PA503S 4000 Lumens SVGA Projector, High Brightness for Small Classrooms and Living Rooms, SuperColor Technology, Vertical Keystone, and HDMI Inputs

I use the projector for exclusively outdoor movie nights. My previous set up (an ageing NEC projector) has been the source of many happy family memories. With COVID limiting social gatherings, I wanted to create a better experience ... and hopefully one that was easier to set up. Achieving this turned out to be an interesting journey so thought I would share in case it helps anyone. The short version – the View Sonic PA 503S was the winner, but whether this makes sense for you does depend on what you need from a projector. Read on for the details... Initially I went back and forth on whether it was worth upgrading at all. My existing set up was a 10 yr old NEC projector, a bed sheet, and UE Boom speaker. It had the huge advantage of being available & free! However, there were some things I was looking for in an upgrade. Highest on my list was the ability to use a cell phone as an input source (the NEC projector could only use an input from a portable DVD player), plus it needed to be almost fully dark before I started the movie. In addition, it was fiddly to set up and the sound was not great. The screen was the first issue to solve. After significant research, I went with a Yard Master 135” screen. It was expensive, but it works great and I am very happy with it. I can relocate movie watching from where I used to hang the bedsheet to the more convenient location of my back patio – much more comfortable. I addressed the audio by using a Vizio sound bar I had lying around, which gave a huge leap in performance. Now for the projector... and here is where it gets interesting. I attempted to research projectors, but there were only a few sites I could find that did a decent comparison test. In fact, many sites comparing projectors seemed to simply re-cycle the marketing blurb from each product. One can spend $100 or $1000 on a projector, and its not easy to figure out whether spending more gets you a better experience. So I bought 3 projectors and ran a back to back test. The units I tested were the ViewSonic PA503S ($300), the Vankyo Leisure 3 ($127) and the QKK Mini Projector (2020 version, claiming 4200 Lux, cost $100). I also found a cable which promised to turn HDMI signal into an S-Video input, which I could then plug into the NEC projector. Findings below. 4th place. NEC projector plus cable. Failed to get out of the starting blocks. The cable did not do as promised, and ended up mangling the Netflix formatting. 3rd place. Vankyo Leisure 3. Did a great job with video display. It was a little brighter (but not by much) vs the NEC. The focus ring and keystone adjustment feel like the weak spot for this unit.. and likely all similarly priced mini projectors. On this particular unit, the keystone adjustment was so loose it shifted when you adjusted the focus. And the focus had to be cranked right to end extreme in order to get a sharp image ... to be honest it wasn’t really in focus even then. My guess is that this was just the unit I had... but it did not inspire confidence As with many reviewers, I could not get Netflix to produce sound thru the projector, but that was not a show stopper as I am using a sound bar with ARC-HDMI input as my audio. 2nd place. QKK. Like the Vankyo, it did a great job of video, and had the same audio issues. Video was sharp, and a little brighter vs the NEC. It was relatively short throw... I filled the 135” screen at a projection distance of around 12 feet, which worked well for my set up. A word on quality control. Like the Vankyo, focus / keystone adjustment is a weak spot. It’s a very plasticky and crude mechanism. Incredibly I had to buy 3 of these units before I got one that worked. The first one was a lemon – it never focused properly. You could get focus in the center of the screen but not the edges, which really killed us when we had a movie with sub titles. The 2nd unit was lost in delivery. Amazon refunded it. The 3rd one I reviewed here. Its focus ring / keystone adjustment mechanism worked well, and it was easy to get good focus. 1st place. View Sonic PA503S. The View Sonic is at a completely different level of quality, plus it offers one huge advantage – it is literally twice as bright as the QKK & Vankyo. Firstly the image – its clear, and the focus is easy to adjust to perfection. No softness at the edge of the screen, it was ‘movie theater’ quality. One slight difference vs the QKK... the throw is a little longer. I needed 19 feet projection distance to fill the screen, thankfully not a problem for my set up. Secondly audio – Netflix works on this unit. Again, I had a work around so this wasn’t essential, but in case that matters for your set up. Most importantly of all, the brightness. The View Sonic claims 3600 lumens. It was (by eyeball estimation) twice as bright as the others. This means I can start watching a movie just as the sun goes down, fully 1 hour before the QKK / Vankyo were viable options. This turns out to be a huge deal. The QKK and Vankyo both needed it to be fully dark to watch the movie. Around here that means starting to watch a movie at 9:20pm in the summer... and therefore finishing well after 11pm. With the View Sonic I can start watching at 8:15pm. For comparison the QKK claims 4200 lux, and after some digging I found a claim of 2200 lumens. So for me, a combination of brightness plus a generally much improved build quality convinced me to keep the $300 View Sonic and return the others.

I use this product in daylight and at night to blow up reference for my large scale paintings and for movies. Resolution is perfect for all images so far, but small text suffers a bit as you can see on the right photo (800x600 60Hz). I run the projector for almost 6 hrs a day while working with 30 min breaks give or take. 3 weeks in and no issues. A powered adapter for a USB C port to HDMI (worth the $20 on Amazon for your highest speed port) is what I use and doesn't allow for any lag with cinematic experiences. These are both taken during daylight from southern exposure probably the most light you could get in a room inside, over grooves in the wall and items in the way, wanted to show the worst case scenario and that it doesn't diminish my experience. 3600 Lumens does not disappoint. The projector itself is a little larger than expected, BUT this really controls the heat. I used to use a thin Epson projector and always worried about it being around anything flammable since it would heat up any metal that was within a foot of it. I can't hear the fan on this projector and audio is best through my computer speakers (I've heard lots of complaints about audio, but the audio is subpar on most projectors in my opinion, whether you pay 700 or 200; to use computer speakers instead, find your sound output dropdown in settings). Manipulation of zoom and picture aspect lacks a little, but if you physically move and try out new positions for the projector it shouldn't be a problem and it also has manual focus which comes in handy since it doesn't have auto focus or auto keystone (only horizontal keystone settings for when you adjust projection at a vertical angle). Overall very satisfied. Will update review if run into any issues.

This projector is AMAZING!! I bought this along with an inflatable screen to have an outdoor movie night for my birthday and it worked like a charm. The picture was great to watch the game before dinner and it was perfect. The brightness was perfect, it did not glitch in and out. The remote is sturdy. Literally everything I wanted. I was a little concerned because of the price that it might not be very good compared to other more expensive projectors, but I would buy this over any epson or other projector brand. At night outside the picture is very clean and sharp. It started to rain so we went inside and used it on a green wall. The wall color did not affect the picture at all!! Later I tried the projector on a white wall and the picture was still amazing. I am using it for the camp I am running next year. DEFINITELY RECOMMEND!!!!!!

I bought this as an outdoor projector for family movie nights during COVID. It works great for the price, but there are limitations. First, the sound is terrible from the machine alone, you will need extra speakers if using outdoors - for a single family one smaller speaker like the Shark/OONTZ will work, but for a neighborhood night I needed to buy a high wattage speaker. The picture is generally great, but what you use as the source will make a difference (much crisper and clearer when hooked to Blu-Ray player versus streaming). If you are planning to use outdoors, timing and sunlight is a major consideration. It is not usable in any daylight. I live in Northern New Jersey and the sun sets in the front of my house. The back is shaded from 7PM on in the summer. I have used it as early as 7:45PM but the picture is very light and barely can be seen. It gets better at 8PM, but really not decent until 8:15PM at the earliest. My flood lights do not impact it that much, it is really a daylight issue. Overall we are happy with it. My kids enjoy movie night each week and we were able to have a drive-in themed socially distanced birthday party for my oldest.

S-Model: After going through two brandless chinese projectors in a year, it was time to spend the money on a product with a proper warranty. This thing is BRIGHT! The unit itself is very well ventilated but the fan is quiet. The remote and menu interface are easy and intuitive. I could've gone for more hdmi ports, but at this resolution, VGA is all you really need. If you are worried that 800x600 won't be enough resolution for a home theater, think again. Media looks excellent through this unit projected onto a white wall 10' away. Don't expect to do work on your computer at this resolution, but as a media machine that frees up my pc monitor for other tasks, this shines. HD-Model: After nearly six years with the above projector, having replaced the lamp just once after about 4 years, the fan started to fail which meant a lot of noise. After trying to clean and repair the device myself, cyber monday rolled around and the HD model that I have now was on sale at a significant discount. Compared to the S model, this projector is significantly brighter, casts less heat, and projects a more detailed, wide-screen image. The inclusion of a second HMDI port means that guests can connect to it without having to swap cables. The included remote control (with batteries in the box) is a bit more concise than the previous model. It is smaller and black in color, which makes it easier to misplace, but that's hardly worth a demerit. The replacement bulb for the HD model is about twice the price of the S model, and not covered by Asurion. However, if this projector is half as durable as it's smaller sibling, the bulb should last at least 3 years. Speaking of the lamp, this model also has a convenient access panel that requires just one screw to be loosened to access the easy to replace component. That's right, you don't have to void the warranty to replace the most-likely component to fail. As with every Viewsonic device that I've owned, these projectors are of high quality, smart design, and are reasonably priced. I still have the S model and intend to replace the cooling fan ($5usd) as every other part of the unit works fine. If successful, it will be gifted or sold and most-likely work for another 2 or 3 years.

I need a bright projector a room with a lot of ambient light. I read a bunch of reviews in the sub $300 price range. This one came out on top pretty much all the time for its brightness in lit rooms. I have to say, it's very bright. I returned an LED 5000-lumen projector because it wasn't bright enough and there was no comparison in brightness. Not sure how they measured the 5000 lumens. I'd say this one is 5 times brighter. Bright. Bright. Bright. If you need bright, get this one. This has a longer throw so the image is smaller for my room, but at least it's clear and bright in a lit room. You need about 11 feet to get an 80-inch image. I sent back the LED projector though it had some nice features: a lot more connection ports, much better stereo speakers and 1080p native resolution. But all that is somewhat meaningless if the picture isn't bright. I guess it might have been fine in a dark room, but I didn't have that option. The speaker on this is quite weak. Get some external speakers to plug in, it has a jack. Really, you need it. Amazon has some basic computer speakers for $10 that work fine unless you need good quality sound. Then buy something better.

This is a very delayed review as I purchased the SVGA unit in August 2020. We have used this unit as our primary device for streaming and gaming since plugging it in. We have consistently used “normal” mode (versus Eco) and I just replaced the lamp after 5640 hours used. The replacement OEM lamp cost $84 and lit this baby up like new. Additionally, replacing the lamp took 3 minutes, was incredibly simple, and was completed while still attached to the ceiling mount. Since first use, I have used an AppleTV box and ran 1080 HDMI. Not a single issue. I connect the AppleTV to a JBL soundbar via Bluetooth and have NEVER had a single issue. Until the original lamp reached 5000 hours, we could watch movies or gaming clearly with the room fully lit with daylight can lighting or natural light throughout the room. The attached pics were taken in the evening, but it’s in Super Eco mode as well. It is ceiling mounted projecting onto a 110” screen. This unit has far exceeded expectations and has been a tremendous value as a “budget” projector.

Used for a few days . Loud snap and flash of light . Projector died .