XGIMI Vibe One

Absolutely great purchase. For context, I was on the lookout for a projector for my bedroom after purchasing one of those 50€ projectors for my sister. I liked it and the idea of having a projector in the bedroom and not a TV (I have a blank wall in front of the bed and hate TVs hanged in the wall), but I wanted something with better software, better focusing and keystone, better image and quieter. After researching online I bought the Xgimi Vibe One for 200€ after waiting 2 weeks for Black Friday after it was launched. As it is a recent product there aren’t many reviews online (only one YouTube video) and a lot of ad-like reviews online social media, so here goes my review to help you out, as a beginner in this world of projectors. When I received it and out of the box it was clear: the design is awesome (for some reason it was bigger than what I was thinking, but still compact) and the built quality is also very solid (plastic, but very solid). Inside the box: In the box you get the projector, the remote (also good quality, TV-like remote with shortcuts for Netflix, Amazon Prime and YouTube and a personalizable Shortcut, and with batteries included), the charger, a set of stickers (if it is your thing) and a set of instructions. On to the projector itself now. I was pretty excited to try it out, so I spent some time playing with it and have been using it daily for the last weeks. Image: Keep in mind that I have used it in the bedroom, at approximately 3m from the wall. The image quality is great (1080p), quite sharp and you barely see the border of the projection (outside of the image), unless the scene is very dark, in that case you can see the border a bit. Zoom in and out works very well overall. Now this is where it might be a dealbreaker for you: the projector brings 200 Lumens, which is perfect for dark environments, but if you use it with lights on, then the picture quickly washes out. For the effect I want it works out, it is good for movie nights, but it will not replace your TV in the living room for all-day usage. Keystone and Focus: this was one of the strongest points. The projector has autofocus and auto keystone and they work extremely well, sometimes you just need to relocate the projector slightly for it to readjust them better, however. Keep in mind that it works better with angles closer to 90 degrees, I usually have it on the bedside (75 degrees) and works perfectly. Sound: the speakers themselves are loud, enough to fill the bedroom or the living room. The quality of the sound is also good, but for bigger environments the bass will wash out a bit. You can however connect it with any soundbar or Bluetooth speaker you have and work around it in bigger environments. Fans: this was one of my deceptions. Although it is not loud like the 50€ projector is, you can hear it if nothing is playing sound on the speakers. It doesn’t bother much, but keep it in mind that when you’re using the niche feature of the environment lights you will hear it and when no sound is playing as well. At 15-20% volume (the normal to fill the bedroom), you cannot hear the fan so it doesn’t bother me, but I was expecting better. If you do however use it in the maximum level of brightness (Extreme level instead of Standard) it does bother, but I never felt the need to use it in that mode. Connectivity: Google TV out of the box works really well, with great connectivity (it has no native AirPlay however) and I get barely no lag on scrolling through apps. One of the points I value is being able to install the apps I use most, so I liked this quite much. You also get an HDMI and a USB ports, although I haven’t used them. Portability: one of the points I also care about. It is small enough to fit in a backpack and from my experience it has enough battery for around 1h-1h15m of playing time. Usability: works perfectly, you just push the remote button and it instantly starts running, and will load up fast, very TV-like (my past experiences with projectors is that setting it up always takes some time, but I guess new generation projectors are all this fast). Additional niche features: the environment lights feature does not have a dedicated lamp on the bottom of the projector, it uses the projector lamps and the bottom is only a clear plastic to give it that effect, so overtime it might wear out your main lamp. Additionally, if you only have the lamp and no music playing, you will hear the fan. I thought it would be a cool feature, and that it had a dedicated light bulb, but given that it doesn’t and that you hear the fan without music on, I haven’t used it much. Final conclusion: People online were comparing it with the MoGo2 which on sale is roughly the same price, and has more Lumens, but I value the portability and connectivity (MoGo2 doesn’t have GoogleTV), so I went with the Vibe One. I believe this is a very good option for entry-level projectors, for beginners and newcomers in the projection world (as myself). The value for money is definitely there and I will probably buy another for my parents.

This is the 3rd budget projector I'm trying. For what it costs it's pretty nice. The image is sharp and bright even with a bit of light coming from a window. It's not ideal if you don't project it from the center to the wall and straight forward which would be the best case. If you project from the side or from lower angle the focus will not be perfect at the bottom part or sides. Also using the auto keystone is nice but I always find that the image is a bit crooked and I need to adjust it a bit manully which is annoying but not horrible. I would point out also that the turning on/off mechanism is a bit confusing. Best part would be the sound, it is really good imo! The google tv is really nice as well and the UI and responsiveness is fast and clear. I recommend it if you don't want to pay more than 250 euros. I use it also just for music and it's great. Don't buy it if you plan to use it for it's battery - the brightness is not great if not plugged and the battery is not really strong.