That means it’s time to upgrade to a Full HD projector. Why? The cost of these projectors is so low these days that you can do a Full HD 280cm (110-inch) screen for the cost of a 150cm (60-inch) TV. With resolution at 1920×1080, and upscaling of 720×480 video sources to this level, the larger screen has no disadvantages. Odds are that you’ll do the upgrade for much less than you’d expect. Mitsubishi are a case in point, with their latest crop of HD projectors, such as the HC5500/6500.

It isn’t just about the resolution either. Faster auto-iris controlling logic means that dark scenes interspersed with cuts to lighter scenes do not suffer the lagging light effect they would have previously. Two HDMI v1.3 inputs ensure that all the benefits of these connections can be utilised, such as Deep Colour encoding. They are also compatible with 24-frame rate material as can be had from the latest sources such as Blu-ray. This makes panning and movement generally run smoother, avoiding the jerkiness which mismatched frame rates lead to.

Motorised zoom, focus and vertical lens shift (50%) are all very helpful in achieving optimum setup for your room. The fan motor, importantly, is one of the quietest around at 19dBSPL in low-noise mode. This means that you’ll hardly hear it, even with the soundtrack turned way down. All of these features come in the HC5500 ($3999), then the next model up, the HC6500 ($4999) adds some more: higher contrast, horizontal lens shift (5%) and a big 75% vertical shift capability.

A 17-element glass lens using low dispersion (ED) glass (as used in high quality SLR camera lenses) ensures crystal-clear images at 1200 lumens. Fan noise in low mode is down to 17dBSPL. With this projector you will make the most of all your HD viewing, whether it is from Blu-ray, Foxtel or Free-to-air broadcast. Upscaled DVD video will benefit too.

In a case similar to that of the HC6500, but with a gloss finish to distinguish it, the HC7000 offers an incredible 72,000:1 contrast ratio, and picture quality you would not believe for the price — $5999.

In an age when asking ‘where are they made?’ is becoming fairly pointless, we can report that the Mitsubishi projectors are still made in Japan.