The Wemax Go Advanced is a 1080p Full HD Laser projector rated at 600 ANSI lumens. The laser-light source is rated to last up to 25,000+ hrs of light source life, giving you years of maintenance-free operation.
This remarkably thin mobile projector is powered by FengOS, which seems to be built on a version of Google Android. While the Wemax Go Advanced does not support the Google Play app store, it is loaded with popular streaming apps such as Amazon Prime Video and YouTube, provided through the Aptoide TV application store. Aptoide will give you many choices, but I had huge issues getting most of the applications I downloaded to run on the projector. I recommend a $20 media stick powered by Google to avoid compatibility issues.
The Wemax Go Advanced has decent out-of-the-box color accuracy compared to other portable projectors I've reviewed. I especially like the Movie and Standard presets. The Go Advanced can reproduce 100% of the Rec.709 color gamut displaying over 16.7M distinct colors.
The Wemax Go Advanced has a 2-watt speaker sound system that is louder than most pico-based projectors. Still, I would use a wired sound system or an external Bluetooth speaker with the projector's included sound modes to get the best results.
The projector's built-in battery provides a little under its projected 90 minutes of runtime with video playback. Battery times will vary based on image settings and volume level. As a business projector, 90 minutes should provide plenty of time for a presentation if running off the battery.
The Wemax is priced at an MSRP of $1,198.00.The Go Advanced is not the brightest portable projector, but it is the smallest 1080p laser-powered smart projector with a built-in battery.
FINAL THOUGHTS
On the plus side, the Wemax Go Advanced is a beautifully designed projector with impressive hardware, such as its laser-light engine that provides great color and long life. On paper, the Go Advanced seems to have all the features desired in a high-quality projector, including reproducing 100% of the Rec.709 color gamut, HDR support, and some very smart setup technologies.
Although $1,198 may seem like a steep price for this first of its kind projector, Wemax does run specials on the Go Advanced. I've seen discounts as high as 40% being offered on this projector.
Unfortunately, this projector's software implementation is its Achilles heel. Must-have applications that I downloaded off its built-in app store would not run properly after installation. For instance, Netflix would not play content for various reasons, and there were HDCP errors on Amazon and Hulu. I could not even log into my YouTube account without the application crashing. Even the games I downloaded from Aptoide failed to run. Fortunately you can cast content to the projector or use an affordable HDMI media stick and massively improve the user experience.
I also think the battery capacity is too small if you plan to do anything other than run a presentation. Fortunately the projector can be run off of an external battery.
If you need a tiny, battery-powered laser projector then there is no doubt in my mind that the Wemax Go Advanced is the projector for you, provided you use it with an HDMI streaming stick.
I like the picture this projector produces. It's decently bright, especially for its size. The colors look great and the small size is a big plus for me. As long as I didn't have to pay full price I can overlook the projectors software failings to get the form factor, laser light source and picture quality.
PROS
Image is decently bright
Color is good even with some unwanted light
Contrast is good for a portable projector
Easy to set up
Easy manual keystone adjustment
Self-calibration is easy to use
Fan noise is minimal
Portable
Wemax offers periodic discounts on the projector
CONS
No on-device controls except power on/off
Essential apps don't work
Battery life needs to be longer for anything other than presentations