LG CineBeam HU80KS 4K Review

The LG CineBeam HU80KS is a high end portable laser projector capable of producing stunning 4K images at a price.  This model shows just how far the technology has come on in recent years.  It wasn’t too long ago that such a high quality setup was not even a possibility for a home cinema setup.

It’s not cheap of course, but if you want high quality there are definitely projectors that can deliver the full package for those with the budget to match.

Functionality

The LG HU80KS is aimed at those not looking to house a permanent home cinema in their house.  It’s a complete all in one package that includes 4K HDR video, stereo sound and can be stored away quickly (even the power cable has built in housing!).

The CineBeam offers are a lot of versatility, a mirror allows you to throw the image onto any convenient surface, it could be a clear wall, a screen or even the ceiling. This simple yet flexible approach makes it ideal for spontaneous big screen viewing outdoors too.

The HU80KS has a range of source options available.  You don’t actually have to plug anything in as the inbuilt software can already handle popular services such as Netflix.  You might want to check what services are supported as it doesn’t cover everything, for example iPlayer was absent at the time of writing.   But that shouldn’t be a deal breaker, you can also mirror your phone or just connect up a Chromecast or Firestick!

The laser is built to last for around 20,000 hours which is very impressive.  You could watch a film every day for the next 20 years and it would still be going!  There are USB, HDMI and headphone ports, along with a network ethernet port if you do decide a more permanent wired option is for you.

Image Quality

The image produced by the CineBeam is suitably impressive, as you would expect from a 4K HDR laser projector.  LGs presets do a good job out of the box, but with some fiddling you can get even better results from the user configuration options.  The resulting images are crisp and detailed with balanced colours that appear natural.  The projector is bright enough to forgive some leaked light and images will still shine through even on an off white background.

The built in speakers do a good job of providing a stereo experience.  There will always be limitations, make the speakers too big and loud and it could affect the image itself.  Most likely you will hook up external speakers or a surround sound system for the full home cinema effect.