BenQ TK850i True 4K HDR-PRO Smart Home Entertainment Projector powered by Android TV | 3000 Lumens | 98% Rec.709 | Lens shift & Keystone for Easy Setup | 3D Projector for Binge Watchers and Sports

I’m coming from an Epson Home Cinema 3500. Had it for 4-5 years and ran into the “auto iris error” which seems to be somewhat common with some Epson models. I am looking to get it repaired, however I was hoping to take the opportunity to try out a different brand while I sent my Epson in for repair. After a lot of research and watching several video reviews, I settled on the Benq HT3550. This true 4K projector looked legit and everybody raved about it. I was very excited to give it a try. I’ve never experienced light leakage from a projector before but almost everybody talked about how it was an issue in the previous model, but Benq got it right with this one. I have to tell you, in my opinion this is a pretty big deal. Call me OCD if you want but to me there’s no reason for any projector to be putting out such a distracting light border. I included a picture but please know the image cannot capture the prevalence of the border. In person, it is extremely noticeable. I marked how far out the border goes with the yellow line in the picture. You can see it better without the image on the screen, but it looks like I simply need to keystone the image and zoom in to fit the screen, right? That’s why I included the image of the picture on the screen so that you could see the image fills the screen, keystone is great, but you still have the light leakage. To be fair, my wife says that it doesn’t bother her and when you are watching something on the screen, you don’t really notice the leakage as much. However, I do notice it and it really bothers me. Have a mentioned in the review yet that I’m a little bothered by this, ha! Sorry, I just can’t explain how people are overlooking this issue. The best explanation I have read is that all DLP projectors have a little light leakage and people sort of chalk it up to being something you deal with. Bottom line is it is a superb projector and image quality for the price...IF (and it’s a big IF) you are OK with a 6 to 8 inch light border around your screen. I’m not so it’s going back. It’s really unfortunate because I was really excited about the potential of this device.

Let me start saying that this is my first BenQ projector and my overall experience so far has been super great. I’m not a professional video calibrator, not a videophile guy, but when it comes to technology, I like to spend my hard earned money wisely. Before I made my decision to buy this 4K projector, I spend hours of research on different brands and models from Sony, Optoma and Epson. It was a tough decision, since I had to take a lot of considerations, like my room size, screen material, lightning, picture quality and must important, value. This is a $1,500 4K DLP projector but what make it so special is that BenQ was able to put so many features and great performance in a complete “affordable” package. Now let’s move on to some of the specs and performance. Build Quality & Remote Control The BenQ HT3550 weights around 12lbs and is 15in x 10in. x 5in. It has a beautiful bronze color on the front and back of the unit and the rest is pure white. What I like about this unit is the size, is not to big and has a nice weight and rounded shape. The remote control is fully backlit and it has a nice weight and feel on your hand. The buttons are well placed and they have a nice click sound when pressed. On the back of the unit are (2) HDMI 2.0, (1) Service USB, Ethernet port and (1) USB for media files which also you can use it for the firmware updates. 2000 Lumens Yeah, let me be clear, this projector is designed for rooms that have complete light control. If your looking to watch movies during the day with some ambient light I suggest go for the BenQ TK850, it has all the same great features of the HT3550 minus the Wide Color Gamut in favor of a 3,000 lumens lamp. However, the expense of light output in this projector is compensated with very well calibrated colors and great contrast out of the box. The best mode to watch movies isCinema. On this mode the projector has the best light output, fallowed by Vivid TV“ for watching cable programming and sports. The other setting is Dark Cinema which engage the Wide Color Gamut but it dims the picture by 10%, however you will get more spectrum color depending how well you calibrate this unit. I found that this unit unit has a very good light output with 100 & 120 inches screens, however with bigger screen I think some users may prefer to go with a more higher lumens projector. 4K - (Pixel Shift) First, this is not a native 4K projector, inside the HT3550 is a Texas Instruments 0.47” new DLP XPR 4K UHD chip which has a physical mirror matrix of 1920 x 1080. It uses 4-phase pixel shifting to create 8.3 million pixels. This is a cheaper but effective way to produce a 4K resolution that it makes difficult to the human eye to distinguish a true native 4K vs. 4K pixel shift picture (also known as Faux-K to others). This technology began with JVCs introduction of pixel shifting in 2013 and since then it has spark controversy among consumers and videophiles purists. But I’m not gonna talk about this topic, it just to give you an idea of what it is. HDR + Dynamic Iris + Tone Mapping These are some of the best solid features of the HT3550. Thanks to the Dynamic Iris and software tone mapping the HT3550 is capable to produce awesome black and white levels, it has a contrast ratio of 30,000:1. As today, this is the only projector under $2K that has Dynamic Iris at this price range. The HDR performance on this projector is super great, all Marvel movies on Disney + looks awesome with really deep blacks and rich colors. For me, HDR is the secret sauce to really enjoy 4K. The Dynamic Iris works very well, however I would have liked that the dynamic Iris would have been a bit faster. Sometimes you can see some light flickering as the DI tries to adapt, it feels a bit distracting but is not something that will not ruin your overall cinema experience. Sharpness This projector has a very good sharp image. It may not have the sharpness of other more expensive hi-end projectors like Sony and Epson but is very decent and clean. The firmware update (V1.0.5) that was release last December really help to improved some of the algorithms in favor of a more sharper picture. This was one area that some users were complaining and I think BenQ did a nice job with the fix. This projector supports 3D. While I do own a very small amount of 3D movies, I decided to give it a try for this review. So I popped in Avatar 3D into my Panasonic 4K player and I was really impressed on how good it performed. The image was sharp, “crosstalk” free, however, the projector dims the light output by 20%, it feels kind of bummer. TV Material Performance This in one area that I feel is bit of a mix bag. The projector does shine with 4K material, with HDR engaged looks simply awesome, but for 1080p material it will depend on which source your watching and how good and clean your getting that signal. Regular Blu-ray movies and streaming will look great, Netflix and Disney + are incredible to watch on this projector. On cable, I feel the projector falls a bit, and the reason I’m saying this is because you can see some jaggy images, however this will depend on how good your cable or satellite provider is and quality varíes from channel to channel. Sound The projector have good quality speakers. They are 5w each and deliver very good and clear dialogue even with the volume down. I think the best EQ sound mode is Cinema and for some reason it even sound better that the user mode. However the best way to go is with a sound-bar. The only thing I really missed is Bluetooth connectivity that helps to avoid long cable runs. Fan noise Ok, I have to admit that this projector is a bit noisy, in my room with a very quiet environment my SPL meter was reading from 26-28db. However, during movie sessions and with the air conditioner unit turn on, the noice is barely noticeable, This will also depend on how far the projector is from the sitting position. Wrap up The BenQ HT3550 is a great DLP projector. As today, it is hard to find a projector under $1,500 packed with so many features. In my opinion, it even rivals some projector that cost a lot more. In the end, I guarantee you won’t regret this buy.

My son projects his MacBook screen using this projector and it is really clear. I was surprised how clear the text was using this projector.

So.. my Epson 5350 started having this screaming alarm when i would put in a new bulb.. decided to get a 4k.. first got the cheap epson (cant recall model but you cant get a good focus over the whole screen, sent it back) The Benq has a great picture... zero complaints.. Cept the fan is very loud.. 12-21-21 So.. i have a stuck pixel, luckily its near the edge on the right but its there and annoys me..i have tried Pixel fixers and they didnt help..This is easily the worst projector i have ever owned. I own 3 mitsubishis going back over 10 years and all 3 still work perfectly. BENQs picture quality doesnt matter if they make them loud and with dead pixels. I wish i had sent this back when i could have... DO NOT BUY ONE! So..

This is my first time purchasing a projector, but I have experience with buying other high-res TVs and computer monitors in the past. I think for the price point ($1499.99 at the time of writing this review), this projector is well worth the money. For the past week, I have been testing out the capabilities of the projector on 4k movies and games (native and streamed). I thought that the colors on the unit out of the box were superb, similar to what you would find on an IPS computer monitor that has been properly calibrated. BenQ even includes a color calibration report in the box. The sound coming from the 2 5W speakers on the projector is respectable for what they are. They wont get very loud but the quality is definitely good enough for a small outdoor venue or room. I would recommend separate speakers to pair with this projector overall, though. In comparison to the ViewSonic PX-747 4K projector ($899 at the time of writing this), which I initially purchased along with this projector to see which I preferred, you will definitely benefit a lot from sticking with the BenQ. While the sharpness of the two projectors for 1080p and 4K content does not differ vastly, the contrast on the BenQ makes a world of difference. When watching darker scenes in Stranger Things and playing darker levels in Gears of War 4 on Xbox One S it was very hard to make out the finer details and certain objects in frame on the ViewSonic. I tried to adjust the brightness and contrast to fix this but colors ended up just looking too washed out. On the BenQ, however, I immediately noticed an improvement in contrast and HDR quality and had no issues with these darker scenarios. Moreover, the BenQ was much faster when powering on or switching inputs, which doesnt sound like a huge factor but definitely helps if you use it a lot. The $600 jump between projectors, if you have the money for it, is definitely worth it if you want to have a projector that youll be happy with for long term. I will say that if you are expecting this projector to be movie theater quality then you may be slightly disappointed, however. The overall dynamic range is still not as good as a 4K TV at a similar price point, the projector is not bright enough for a well lit room, and the sharpness could be a little better. For something with improvements to those qualities, youll have to upgrade even further to a better BenQ, Epson, Sony, etc projector that has native 4K. I think for most people youd be better off spending that money on a good projector screen, projector ceiling mount, speakers, AV receiver, HDMI 2.0 HDCP 2.2 cables, 4K Bluray movies, etc to accompany this projector. Youll get rapidly diminishing returns upgrading to more expensive projectors, while this projector definitely hits the sweet spot in value (at its very portable weighing only 9 lbs). Id definitely recommend it!

I will put a lot more effort into this review as time goes on, however, it takes time to collect the data. The clarity is crisp as all hell and is beautiful. This is also me talking about this while projecting on a non-treated room wall. It will only get better from here. The brightness is great if its dim-lit or dark, but with daylight shining in, youll still want a tv over this. I moved mine to the corner of the room and still use it when the sun is glaring in.

I have had a BenQ projector (W1070) for five years. When I heard that a 4k direct replacement was coming (HT3550), I placed a pre-order as soon as available. I just received and installed today. First test was the 4k BumbleBee video. Amazing clarity and brightness with very little adjustment necessary. The dynamic iris and HDR make a significant impact on movie presentation. Second test was HD content with Pens vs Islanders first round hockey playoffs great picture, even with fast paced camera panning. So far this HT3550 is everything the W1070 was when I first purchased, but with the added 4k and dynamic Iris and HDR. Very pleased with initial experience. Highly recommend.

Was excited to receive the new projector but when I turned it on, got vertical lines on half of the screen. Read online that this is defective DLP Chip issue. Requested for return, thanks to Amazon.

Awesome picture quality. Bright enough for darker rooms. Meets expectations! Cons: 1. A bit too noisy for my taste. You can hear it during quieter scenes. 2. No horizontal keystone correction is bummer. I have to move my screen to perfectly align with the lens.

I’ve had this projector for a few months, and when playing HDR content HDR will frequently be split screen right down the center. Basically one side will be HDR and the other side will not. I have to stop the content and restart it in order for it to work correctly. There is a loud click as the HDR turns itself off and another as it turns on again. It is connected to a Sony receiver and an Nvidia Shield, but also happens when playing HDR content on PS4. Ive emailed support lets see what they say. Update: BenQ replaced with an RMA, but now the replacement is showing the same signs, and last night one of the HDMI ports stopped working. Update 2: I got a hold of support and they sent me another one. Heres hoping this is the last one. At this point I cant recommended this model and BenQ is super hard to get a hold of.