How I Use the ML750 #1 - Movie and TV Viewing at Home
Like I said, I had the perfect wall for placing a TV, but my front door (right next to that wall) can swing all the way open, so that was just an accident waiting to happen. So now, I just point the projector at the wall (which is, conveniently, about as white as any proper projector screen would be), and go! It I place the projector on my coffee table, it points directly at the crease between my living room wall and the front door. I thought this would be distracting, but the projector is bright enough that I hardly notice the faint crease while viewing.
99% of the time, I get my content from my MacBook Air, since I have subscriptions to Netflix, HBO Go, and DIRECTV (thanks Mom and Dad). Maybe you have Amazon Prime Video or Hulu—same thing. Initially when I got the ML750, I used the included Universal I/O and the VGA adapter my roommate already had to connect the projector to the laptop. Because VGA doesn’t transmit sound, this meant I was still hearing all my Netflix audio through my laptop’s speakers. I didn’t really mind this when it was just me and my roommate watching some pre-bed Iron Chef America, but I could see how, if I was entertaining a group of people for a movie night, I would want the ability to play sound through the projector, which has a 1W speaker. So, Dad ordered me an HDMI cable, which does transmit sound. Now, I can hear my content through the projector, instead of it coming from way off to the side where my laptop is sitting.
I was initially concerned I wouldn’t use a projector often enough for it to be worthwhile, but I was definitely wrong. The ML750 is so convenient that I’m using it CONSTANTLY. Literally: just power up, plug into your laptop, and your screen is projected onto the wall. A quick episode of Last Week Tonight with John Oliver on HBOGo before bed? A movie night of Bridget Jones Diary with a friend visiting town? Showing my roommate what I’m considering buying on UrbanOutfitters.com? It’s just an extension of my normal laptop activities, but projected up brightly, colorfully, and audibly up onto my wall and into my home.
In the slideshow below, I've added some photos of the projector during the daytime, handling my apartment's ambient light, right on my wall. Content images are of "Chopped" on The Food Network.
ML750 picture quality - daytime
Standard media player screen for the Optoma ML750
ML750 has solid skin tones out of the box
The ML750 image appears slightly washed out because focus is on the projector in the foreground.
ML750's image is still remarkably bright given large amount of ambient light.
Another angle of the same ambient light and the ML750's picture.
The Optoma ML750 in action with some ambient light.
Performance of ML750 in our dark living room
Above are some pictures taken from NBC's 30 Rock, streamed via Netflix. These photos, unlike those above, were taken at night almost zero ambient light.
Optoma ML750 Color Modes
Check out this slideshow to see what each of the ML750's color modes look like. More photos from 30 Rock.
Personally, my favorite is PC mode - it resembles my MacBook Pro screen's natural colors the most. Cinema mode was too pinky/over saturated. Photo mode seemed to have a grey-ish sheen to it oddly enough... Wasn't a fan. And Bright was plenty bright but the color accuracy was lost. Better for presentations/business uses where accurate color isn't really a necessity.
ML750 Color Modes Compared
Summary and Looking Forward
So my first impression? This little guy ROCKS. The Optoma ML750 is small, convenient, quick to power up, and definitely exceeded my expectations in terms of brightness and color. It takes less than 2 minutes to take the projector out, set it up on my coffee table, turn it on, plug into my laptop, and stream! So far, I'd say it's just as easy is having a TV... I might even venture so far as to say it's easier. To be determined.
Thanks for reading! This was Part 1 of my "life experience" review with the Optoma ML750. Remember, 3 more installments coming about how I, a millennial, live with a pocket projector. The next 3 parts of the series will touch on how my friends and I have used this projector in other ways, including taking it to work for a business presentation, gaming, movie nights, and even that time I used it for a Fantasy Football draft. Stay tuned!
UPDATE: Here's Part 2 of the Optoma ML750 review. Parts 3 and 4 will actually be about the ML750ST, which varies mostly in that it's short throw! Stay tuned for those.
