Casio Signature XJ-M145 Review

The Casio Signature XJ-M145 and their other projectors in Casio’s new “Signature” line use their new hybrid LED light source. Casio’s new light source can essentially last for the life of the projector also it is mercury free. The XJ-M145 is just over the $1,000 price point, so it is a little expensive for your average Joe. Casio had a little brother called the Green Slim, for under $1,000 but it contains more features. Read on for the nits and grits of the projector.

The XJ-M145’s light source is rated at 2,500 lumens. It lacks in resolution at only 1,024 by 768. The projector produces red color with LEDs, blue with lasers, and green by shining the blue laser light on a phosphor. This light is then directed through the DLP chip then out through the lens. An outstanding advantage of the hybrid LED light source is its gigantic 20,000 hour lifetime. And that is long enough to run it 8 hours a days, 5 days a week for 10 years. For comparison for a standard lamp can last from 2,000 to 5,000 hours, and costing up to $500 per bulb to replace. The projector has an intelligent brightness control which automatically controls the brightness of the output of the lens. The lens is able to project a nice image even in a decently lit room.

The XJ-M145 measures 3.3H by 12.2W by 9.6D inches weighing in at 8.2 pounds which is on the large side of today’s projectors. It comes with a soft carrying case, with pocket for your cables. Some of the great hookup capabilities include USB connectivity. It is able to read JPG and AVI files from a USB memory key. Which is great if you need to show a presentation at work but you do not want to bring your laptop. All you have to do is plug-in a USB stick and it automatically switches to USB input. The feature that made me really smile was its capability to connects wireless to Wi-Fi-enabled Android, iOS, and Windows Mobile devices. This also includes computers running the MobiShow software. Other connectors include a HDMI port for a computer or video source; a VGA port for a computer, S-Video, composite video; audio in, audio out, a serial port, and an Ethernet LAN connection. With the built-in 5-watt mono speakers you can get a decent amount of volume. For the use of the 3D projection you will need active-shutter DLP-link compatible 3D glasses.