BenQ HT3550 4K Home Theater Projector with HDR10 and HLG - 95% DCI-P3 and 100% Rec.709 - Dynamic Iris for Enhanced Darker Contrast Scenes - 3 Year Industry Leading Warranty

as a projector enthusiast (over 17 years) I can say that this is the the best projector I have ever own in my life. I use it in my home cinema room and it's just breathtaking. here is my take on it. used for movies and gaming. (PC and PS5) Pros: sharp, low input lag, bright. Pros and cons of Ht3550. Pros: Sharp as a razor blade. Contrast ratio. Amazing image depth. The colors are 100 % accurate out of the box. The quiet hum of 4k chip, you can't really hear it. No light border around the image. Dynamic iris (a good thing to have but not a deal-breaker) Lens ceiling light shield. Breath-taking hdr capability. (still can't find my jaw) Cons: some say it has a high input lag but it never bothered me in games. my tests showed about 50/55MS without the dynamic iris and about 77 with dynamic iris turned on. (i game without the dynamic iris) but I don't feel it in any game I play on Ps5. 2000 lumens, works best in dark rooms. Image syncs two sides of the screen for a minute. (only at startup). purple Fringing/ chromatic aberration. it's only visible up close and as soon as you gain some distance from the projector screen it goes completely away. it is known with this model and it should not bother anyone owning this projector. although rated 2000 lumens I would say it's about 2500. I have another 2200 projector and HD3550 blows it out of the water. I am not playing FPS games so I have never seen input lag, don't let this issue stir you away from this amazing projector. 4k gaming on my ps5 is just stunning and frankly, sometimes unbelievable how amazing it looks. The cons are very negligible vs the pros. I don't know how Benq managed to do this in this price range but it's just nothing short of amazing.

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 won't 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 doesn't 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 you'll 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, you'll have to upgrade even further to a better BenQ, Epson, Sony, etc projector that has native 4K. I think for most people you'd 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. You'll get rapidly diminishing returns upgrading to more expensive projectors, while this projector definitely hits the sweet spot in value (at it's very portable weighing only 9 lbs). I'd definitely recommend it!

Disclaimer: This is my first projector but I am very impressed overall. I was at one time planning on shelling out close to 3k for the Epsom 5050 (which does look amazing) but then I realized I had planned my home theater room without a huge throw distance from projector to screen (just under 9 feet) and I was hoping to use a 110" screen. My fears that the Epsom might not quite have the throw ratio I needed led me to look at this BenQ and I'm glad I did. This BenQ isn't what they call a short throw projector but it does have a more generous throw ratio than most other regular home cinema projectors. I'm pleased to say that the picture is stunning and the price saving enabled me to invest in a better amp and speakers for the room. I bought a Panasonic 4K Blu-ray player (UB 420) and it looks stunning in both 4k and 3D. It will make you want to stock up on 3D movies. I have a dark dedicated home theater in a basement and I can imagine this could struggle in a room with natural light. They also say this isn't a great projector for gaming but I have hooked up my PS4 to it and had a great experience. To be fair, I'm not an online gamer where I suppose the input lag could be detrimental. However, for "local" gaming (1 player campaign/story or multiplayer split-screen) I don't notice any lag at all, just a big beautiful image. It has a very nice backlit remote too. I have had a few moments where I have had some glitches from the 4K Blu Ray signal and had to restart the projector but that has been my only negative. This issue might be unique to my individual unit though. Overall, I love it and I know you will too if you have a dark room, especially for the price. Update: I have since had several problems, first with my original unit and then with a replacement. Now Benq aren't answering support calls or responding to emails. I know we are in the midst of a pandemic but this still isn't good enough for such a big company. I've lost all faith in the brand. Stay away!

Out of the box, the picture from this projector is amazing, with accurate color and it’s extremely bright. The only issue with the image is the slightly lackluster black level, which can make very dark scenes look a little washed out. This can be improved with a darker screen but I am still using a white screen in a light controlled room. The black level does not bother me too much though. There is a slight rainbow effect noticeable but only when quickly panning my eyes across the screen. I really only see it when there’s a bright object in an otherwise dark background too. Feature-wise, I would have liked one more HDMI port for this price. You lose one to the dedicated mini hdmi port the Android tv stick occupies. Android TV is ok but I have been a Roku user for a long time. The lens shift function is great for positioning. However, the knobs have a lot of play and feel very imprecise. That said, I didn’t have any trouble aligning the image to my screen with them. It just feels very cheap and plastic. Aesthetically, it could be a little nicer too. But, I’ve always been a function over form person. The LED light source should be good for the life of the projector but you do pay a hefty premium for that. When there’s the BenQ 2060 LED 1080p option for just $1000 and 4k bulb models in the 1000-2000 range, it doesn’t seem like the 4550i should cost 2-3 times more just because it doesn’t use a traditional bulb. So, I would knock it a little in the value department. All in all, I have very happy with my purchase so far!

This is my first projector and after looking at all of the different options, I figured this was the one to go with. It's been said that this projector resolved lot of the first generation projector problems so not having to deal with some of those quirks is always a positive. In any case, this projector was MUCH better than I had expected. I'm just projecting on a wall and it looked so good that I'm debating to whether to even a buy screen for it or not! Eventually i'll get the screen but it's not by any means an urgent need for me. I honestly can't tell whether i'm watching a TV or projector. Of course the room does need to be dark (some light is still acceptable) but if you have good amount of ambient light then the picture will look washed out. Things i don't like: 1) Optical output is only outputting stereo sound. Not sure WTF BenQ was thinking here. I ended up buying a new receiver due to this. This was major let down for me and almost wanted to return this projector. But my old receiver was in need of update anyways so decided to fork the extra money for a new receiver. 2) Fan noise (when I had it on a table this was a bit loud but ever since mounting it on a wall, I've noticed that it's quieter than before). 3) Mounting - For some stupid reason, BenQ decided to not have a flat surface for the mount side so one of the screws is right next to the raised body. You can probably see it in the pics. In the end it still worked fine but for a company who's in this business for a while would have given some thought about this and made sure that the mounting side is completely flat. I used the Mount-It mount as it allowed for extension to drop the projector height. Things I LOVE: 1) Picture quality - Hands down just amazing out of the box and I've only just watched 1080p content so far! Planning to connect 4k firestick this weekend to get an idea of how great this projector really is. 2) Has USB power port (2.5A at that) so that I can just power the firestick off that port. Works perfectly! I really haven't played around with the different settings on the projector and frankly i'm afraid to just because it's puts out damn good image right now. Make sure to measure the distance from the lens to the wall and also the height of the projector. I think BenQ has a good calculator for this but again difficult to use. However, the best way is to just use a ladder and put the projector on it to see how the image would look. I just zoomed out the image completely and made sure that I was satisfied with the minimum image size it projected. After that I just found a good mounting spot for the projector mount between 1 to 2 feet after that spot so that I can then zoom in to get image size I wanted on the wall. I'd say go for it if you're debating to whether to get this as your first projector or not. I don't think I'd ever consider buying large TVs if a projector in that setting could also work.

I have been an installer and enthusiast for over 20 years. My first install was a giant Barco RGB projector which put out a whopping 800 lumens. Projectors have come along way in every aspect. I chose this projector because I have a room that I can control all the lighting. I am able to make the room almost 100% black. This projector is absolutely stunning considering both the size and price point. It handles 4K material flawlessly. I must note that I installed the projector and used a fiber optic HDMI cable so I do not lose any signal along the path. I am shooting this onto a 100" fixed screen with a gain of 1.1, and it looks absolutely amazing. The lens shift is very helpful but note it is only vertical. There are multiple reviews out there with "preferred" settings to use to achieve maximum picture quality. So I will add mine. Lighting controlled room: Dynamic Iris: High Light Mode: Eco Picture: Cinema (If you set the 4K to Auto this will auto switch to H10 when 4K material is detected) Brilliant Color: On Wide Color Gamut: Off (I know I will get dinged for this, but my family enjoys a slightly brighter picture) Silence: Off We have viewed several movies from DVDs, to Streaming, to 4K Blu-Rays, and this projector will bring out the best in all of them. With that said, please keep in mind that a DVD at best is only 480p, which means it will look the worst on the projector, or any other 4K display. The only gaming I have done is on a regular PS4. I did not notice any lag, but I am not a competitive gamer. Finally, I must address lag from an audio perspective. The video is stunning and the visuals will blow you away when this is set up correctly and you are viewing good source material. There is inherent audio lag/delay when using a projection system depending how far away your projector is from your receiver. In my case, I purchased a 50' fiber optic HDMI cable so I could run it through the walls. Although fiber optic cables have more bandwidth to transport the entire unaltered signal, they are not any faster than a copper cable. Physics still apply here and the signal still has to travel the length of the cable. Not to mention the conversion to and from light at both ends. For my system, the magic number was 50ms of delay on the audio. This syncs up perfectly with the image. I would assume there is a calculation that can be found online for this, but I simply used a little logic and some trial and error. There is roughly 10ms delay for every 10' of cable. You may never notice it if you are running cable directly to a TV, but it's there. When your image is 100+ inches, it is hard to ignore. Finally, I have viewed an installed several projectors that where 10 - 20 times more expensive than this projector. This is the happiest I have been with a small format projector, and I do not feel as though I am losing any performance. I know there are bigger and better projectors out there, but I challenge you to find one for less than double the cost. As with all reviews, please take this with a grain of salt as this is just my experience. I would recommend this projector to anyone who asks.

We have been using at-home projection TV for over 25 years, but we had never tried a BenQ. I thought of it as a step up, it cost twice as much as our next most spendy projector. I ordered it ahead instead of another bulb for our Epson, setup was easy and then stuff began to fail. We use a fancy Onkyo amplifier sound system which extracts the most from signals and sources. We enjoy hearing birds flock up in the ceiling / sky. But the Benq strips sound down. How do I know. Well when the BenQ bulb failed so early that I had not stocked a replacement, thinking that was a couple years in the future, I had closeted the old Epson projector and we have not yet agreed on another use, guests or grandkids, so I got it out and replaced the BenQ with the old one and wow it was brighter and the good sound came back. So, now we have new decisions to make, one is to stop believing Amazon ratings. Another, not to count bulb hours until they are achieved. Finally, a three year warranty is not worth anything if the phone number doesn't work. Update 2024 March: We seldom heard from BenQ and just lost our money and returned to Epson who have been more honest and helpful. In another space we tried the XGIMI promising high performance at a medium price point. The lumens were overpromised, the rest was fine, but the whole projector failed after 14 months and XGIMI supports no North American repair, not even parts. People with second party insurance are not reporting better results. Additional Note: We upgraded the Epson in our common attic hobby room (they used to call these ballrooms in three story Victorians like ours). We do have work specific lighting, but not bright. The Epson 3800 performs very well. We have full Dolby Audio via Onkyo and processing via Apple TV which so far still does no harm to the audio and video streams. The Epson runs a bit hot, generates too much heat for our space actually, so we rigged a diversion fan to move the warmed air up into the far reaches of the 14 feet of peaking roof, which we can then vent quietly when needed. Advisory: I am now in my 80s and my eyes are weary. Projected images are much easier to see all day long than are monitors and TVs. Reviews seldom include this benefit so go see for yourself.

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.