High-definition HDMI, component-video, composite-video, S-video, and RGB inputs 1,280 x 720 native HD resolution (displays 480i, 576i, 480p, 576p, 720p, and 1080i inputs) 1,000 ANSI lumens brightness, up to 2,000:1 contrast ratio; widescreen (16:9) native aspect ratio, 4:3 compatible Smooth Screen technology for smooth, film-like images Measures 13.2 x 3.7 x 10.6 inches (W x H x D) and weighs just 7.9 pounds
The PT-AE700U is the most impressive home cinema projector ever from Panasonic. Compact enough to sit on a bookshelf, it is packed with advanced features designed to bring you a whole new level of home theater enjoyment.Dynamic contrast is now 2000: 1, by far the best in its class, so the picture is sharp and clear even in a well-lit room. New integrated cinema quality circuitry includes a Dynamic Iris optical system that constantly adjusts the brightness and gamma characteristics in real time, so the picture is always optimal and transitions betweens scenes are more natural. An innovative color correction system - developed after consultation with top Hollywood colorist David Bernstein 1 - incorporates Cinema Color Management technology to ensure faithful color reproduction. This cinema-quality integrated circuitry brings you on-screen colors just as you would see them in a movie theater. And the PT-AE700U comes with advanced Smooth Screen technology that effectively eliminates the typical "screen door" effect, so the images you see on the screen are natural and lifelike.
Spotlight customer reviews:
Customer Rating: Summary: Defective Comment: I agree with the review that this is a defective product. My bulb blew at 312 hours. Wasn't under warranty and cost me another $400+ to replace. Panasonic service online and on-phone are terrible. Then had same problem with cycle-on and cycle-off. Took it in person to nearest Panasonic authorized service center (75 miles away) and they told me it was just dusty and charged $120 for the evaluation and cleaning. Came home and it still does the same thing. Service center now out of business and Panasonic wants me to ship it to Kansas. Judging from all the online info this is a lemon and Panasonic knows it. The bulb life is a joke and the power supply is faulty. Will not go with Panasonic again. Now I am looking for a good replacement as fixing this one will likely run hundreds. My current bulb is at 295 hours so even after it is fixed I am afraid it will blow soon and another $400+ will be needed. Customer Rating: Summary: Bulbs blow at less than 500 hours Comment: I have been a proud owner of this projector for a short while over a year. I love the picture this projector creates. Bright, smooth images and the HD is awesome. However, there is a manufacturer's defect in the bulb. My bulb, after only putting 470 hours onto it, exploded last night. I'm finding case after case of this happening to people with this projector. I can only hope panasonic will do the right thing and replace my bulb at no cost. I'm sad to say that I probably won't buy another panasonic projector (and, from the looks of things, I'm going to be back in the marker REAL soon). I think I may go back to sharp, who made my original projector which I loved.
beware of this! you'll be very sad when your bulb prematurely goes "POP". Customer Rating: Summary: Warning! Defective Product! Comment: I was happy with this projector for a year, then within two months of the one-year warranty expiring it went quickly downhill. The power supply went bad, which made the projector nothing but a $2000 paperweight. It's a very common problem with this model, judging from all the complaints on home-theater forums. It would power on and almost immediatly shut itself off, then try to restart over and over until the main power switch on the back of the unit got turned off. $400.00 to fix it. Right after that, my lamp went kaput after exactly 800 hours. So much for extending the lamp life to 3000 hours by using it in "low" mode. I hate to think how short the life would have been if I'd have used it in "high."
Unfortunately, I used my worthless Discover card to purchase this projector so I had no buyer assurance or extended warranty like I do with Visa. Way to learn the hard way! Goodbye Discover Card! Panasonic was no help either when I called. They just tried to push me off on their in-bed repair facility in Kansas.
Never again. I'll never buy or recommend Panasonic again after this experience. Beware! Customer Rating: Summary: Sharp, clear picture Comment: I have owned this projector since May, 2005. The picture is fantastic.
The first movie my family watched was Star Wars episode I. Although a 1000 lumens,
the picture shows up excellent in the dark, and good in low light. But buy it from "Projector People" instead. Ask for Ross. They are not only cheaper than Amazon, but they absolutely back the product if you have a problem. Their Customer Service and Sales teams are excellent and knowledgeable. You can talk to a human being and ask questions and get real honest answers. No hard sell. I recommend this projector to anyone. For $1499, it is a steal. The one thing it could use is an auto focus or a focus from the remote. The Zoom is also manual. But in zoom mode, I can cover my 14x8 foot wall. Now imagine the Superbowl that large and in HDTV. This projector can do that! Customer Rating: Summary: Great projector for the price! Comment: This was my first projector. I researched a lot of different models and finally decided on this one because on paper it looked to give the most bang for the buck (my price range was $2000-$3000). I also wanted native 16:9.
After owning it for over a month, I'm quite happy with it. It has none of the flaws usually associated with LCD projectors. There is no "screen door" effect at all, and the black levels are very impressive.
I have the unit mounted to the ceiling (purchased RPA mount for $190) and project onto a 120" gray screen.
One feature that helped clenched the deal for me is the 2x zoom lens - I have the projector situated less than 14 feet from a 10-foot diagonal screen.
I had a little trouble with the mount I purchased, but the projector itself is incredibly easy to setup and operate. The joystick next to the lens lets you to control the horizontal and vertical shift without tilting or moving the whole unit. Remote is back-lit. Menus allow plenty of tweaking. You can store user-defined settings or use factory presets (like cinema, natural, dynamic, etc.).
I have the projector in a dedicated home theater room with no windows and keep the lights turned off while it's running. If I had to deal with ambient light though, I probably would have chosen a brighter projector since this one is only 1000 lumens.
I mostly watch DVDs on this, but also use it to watch cable and play video games - playing Halo 2 on this is an awesome experience!
