Proxima 9250 Plus, With The Right Lamp

If there ever was a projector that was strictly built for power, it was definitely the one showcased here in our “Classics� segment. The Proxima 9250 Plus came out a few years ago and didn’t offer much in terms of contrast, inputs, or any other special features.

It was also very pricey, and only those looking for a high range projector with the money to back it up could get there hands on one. Originally priced at just under $11,000, the 9250 Plus was almost purely a projector manufactured for brightness, with decent resolution tacked on for good measure.

It could parlay 1900 ANSI lumens onto your wall, or screen, or image manifestation area, or whatever you wanted to call it. This was bright enough to engage an image over 20 feet long, and back in the early two thousands, this was revered.

Size certainly did matter, and the brightness was controlled by an intelligent 150W projector lamp. This projector lamp could also last 2000 hours, which was as difficult to explain to the projector connoisseurs as it was to explain how the world was actually flat. In other words, they could not conceive of a projector lamp that would last over 1000 hours.

Going back to the image size thing, the 9250 Plus had an incredible lens that would allow for a huge range in throw distances. You could be as close as one meter and still produce an image that was viewable. Of course, that image would be approximately 25 inches wide, but none the less it could then also be pushed back 10 meters and produce an insanely huge image.

Resolution was the 9250 Plus’s only other redeeming attribute. It was able to conjure up a stimulating XGA quality picture of 1024x768p, but then compress up to 1280x1024p, drastically improving its clarity.

As far as inputs were concerned, simplicity was obviously the key. All you had to do was purchase a cheap Video cable and you were set. It didn’t take a genius to make the connection and wasn’t very expensive. The only setback was the low grade resolution that the video cable was limited to.

Contrast is not bad considering that on paper it was rated at 350:1. You still get decent dark grays (blacks) and tolerable colour saturation. My advice for the used projector buyer looking for a bright projector with limited use is to get a good price. If you are looking for a projector that you will use some of the time, you may want to consider the 9250 Plus.