The Epson EpiqVision Ultra LS650 Smart Streaming Laser Projector ($2,799.99) is a lesser cousin of the Epson LS800, one of our current top picks for ultra short throw (UST) projectors. Both are fine choices for anyone who wants a TV replacement and doesn't feel the need to calibrate a projector for their own screen and room, or simply doesn't want any chance of seeing potentially annoying rainbow artifacts. The key trade-offs with the step down in model number reviewed here are non-issues for many buyers, including a lower maximum brightness (by barely enough to notice) and a slightly longer throw (so you have to position the LS650 a few inches further from the screen). In return, you get a $700 lower list price, the lowest price yet for a 4K-class UST projector that's guaranteed to be free of rainbow artifacts.

Design: Small Projector, Big Sound

The 3,600-lumen LS650 is built around a laser-phosphor light source that offers a 20,000-hour rated life at full power, three 1080p LCD chips (one for each primary color), and Epson's 4K PRO-UHD technology, which takes advantage of pixel-shifting to project more pixels than are in a 1,920-by-1,080-pixel matrix, among other tricks. While that's only half as many pixels on the screen as are in a 4K (3,840-by-2,160-pixel) image, the difference hardly matters, thanks to limits on human visual acuity plus a design focus on other features that improve the ability to resolve detail—notably contrast, lens quality, and digital image processing. In side-by-side comparisons from normal viewing distances, it's hard to see any difference in detail between this version of Epson's PRO-UHD technology and images from DLP projectors that put a full 4K array on the screen.

Another advantage of the three-LCD-chip design is that using a separate imaging chip for each primary color means all three are projected simultaneously for each frame. That guarantees they can't show the rainbow artifacts (red/green/blue flashes) that single-chip DLP models can show from projecting one primary color at a time. If you don't see these flashes, this won't matter. But for those who see them easily and find them bothersome, they can be enough to rule out any projector that shows them.

Physical setup is straightforward. The projector, which is available in either black or white, weighs just 16.3 pounds and measures 6.2 by 18.4 by 15.7 inches (HWD), making it easy to handle. Basic setup consists of putting it on a flat surface, connecting the cables, and turning it on. However, you need to adjust the position to match the image to the screen, and you have to focus manually, using the control on the right side of the projector. This can make focusing difficult, since the control is closer to the screen than the lens, and the laser will shut down—to avoid any possibility of shining in your eyes—if the LS650's sensors see any part of your body while you're reaching forward to focus. Either autofocus or a powered focus controlled from the remote would be a highly welcome addition to help make setup easier.

As with the LS800, the LS650 includes some built-in features that let you adjust image geometry and size digitally, and you also have an Epson Setting Assistant app for Android and iOS devices. Digital adjustments are always best to avoid on any projector if you can do without them, however, since they'll reduce brightness and can introduce artifacts in some images.

The Android TV 11 setup requires Wi-Fi for connection to the internet. As with many projectors with Android TV, no Netflix app is included. You can always add one with your choice of streaming dongle, but it will take up one of the two HDMI ports.

The 3,600-lumen brightness is easily enough to deliver a suitably large, bright picture in a family room with ambient light, particularly if you invest in an ambient light rejection (ALR) screen to go with it. You'll need one specifically designed for UST projectors, as discussed in our guide to how to choose the best screen. Epson specs the lens as suitable for 16:9 screens ranging from 60 to 120 inches diagonally, with the projector 0.7 to 15.5 inches from the screen. For my tests, I used the 100-inch Epson SilverFlex 100-Inch Ambient Light Rejection Mega Screen, which we use for all UST TV replacements that don't include a screen in the base price.

Although Epson points out that that LS650 doesn't quite match the LS800's sound quality, the general description for its audio system is essentially the same. Both offer a Yamaha DSP 2.1 stereo sound system that uses the entire width of the side of the projector facing the audience for what amounts to a soundbar, and both use two full-range 5-watt speakers and a 10-watt subwoofer. Most important is that the LS650 offers easily enough volume to fill a large family room as well as good-enough quality that most people will likely decide it's all they need. For still-better quality, you can use the ARC support on the one HDMI port that offers it, the S/PDIF optical output, or Bluetooth to connect to an external system. You also have an option to use the projector as a Bluetooth speaker for other sources.

Testing the Epson LS650: Fine Image Quality, High Brightness, Short Input Lag

The LS650 offers four predefined color modes for both standard and high dynamic range (HDR) input, and it includes support for both HDR10 and HLG HDR. It shares the LS800's unusual approach of offering the same options for both SDR and HDR, as well as maintaining the same settings for both. If you decide you want different settings for each kind of input, you might want to pick one color mode for each and define them separately as needed. However, I found the default settings served reasonably well for both SDR and HDR, and wasn't able to improve the quality significantly from the defaults when I tried tweaking settings.

Most people will consider any of the modes acceptable or better using the defaults. Even the brightest mode, Dynamic, which trades some color accuracy for brightness, offers decent enough color to be usable, at least occasionally on a particularly bright day. After some preliminary testing, I chose Cinema mode for my formal viewing. For both SDR and HDR, it offered the best balance between color accuracy and shadow detail/contrast in dark scenes. The only default I changed was for Frame Interpolation, which is meant to smooth motion. This feature can improve the look of live or recorded video, but tends to add what's often called a "soap opera effect" to filmed material, making it look like video. With some projectors, this effect shows only with SDR input, but for the LS650, it showed with HDR input also.

For 1080p SDR input, Cinema mode delivered broad color accuracy and deep contrast. It tended to lose some shadow detail, even in bright scenes, but not enough to be obvious to someone who's not as familiar with our test clips as I am. In dark scenes, the loss of shadow detail was more obvious, but even the darkest scenes in our test clips still maintained shadow detail well enough to make out what was happening. For HDR input of the same movies on disc, brightly lit scenes were a little darker overall than for SDR versions of the same movies, but shadow detail was noticeably better, particularly in the darker scenes.

The menus include an HDR setting that's equivalent to what's labeled as HDR Brightness on some projectors, because it has the effect of brightening or darkening the overall image for HDR. It's meant to compensate for differences from one movie or source to the next, or for current lighting conditions. By default, however, the feature is grayed out. Instead, a setting for Dynamic Tone Mapping is included, which is on by default and is meant to serve the same purpose automatically. After a little experimentation with both features, I wound up leaving it on for my viewing tests, but you might want to try both alternatives. Missing from the menus are options that would allow a full calibration. Note also that this projector has no 3D support.

The LS650's input lag isn't as short as LS800's lag, but it's short enough for casual gaming. I measured it with a Bodnar meter at 27.1 milliseconds (ms) for 60Hz input at both 4K and 1080p resolutions.

Verdict: Worth a Look, Particularly if You Can't Abide Rainbows

The LS650's price isn't low enough to count as an entry-level home entertainment projector, even for this high-priced category, but it is the least-expensive model we've seen that uses a three-LCD-chip design to guarantee you won't see any rainbow artifacts. For those who find the flashes bothersome, that alone is enough to make it an imposing contender. For everyone else, it's still well worth considering for its combination of higher-than-typical brightness, high image quality, and listenable audio quality.

If you can stretch your budget a bit, the LS800, one of our top picks for UST models, will also give you a rainbow-artifact-free image along with a little higher brightness, a notably short input lag for gaming, and an even shorter throw, which means you won't have to position it as far from the wall as is typical for UST models.

Beyond that, if you want the ability to calibrate your projector for your room and screen, consider the Hisense PX1-PRO, our current top 4K UST pick for those who don't see (or don't mind seeing) rainbow artifacts, or the Epson LS500, our current top pick for a 4K-class UST model that can't show them. Or, if you're buying your first UST projector and want to get one that comes with an ALR screen it's already calibrated for, consider the Hisense 100L5TG-Cine100A. Note also that the LS500 is the only projector mentioned here that also adds 3D support. All told, if you don't care about 3D or the ability to calibrate, the LS650 is a smart choice.