Epson EMP-TW2000 - TechRadar UK

Armed with a horizontal and vertical lens shift, the Epson EMP-TW2000 Full HD LCD projector is a cinch to get going: sling it on a coffee table and from just 1.8m - even at an angle - it's possible to configure a 50in picture.

When we reviewed Epson's first Full HD projector, the TW1000, we were impressed - our only real gripe was with its black level performance.

You can still find the TW1000 for around £1,800; the TW2000 doesn't replace it, but the extra £1,200 outlay gets you more in the way of features, including a superior Fujinon lens and a much improved black level.

Fancy features from Epson

The TW2000 has some decent home cinema chops beneath the glossy exterior; image clarity is bolstered by 10bit video processing, and there's a 48Hz (2-2 pulldown) mode for 1080p24 footage from Blu-ray/HD DVD players.

There are also two HDMI v1.3 connections, a PC input, RS232 port and 12V trigger - the latter is good news for anyone with serious installation aspirations, as it can be used for simple automatic screen control.

Calibration options (the TW2000 adds ISF Certification over its TW1000 predecessor) are extensive. Menus allow adjustments for a six-axis system (brightness, contrast, colour saturation, tint, colour temp and skin tone).

There's also a special gamma button on the remote control for adjusting colour saturation, hue, and gamma levels.

Superb Blu-ray pictures

If you can't be bothered, one of the preset seven colour modes should do the trick. One of these, Silver Screen, produces a very cinematic picture; my current favourite reference title Déjà Vu (Blu-ray) looked superb.

In this cinema mode, the projector's innate brightness of 1600 ANSI Lumens is curbed to produce better blacks, albeit at the expense of shadow detail. Contrast is mindblowing, though, with peak whites visibly immaculate.

Close-ups of Denzel Washington show terrific detail, with skin tones very convincing. Moving 1080p images do suffer from some blur when the camera pans, but any judder is softened and doesn't become too distracting.

Overall, the TW2000 delivers a very credible picture. One to audition.