The Mitsubishi HC5500 sports features that are uncommon in consumer-grade projectors. Adjustments like focus, zoom and even the tilt angle of the projected image are controlled by servo motors, meaning that it’s possible to make very fine adjustments. Every setting can be adjusted via either the remote control or external software using the RS-232 serial port.

Inputs are accommodating as well, with two HDMI, VGA, component, S-Video and even composite for legacy devices. There isn’t any Wi-Fi or USB support, but given their limitations they have little practical use in an entertainment projector.

One thing to be aware of, however, is the lack of audio output — meaning that if you use HDMI to transmit your audio, you will also need a digital amplifier with HDMI.

Our testing area was less than ideal, but more like what you might have to contend with in the real world. Despite a large amount of light bleeding in from safety signs and the adjacent offices, the HC5500 amazed us with how well it performed regardless of the conditions.

Brightness wasn’t an issue; even with lights switched on we were able to see the image at 2m throw. Moving the screen to 6m necessitated the switch to ‘standard’ (read: high) brightness, but the image was still quite visible.

The HC5500 also sports an automatic iris, dynamically adjusting the brightness of the image. The result is a lot better than the traditional faire, creating a excellent dark scenes without detracting from the experiance.

HD games and movies looked superb, with rich colours and vivid detail. Standard definition sources also upscaled nicely to the full resolution. We also found that Office applications were a pleasure to work with and look at for extended periods, for anyone wanting work and play in one device.
Even without a short-throw lens, we were still able to produce a 63in picture at 2m, and a 180in image at 6m.

Overall the projector is versatile, it’s a great asset in your home theatre and the price is excellent for a 1080p projector.