Optoma Introduces Its Sovereign Line

By Greg Tarr -- TWICE, 9/20/2004

INDIANAPOLIS — Optoma Technology used CEDIA Expo to launch its new Sovereign home theater display series and a DLP-based front projector based on Texas Instruments' Dark Chip2 technology.

Optoma said the Sovereign Series will be distributed exclusively through professional home-theater products dealers and will include both front- and rear-projection high-performance products.

Initial Sovereign displays will be based on Texas Instruments' HD2+ digital micromirror device (DMD) with 1,280 by 720p native resolution, and will be assembled at Optoma's California factory.

The first two models will include the 50W-inch SV50XF and the 65W-inch SV65XF. Both models will feature Imaging Science Foundation Certified Calibration Configuration capability.

Sovereign HDTV monitors include accessories such as an HDMI-to-DVI adaptor and a DVI-port audio cable.

Also part of the line is Optoma's currently shipping H77 home theater front projector. The unit offers such features as a 100 percent-offset vertical lens shift, a low 23dB noise level and a 3,500:1 contrast ratio.

Optoma also introduced its new H57 home theater projector, which uses TI's DarkChip2 DLP technology.

The projector offers a native 576p (1,024 by 576) 16:9 resolution,

The H57 combines DarkChip2 technology with a four-speed, six-segment color wheel, and uses the Pixelworks 463 scaler to produce a contrast ratio of 2,500:1.

Inputs include composite, S-video, VGA, DVI-I HDCP and component video. Up to three component video inputs can be connected simultaneously to the projector. A bundled DVI-to-HDMI adapter will be supplied for use with HDMI source devices.

Other features include a shield design casing that prevents unwanted light emissions and delivers quiet operation.