Rumor has it that Optoma is going to be releasing their two new ultra short throw projectors in 2022: the Optoma D2 and the Optoma D2+. And oh boy, are we excited!
Two years ago Optoma released their hugely popular Optoma CinemaX P2 as their updated model of the Optoma CinemaX P1. The 3000 lumen, 4K ultra short throw, Optoma P2, set the market on fire as an affordable UST that offered incredible specs and bang for your buck. This premium yet budget friendly projector has been one of the best sellers at ProjectorScreen.com.
Now in 2022, Optoma is getting ready to release the newest ultra short throw projectors: the Optoma D2 and Optoma D2+.
So how do the new Optoma CinemaX D2 and D2+ stack up? Will the Optoma D2 or D2+ be better than the Optoma P2?
Below is a speculative product spec for the new Optoma D2+ and Optoma D2. There is expected to be an announcement at the ISE show in Barcelona happening on May 10th. We will share more once more information comes to light.
Expected release date: June 2022
Expected Price: $2500 - $2700
Here are some highlights of what’s new on the Optoma D2 ultra short throw projector.
- Lower starting price than the P2
- 3000 Lumen single laser light source
- 121% Rec.709 color gamut vs. the P2’s 120% coverage
- 1,800,000:1 contrast while the Optoma P2 boasts a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio
- 4K UHD Resolution with over 8,000,000 individual pixels
- Incredibly 4ms input lag for 240Hz 1080p and 16.9ms for 60Hz 4K gaming
- Supports 3D
- 0.25:1 throw ratio
- 3 year warranty
- 3 HDMI 2.0 ports including one with eARC and lower latency
- Advanced curve screen warping adjustment capabilities
- 20W built in speakers
Judging by these specs, instead of focusing on making a premium triple laser UST like Vava and Hisense, Optoma is choosing to follow the path of the lower priced laser TV. The Optoma D2 strips away the extra costs of having a smart TV operating system built into the projector. This also allows Optoma to save money on the D2 by not having to pay for licensing fees to Netflix and other streaming services.
The D2 further saves on cost by utilizing a less powerful built in speaker system than the Optoma P2 because they believe that a good proportion of UST projector enthusiasts have their own surround sound systems that perform way better than any built in soundbar.
By significantly lowering the lag time on the CinemaX D2, Optoma is challenging the Epson LS500 as the best ultra short throw projector for gamers.
We're big fans of the Optoma D2 featuring 3 HDMI ports, giving you more connectivity flexibility with your other devices and systems.
The curve screen warping adjustment allows the D2 to project on curved screens and projection surfaces making it the best choice for flight simulators, museum exhibitions, gaming conventions and training simulators. Optoma seems to be appealing to these niche use cases rather than just focusing on home theater enthusiasts.
Expected release date: June 2022
Expected Price: $2700 - $3000
We expect the Optoma CinemaX D2+ will be basically the same as the D2 but with an external Android TV dongle from Hako mini gives you 4K streaming and supports HDR. This will provide the smart TV capabilities found built in on other USTs. By adding a third HDMI port they also avoid the issue of not having enough HDMI ports like you’d get with the BenQ V7050i with its external media player.
It seems Optoma has finally listened to us because the Optoma D2 and D2+ will be available in both black and white.
Summing It Up
Optoma is certainly upgrading in some aspects compared to the Optoma P2. However the Optoma D2 and Optoma D2+ don't seem like they're going to be significantly better than the P2 (with the exception of gaming).They're striping down these units because they're focusing on producing a low priced ultra short throw projector that's affordable and still capable of producing an amazing quality picture.