As mentioned earlier, the biggest technical difficulty of LCOS is miniaturization and cost compression, although JVC has developed a 1.7-inch native 4K D-ILA chip as early as 2004, but the projector is too large to be used for home use. For a long time, JVC relied on "4K e-shift" pixel shift technology to achieve "pseudo-4K", occupying a certain share of the high-end projector market.
In the early years of JVC, the "pseudo-4K" was realized by using a 2K chip, which generated two superimposed images within the 4K frame through the 2K chip, and the picture quality was better than the "pseudo-4K" formed by the 1080P chip. Although there is a compromise over the original 4K in terms of image quality, the "pseudo-4K" uses a lower-cost chip and the price is lower. In addition, thanks to its unique tuning technology, the JVC projector has excellent contrast and deep blacks, which has won over many users.
As audiophile users have always pursued native 4K, JVC has also done its best to launch the first D-ILA home theater projector equipped with a 0.69-inch native 4K chip in 2017, breaking Sony's monopoly in native 4K in one fell swoop, and also giving high-end families a new choice. JVC's 4K chip has evolved from 1.7 inches to 0.69 inches today, which has undergone a huge breakthrough. 0.69 inches means higher pixel structure technology and process, making the product smaller and less costly, which is more conducive to commercialization. Compared with JVC's commercialized 2K chips, the 0.69-inch native 4K chip has significantly reduced size and pixel pitch, and the aperture ratio (effective light utilization ratio) has been increased from 88% to 91%, resulting in better picture detail.
In addition to the chip hardware, the native ultra-high contrast ratio is also a highlight of JVC projectors. At present, many projection manufacturers use electronic circuits or dynamic aperture to improve contrast, so that the projector has a large contrast value, and the dynamic contrast of up to one million on the market is like this, but the viewing experience brought by dynamic contrast is very small. JVC has a unique light leakage control technology, which greatly reduces the scattering and transmission of light, so that the overall native contrast ratio has reached a very high level, up to 160,000:1, leading the industry.
Out of the pursuit of ultimate image quality, JVC gave up the original 1080P product line, focusing on the 4K field, and it only has a 4K product line, which can be subdivided into native 4K and pixel offset 4K. In order to build momentum for the brand, JVC also launched an 8K model - DLA-N11, its native contrast ratio is 100,000:1, and the price is as high as 188,000 yuan. It is worth mentioning that,Only in a larger projection area,8KThe image quality can reflect the advantages,Limited by the current ordinary residential wall area,8KThe projector is not practical,More is a product used to show off skills。
There are four types of native 4K chips: DLA-Z1C, DLA-N8, DLA-N6, and DLA-N5. The DLA-Z1C, priced at 268,000 yuan, is equipped with a laser light source, which not only has a longer service life, but also has a wider color gamut performance, so it can show richer and more accurate colors. The other three models are priced between 40,000 and 90,000 yuan due to the use of cheaper traditional high-pressure mercury lamps, which is more affordable. The number at the end of the model represents the level of its native contrast, the higher the contrast, the higher the price, the N8 native contrast ratio is 80,000:1, the N6 is second (60,000:1), and the N5 is the lowest (40,000:1).
Models starting with X, such as X518BC, X618BC, X818BC, and X918BC, are projectors that obtain 4K imaging through pixel offset, and the price is also between 40,000 and 90,000. The higher the number within the model number, the higher the projector's native contrast ratio and the higher the selling price. Since JVC's two types of 4K projectors are not much different in price, it is more cost-effective to buy a native 4K projector.
In order to seize the low-end market, JVC also launched an entry-level 4K projector, the LX-UH1. This projector uses Texas Instruments' chip, which realizes 4K through pixel offset, and the price drops to 29800 yuan. Texas Instruments' technology, combined with JVC's own proprietary projection tuning, makes it an extraordinary performance that is well worth buying.
