand why projectors need to be as bright as possible. 

A laser projector will produce much stronger colors and richer blacks than a lamp projector, so visuals will never look distorted. Lasers are also known to perform much more consistently and won’t lose brightness over time. In fact, you could play a laser projector for 40 hours a week for ten years before you’d ever need to replace it—lasting five times longer than a lamp projector. 

A laser projector is certainly more of an investment than a lamp version, but you won’t ever have to replace it in your lifetime. Laser projectors by brands like Sony are available in native 4K for remarkable visuals at an impressive scale. 

Discover Laser Projectors in Denver Want to see the magic of laser projectors for yourself? Visit Electronic Integration’s showroom in Denver to see the difference in person. And contact our team here to learn more about our home theater solutions!