XGIMI Horizon Pro 4K guide Description
gimi’s latest all-in-one smart projector not only looks good, but it supports native 4K and HDR content. Better yet, the Xgimi Horizon Pro boots straight into Android TV and features a pair of 8W Harman Kardon speakers that sound great despite the projector’s compact size. Couple that with a bright LED light source, built-in Wi-Fi, and the ability to automatically avoid obstacles when determining where to project the image, and you’ve got a 300-inch display that can go anywhere there’s a power outlet and a flat surface. Hell, it’ll even double as a Bluetooth speaker in a pinch.
I’ve never been a fan of smart televisions when it’s so easy to offload those smarts to a more capable streaming box or stick, which can be neatly hidden out of sight. But it’s much harder to do the same thing with a projector when they’re mounted to ceilings or placed on a coffee table for an impromptu movie or gaming night with friends. With projectors, the more self-contained they are, the better. The Xgimi Horizon Pro measures just 8.2 x 8.6 x 5.4 inches / 6.6 pounds (208.4 x 218.4 x 136.2mm / 2.9kg), making it a fairly portable party box. And Xgimi’s “no advertising” pitch is refreshing at a time when ads are increasingly polluting the television viewing experience.
I’ve been using the $1,699 Xgimi Horizon Pro for a few weeks now, using it to stream media from Disney Plus, YouTube, Apple TV Plus, Amazon Prime Video, Plex, and HBO Max, to name just a few of the Android TV integrations available on the Google Play Store. The notable omission is Netflix, which isn’t officially supported on the Horizon Pro. While I did manage to install the app via a hacky workaround, it’s not something most people would be willing or even capable of doing. And because Netflix is used by over 200 million people around the world, the lack of official support is a big deal that you should be aware of at the outset of a review for a nearly $2,000 projector from a company you might never have heard of.
Xgimi got its start in 2014 in China. It officially debuted in Western markets in 2016 as part of an Indiegogo program to promote established Chinese brands. The company has since developed a loyal fan base for its smart projectors that favor a mix of good design, ample specs, and low pricing.
With the likes of Sony, BenQ, LG and Epson hogging the projector spotlight, it's easy to forget that Xgimi has been working away in the background for quite some time now. The current range includes eight projectors, varying in price and form factor. They also vary in quality: while the Halo compact projector didn’t fare too well when it came to our review, its Aura ultra-short-throw model did put in a more impressive performance.
But will that continue with the Horizon Pro, Xgimi’s latest compact projector aimed at fusing the home cinema experience with sleek and hassle-free hardware? The Horizon Pro does look good on paper, but in this case, the cover is a lot better than the book.
The XGIMI Horizon Pro is the current flagship projector offered by the manufacturer and it uses the DLP technology (single chip) to deliver deeper blacks, a higher contrast, as well as a brighter overall video, making it suitable for rooms that are either bright or very dim.
The XGIMI Horizon Pro can be considered a main competitor to the BenQ X3000i, even though its price tag is usually substantially less and yes, both are 4K projectors, but neither are actually producing native 4K footage. Even so, the XGIMI is able to deliver some very convincing 4K images and, as my tests will show below, the projector does really well with both movies and even 4K gaming. Besides the 4K resolution (non-native), the XGIMI Horizon Pro offers a package of auto adjustment features for the footage which includes autofocus, auto keystone correction, intelligent screen alignment and intelligent obstacle alignment.
I’ve never been a fan of smart televisions when it’s so easy to offload those smarts to a more capable streaming box or stick, which can be neatly hidden out of sight. But it’s much harder to do the same thing with a projector when they’re mounted to ceilings or placed on a coffee table for an impromptu movie or gaming night with friends. With projectors, the more self-contained they are, the better. The Xgimi Horizon Pro measures just 8.2 x 8.6 x 5.4 inches / 6.6 pounds (208.4 x 218.4 x 136.2mm / 2.9kg), making it a fairly portable party box. And Xgimi’s “no advertising” pitch is refreshing at a time when ads are increasingly polluting the television viewing experience.
I’ve been using the $1,699 Xgimi Horizon Pro for a few weeks now, using it to stream media from Disney Plus, YouTube, Apple TV Plus, Amazon Prime Video, Plex, and HBO Max, to name just a few of the Android TV integrations available on the Google Play Store. The notable omission is Netflix, which isn’t officially supported on the Horizon Pro. While I did manage to install the app via a hacky workaround, it’s not something most people would be willing or even capable of doing. And because Netflix is used by over 200 million people around the world, the lack of official support is a big deal that you should be aware of at the outset of a review for a nearly $2,000 projector from a company you might never have heard of.
Xgimi got its start in 2014 in China. It officially debuted in Western markets in 2016 as part of an Indiegogo program to promote established Chinese brands. The company has since developed a loyal fan base for its smart projectors that favor a mix of good design, ample specs, and low pricing.
With the likes of Sony, BenQ, LG and Epson hogging the projector spotlight, it's easy to forget that Xgimi has been working away in the background for quite some time now. The current range includes eight projectors, varying in price and form factor. They also vary in quality: while the Halo compact projector didn’t fare too well when it came to our review, its Aura ultra-short-throw model did put in a more impressive performance.
But will that continue with the Horizon Pro, Xgimi’s latest compact projector aimed at fusing the home cinema experience with sleek and hassle-free hardware? The Horizon Pro does look good on paper, but in this case, the cover is a lot better than the book.
The XGIMI Horizon Pro is the current flagship projector offered by the manufacturer and it uses the DLP technology (single chip) to deliver deeper blacks, a higher contrast, as well as a brighter overall video, making it suitable for rooms that are either bright or very dim.
The XGIMI Horizon Pro can be considered a main competitor to the BenQ X3000i, even though its price tag is usually substantially less and yes, both are 4K projectors, but neither are actually producing native 4K footage. Even so, the XGIMI is able to deliver some very convincing 4K images and, as my tests will show below, the projector does really well with both movies and even 4K gaming. Besides the 4K resolution (non-native), the XGIMI Horizon Pro offers a package of auto adjustment features for the footage which includes autofocus, auto keystone correction, intelligent screen alignment and intelligent obstacle alignment.
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