Mitsubishi HC8000D Projector - Physical Tour

Posted on July 10, 2013 by Art Feierman

Mitsubishi HC8000D Projector - Appearance

The HC8000D projector has a slightly "euro" look to it.

The most obvious feature in the front is the recessed 1.5 to 1 zoom lens which has a lot of placement flexibility compared to many other DLP projectors. Overall 1.5 to 1 zoom is about average for home theater projectors although many of the LCD and LCoS models stretch out to 2 to 1. All considered, 1.5 to 1 zoom is pretty good, however the big news (that it shares with the 7900DW), is that the H8000D has vertical lens shift.

Combining the zoom's range and lens shift, makes for really good placement flexibility. You'll also find an IR sensor for the remote control on the front, and down below - two adjustable front feet.

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HC8000D Control Panel

Moving to the top - towards the back, you'll find the control panel. It's in a round configuration. There's a power switch and indicator lights nearby. The four navigation arrows are in a round configuration. In the middle, are the menu and enter buttons. As I indicated above, there's also a vertical lens shift feature on the Mitsubishi HC8000D, and you will find it under a spring loaded small door, right behind the lens.

The photo has been taken, will be posted later this evening.

HC8000D Projector - Input/Output

The rear of the Mitsubishi HC8000D, houses all of the inputs and connectors. The back panel itself is pretty standard with just a couple of surprises. As you would expect, there are two HDMI inputs (both 1.4a, to support Blu-ray 3D), and also your standard red, green and blue RCA jacks for a component video input.

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Also on the back, is a standard HD15 connector best known as the standard analog computer connector, that will allow you to hook up a PC to this Mitsubishi home theater projector. What is interesting about this HD15, is that it serves multiple purposes. It can be used as an analog computer input as intended, or as a second component video input, and finally it can also be used for composite video, which is normally found on most projectors as a separate RCA jack color coded yellow. In this case, all three capabilities are rolled up into one jack (typically some HD15's support analog computer and component video). It also means you can only choose one of those three input types. The HC8000D also has a serial port for command and control and next to it, a networking port which could be used for firmware changes and other purposes.

Finally on the far right is the 12-volt trigger. As many of you know, that can be used to cause a motorized screen that is properly equipped to rise and come down as the projector is powered off and powered back on. It can also be used for other purposes, however, that is the most common one.

The only other items on the back, are, of course, the power receptacle and, as is typical, a Kensington life lock for security. All considered, the HC8000 is equipped with a pretty standard set of inputs, even if they've saved on a few connectors. Also worthy of note, is the venting, none of which is in the back, which means that the HC8000D conceivably can be placed on a rear shelf. That works out great for a lot of folks. I myself have spent many years with projectors on rear shelves, including the last few years. With only a 1.5 to1 zoom ratio, however many people will not be able to place the projector far enough back to find a rear shelf unless they have a particularly large screen. Since this projector isn't really built for huge screens, that means the HC7900 in a rear shelf environment, is probably going to be working something between an 80 and 100-inch screen in a room that is not especially deep. Consider shelf mounting - if it makes sense in your room.