Believe it or not, putting together your own at-home theater is much cheaper than you think, especially considering the Dr. J Professional HI-04 1080p Supported Portable Movie Projector. Not only does it come with a 100-inch projector screen bundled inside, its performance just might make it the best mini projector available on a budget. However, read our Optomoa Cinemax P1 review if you want another powerful projector.
Related: In case you want a small great projector that is almost the size of the palm of your hand, read our Ezcast Beam J2
Why We Like It – DR. J Professional HI-04 1080P
Capable of projecting a screen size of 176 inches and plenty of ports to use, this projector gives you every reason to choose it for your budget home theater, especially with the 100-inch projector screen bundled inside. Plus, keep your projector stable and secure during use by getting the best projector stand.
- Plenty of ports to use
- Screen size can be as large as 176-inches
- Bundles with a 100-inch projector screen
- Image quality lessens the bigger the screen is
Performance
Let’s take picture quality, for example. The Dr. J Professional HI-04 1080p has a native resolution of 1280-720, with a support resolution of 1920×1080. In both cases, it’s good video quality for movies and video games. Its contrast ratio is solid at 2000 to 1, like the Vankyo Leisure 3 Mini Projector. It can shoot a screen size of 176 inches, though the closer you get to its limit, the more the quality dips. It’s still good for outdoor movies, as its visual quality is better than the AuKing Mini Projector. Moreover, if you compare a glossy vs matte projector screen, you’ll find out which one works best for this projector. However, if you’ll be primarily using it outside, you may want to get one of the top outdoor projectors or a great daylight projector to ensure your picture quality will be the best.
Although, if this one doesn’t have the performance you want, you can find a better one, like the one you’ll read about in our Optoma HD142X review.
Design
One of the best features of Dr. J Professional HI-04 1080p is the number of ports. HDMI USB, VGA, Micro SD, and AV are on the right-hand face. With its HDMI port and adapter, you can stream your smart device straight to the projector. That also means your favorite TV stick can be inserted into the projector. At the same time, you can bypass its so-so speakers for an external pair. It has a power cable, unlike the Anker Nebula Capsule, which is battery-powered.
With that said, two other projectors might hold a candle to this one. You can read more about them in our AAXA P300 review and the PIQO smart mini 1080p pocket projector review.
Value
Like its sister model, the Dr. J Professional HI-04 mini outdoor projector, the Dr. J Professional HI-04 1080p makes plenty of good decisions, most of which help downplay its little weaknesses. It performs well in both lit and dark areas, so watching during the day is still possible. For other projectors that are great with ambient light, check out our guide to the top projector bright rooms. It’s an overall really good projector, and we can easily give it our seal of approval. This is especially true with the added 100-inch projector screen that comes bundled inside. Picking up a 4K projector on Amazon would’ve cost around $20, so it’s a nice surprise. Plus, it can be considered one of the best projectors under $1000. Now that’s a saving.
DR. J Professional HI-04 1080P Wrap-Up
For balancing a budget with performance, the Dr. J Professional HI-04 1080p Projector hits all the notes. Its picture quality is really solid, it has several ports to stream from, and it can project a screen of up to 176 inches, though image quality may dip a bit. In return, you get a 100-inch projector screen and enough savings to purchase external speakers. Although, if you’re partial to name-brand products, you’ll want to have a look at our list of the best RCA projectors.
On the other hand, for a high-quality viewing experience, you’ll want to check out our Optoma Projector review and our Optoma HD141X 3D projector review.
Alternatively, if you need a portable projector, read our Kodak Ultra Mini Portable Projector review.
