Tech Review: Optoma UHD51A 4K Ultra HD Projector

Optoma sent over a lovely UHD51A 4K Ultra HD Projector for me to try out and I was extremely impressed with it.

As with all Optoma projectors, it is extremely easy to set up. Plug it in. Connect your media player of choice (ensuring that is connected to the relevant sound system). I did note that there was a new User Interface for the various menus which was most pleasing to the eye and gave it a much more modern feel than previous models I have tested.

It also looks very nice with a black body and silver highlights so it looks supremely good in your home cinema room.

Here is some of the official write up to let you know some of the key features:

The UHD51A delivers the ultimate in smart home entertainment with impressive 4K cinema quality images and support for Alexa voice control. You can now enjoy accurate colours, crystal clear detail, and sparkling contrast for a stunningly immersive experience.

Alexa voice control provides instant setup allowing you to adjust the volume, switch inputs, launch content and more.

Packed with the latest technology and features, this compact UHD projector boasts High Dynamic Range (HDR) compatibility, HDMI 2.0, wireless, a built-in media player, IFTTT and PureMotion frame-interpolation processing which eliminates motion blurring or image judder. An RGBRGB colour wheel delivers 100% Rec.709 for accurate, true to life colour rendition – perfect for recreating the big-screen experience at home.

Optoma projectors can display true 3D content from almost any 3D source, including 3D Blu-ray players, 3D broadcasting and the latest generation games consoles.

I don’t have Alexa so could not try out that option. However, for those interested in that the Alexa smart home control is only currently available in the UK and Germany. Google Assistant currently only works in the UK.

I can see how voice control would be extremely useful. You would usually be using this in a darkened room and have handfuls of snacks and drinks so being able to tell the projector to play the movie is a great idea. Add in the fact the remote control does not have a backlight then it all makes sense.

It projects 8.3 million pixels from its DLP system. Its short-throw lens can give an image as large as 100-inches from a distance as small as 9 feet away from the projected surface.

Looking at Blu-rays in 1080p the projector gave it an extremely clear and sharp image. Looking at 4K images I was blown away by the detail on view. The test footage I watched included visuals from Machu Picchu which made you feel as if you were almost there. The images are pin-sharp and it

The projector brightness is 2400 lumens but it did seem brighter and there was no problem watching images during the day. While either watching movies, streaming TV shows (Stranger Things on the big screen) and playing video games, the projector performed admirably. Ther picture was always clear and there were no stuttering or image artifacts while being used.

It does have 5-watt stereo speakers which give some decent sound, but you will want it to be hooked up to a decent sound system to ensure you get the most out of your viewing experience.

If you are after a decent 4K projector at a fairly decent price, then this could well be the one for you. Throw in the voice control and it gives you a few more options.

The UHD50 is very close in spec terms, and while it doesn’t have Alexa, it is cheaper than the UHD51A so that could be another alternative.