Search for the BenQ LW600ST ($899) on BenQ’s website, and you’ll turn up two entries: the LW600ST Installation Projector and the LW600ST Golf Simulator Projector. They’re actually both the same model, with the two separate web pages evidence of this excellent projector’s ability to serve a wide range of use cases. The ideal WXGA (1,280-by-800 pixel) projector for many business and education setups has, among other qualities, a short throw and the color handling prowess to show photorealistic images well. As it turns out, those are also what you need to build a golf simulator in your basement. That makes the LW600ST, which has both, a good choice for either purpose. On the other hand, if you don’t need a short throw, the cheaper, Editors’ Choice-winning Epson Pro EX7280 is a better option.Design: Four LEDs to Boost Color AccuracyBenQ calls the LW600ST an installation projector because it’s clearly suitable for permanent installation in a conference room, classroom, or golf simulator. It’s also actually small and light enough to use as a portable projector, at 4.2 by 11.9 by 8.7 inches (HWD) and 5.8 pounds. As a point of reference, Epson’s EpiqVision Flex CO-W01 Portable Projector weighs only a half pound less.
Since 1982, PCMag has tested and rated thousands of products to help you make better buying decisions. See how we test.
As with most BenQ models we’ve seen lately, the LW600ST pairs a DLP chip (with a native 1,280-by-800-pixel resolution, in this case) with a four-LED light source (red, green, and two blues) that is designed to last the life of the projector. It’s rated at 20,000 hours in Normal power mode or 30,000 hours in Eco mode. According to BenQ, the second blue LED both boosts brightness and increases color accuracy.
(Credit: M. David Stone)
The short throw lens counts as a key feature. As with any short throw projector, the lens lets you get a big picture from close to the screen. However, the LW600ST adds a 1.2x zoom, which is unusual for short throw lenses and adds welcome flexibility for how far you can position the projector from the screen for a given size image. That helps make ad hoc setup for portable use much faster. It’s even more helpful in a permanent ceiling mount installation since you can compensate for minor inaccuracies in placing the mount. In my tests, I measured a 57-inch distance for a 78.4-inch-wide image, consistent with the low end of the rated 0.72-to-0.87 throw ratio. (The lowest number is for the wide angle setting, to give the biggest image.)
Aside from positioning the projector and setting the zoom, setup consists basically of connecting to an image source and adjusting the manual focus. The back panel offers two HDMI ports and a USB port that can work with an optional $45 Wi-Fi dongle to connect by Wi-Fi Direct for mirroring mobile devices and PCs.
(Credit: M. David Stone)
As with most projectors, you can use digital zoom and image geometry controls (including a four-corner adjustment, in this case) to adjust the image size and shape. However, it’s always best to avoid digital adjustments if you can since they lower brightness and can introduce artifacts in some images. The better choice is to position the projector to avoid keystone distortion if you can and use the 1.2x optical zoom to adjust the image size.Using the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) recommendations, the LW600ST’s rated 2,800 ANSI lumens should deliver an appropriately bright image in a dark room using a roughly 200-to-235-inch, 1.0-gain screen at the projector’s native 16:10 aspect ratio. In a typically bright conference room or classroom, it would still be bright enough to fill a screen as large as 120 inches. However, keep in mind that the brightest settings for a projector also deliver the least accurate color. In my tests using my preferred settings, the projector delivered a comfortably bright image using a 93-inch, 1.0-gain screen in a dark room and a watchable (though slightly washed-out) image at 84 inches in a brightly lit room.
(Credit: M. David Stone)
The onboard 10-watt mono speaker delivers serviceable audio at a volume suitable for a small conference room. If you need better sound quality or higher volume, you can connect an external sound system to the 3.5mm stereo audio-out port on the back panel.Testing the BenQ LW600ST: Photorealistic QualityThe LW600ST doesn’t support either 4K input or HDR, but it does support resolutions up to 1,920 by 1,200 pixels (WUXGA). In my tests using a PC, it negotiated a 1,280-by-800-pixel resolution connection, which Windows 10 also reported to be the recommended setting. When I switched to my DVR, it negotiated a 1080p SDR connection. I ran my tests in both cases with the resolution the projector negotiated.The menus offer five predefined color modes plus two user modes, but all the modes are customizable. As with many projectors, the brightest mode, Bright, has a noticeable green bias that makes it best avoided unless you need the brightest image possible. In our PowerPoint test slides, photos showed an obvious green shift, and colors in graphics were dramatically off target, with cyan nearly white, both pink and purple rendered as a nearly identical purplish gray, and orange turning brown. However, all of our graphs were highly readable, making Bright mode usable if you need the brightness and don’t much care about getting the right colors.
(Credit: M. David Stone)
All the other modes did a far better job with color accuracy, showing only minor variations in color from one mode to the next. Most people will consider any of them more than acceptable in most cases for both graphics and photorealistic images. However, the Presentation and Golf modes both delivered noticeably better color accuracy than the others. If any difference between them in rendering colors exists, it didn’t show in our tests, though BenQ says the Golf mode is tuned specifically for golf simulation software. For my formal testing, I picked Presentation mode for both presentations and for movies and videos.Regardless of mode, detail and crispness are appropriate for the resolution. That said, the relatively low resolution made it hard to make out individual lines in a crowded CAD test image with lots of fine lines close together.
(Credit: M. David Stone)
The LW600ST earned mixed results for movies and video. The bad news is that even though I saw fewer rainbow artifacts (red/green/blue flashes) than with most DLP projectors I’ve reviewed recently, I saw them often enough to make it hard to recommend the projector for applications like watching movies in a classroom. Some people see these flashes more easily than others, and the more people who are watching, the more likely that some will find the flashes annoying.The good news starts with my seeing almost no flashes in PowerPoint slides or other graphics and text slides that didn’t have objects moving on the screen. The only time they showed at all was in one of our test slides that’s designed to make the artifacts easy to see. Even then, I saw only fleeting hints when I tried to make them appear by moving my eyes quickly back and forth.
(Credit: M. David Stone)
And it gets better: Color accuracy and contrast in brighter scenes were both easily good enough for presentations that include film or video clips—as well as for golf course simulations. And for film and video the LW600ST does a good enough job of avoiding rainbow artifacts that even those who are sensitive to them aren’t likely to find them bothersome for clips that last only a minute or two. One potential problem is that the projector doesn’t hold shadow detail well, which made it hard to see what was happening in the darkest scenes in our test clips. However, this shouldn’t be an issue for the sort of clips and photos that you’re most likely to use in presentations.One nice extra is 3D support, for the shrinking number of people who need it. The LW600ST offers a single 3D mode and works with DLP-Link glasses. In testing, 3D-related motion artifacts were just a bit more obvious than typical for current-generation 3D models, but I didn’t see any crosstalk.
(Credit: M. David Stone)
I measured the LW600ST’s input lag with a Bodnar meter at 33 milliseconds for 1080p 60Hz input. Most gamers would consider that short enough for casual gaming, and input lag isn’t likely to matter at all for most business or education applications. It isn’t a critical issue for golf simulation, either.Verdict: A Top-Tier Pick for Your Short Throw NeedsFor applications that need a short throw projector—whether for business, education, or DIY golf simulators—and don’t need to resolve detail any finer than a 1,280-by-800-pixel resolution can handle, the BenQ LW600ST is a strong candidate. However, remember that you’re paying extra for the short throw lens. If you don’t need it, consider the Epson CO-W01 or Epson Pro EX7280, which both have lower list prices than the LW600ST. The CO-W01 offers the lowest cost of these three models and a touch higher brightness rating than the BenQ. Meanwhile, the EX7280, which is one of our Editors’ Choice picks, offers a significantly higher brightness than either. The Epson models also have the advantage of being guaranteed not to show rainbow artifacts.The big advantage of the BenQ LW600ST is its short throw. If you need a projector that can give you a big image from close to the screen, whether because of the room size or the need to avoid casting shadows on the screen, it’s the only one of these models that can do the job. That alone can be enough to make it the right choice.
Pros
WXGA (1,280-by-800-pixel) resolution, suitable for presentations and golf simulation
Vibrant graphics and photorealistic images
Short throw delivers a big picture from close to the screen
1.2x zoom
View
More
The Bottom Line
The BenQ LW600ST offers a short throw lens for big images in tight spaces, such as golf simulators, and it is also light enough to serve as a portable projector for business or education use.
Like What You’re Reading?
Sign up for Lab Report to get the latest reviews and top product advice delivered right to your inbox.
This newsletter may contain advertising, deals, or affiliate links. Subscribing to a newsletter indicates your consent to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You may unsubscribe from the newsletters at any time.
About M. David Stone
Contributing Editor
Most of my current work for PCMag is about printers and projectors, but I’ve covered a wide variety of other subjects—in more than 4,000 pieces, over more than 40 years—including both computer-related areas and others ranging from ape language experiments, to politics, to cosmology, to space colonies. I’ve written for PCMag.com from its start, and for PC Magazine before that, as a Contributor, then a Contributing Editor, then as the Lead Analyst for Printers, Scanners, and Projectors, and now, after a short hiatus, back to Contributing Editor.
Read M. David’s full bio
Read the latest from M. David Stone
