LG Electronics today announced that its CineBeamQ projector (previously referred to as the CineBeam Qube) will be available for preorder starting March 18. It will release first in its home country of South Korea in March, followed by the U.S., Canada, Australia, Germany, Spain, France, the U.K., and some Asian and Middle East countries in April.
Pricing is set at $1,299, but LG does have a promotion by which you give it your email address, and it gives you $100 off the projector.
LG debuted the CineBeam Q ahead of CES 2024 under its original name, but it very much got lost in the shuffle amid the likes of LG’s major release, a transparent OLED television called the LG Signature OLED T. We were able to geta brief look at it this week, however. The vibe from Digital Trends’ Caleb Denison is that “it looks like one of those old-school Brownie cameras, and I found the aesthetic surprisingly pleasing — as projectors go, it’s one of the most decor-friendly I’ve seen.”
The CineBream Q features a 4K picture at up to 120 inches diagonal, with a 450,000:1 contrast ratio. It covers 154% of the DCI-P3 color gamut. It’ll automatically adjust focus and keystone effect (as all good projectors do at this point), and Denison says that part was “lightning-quick.” The CineBeam Q runs LG’s webOS operating system, so you’ll have access to all your favorite streaming apps. (If you’ve ever used webOS on an LG TV, you know it’s quite good.) The CineBeam Q has a minimum image size of 50 inches, and Denison says 100 inches felt like the sweet spot.
He also noted that the 500 lumens of output isn’t going to power through a lot if the room’s not already dark, but the color brightness and gamut were impressive.
The CineBeam Q has a 1.2 throw ratio, which means it’s meant to be a decent ways away from whatever you’re projecting on. And as the design makes perfectly clear, it’s also meant to be seen out in the open. It’s also relatively portable thanks to the built-in carrying handle. It doesn’t have a battery on board, though, so you’ll need to contend with power cords no matter where you put it.
“The LG CineBeam Q stands out as a truly unique projector, not only for its exceptional picture quality and impressive visuals, but also for its ability to seamlessly blend into any home environment as a stunning art piece,” YS Lee, vice president and head of the IT business unit of LG Business Solutions, said in the press release. “Content lovers will be delighted by the portability of the projector lineup, which delivers unparalleled cinematic viewing experiences anytime, anywhere.”