Like its bigger brother (VPL-HW55ES) the Sony VPL-HW40ES features a 25% Horizontal/ 71% Vertical lens shift couple with a large 1.6X optical zoom for immense flexibility in where the projector can be positioned in relation to your projection screen.
Image clarity and detail is immense and the best we have seen at this price point. We put this down to the SXRD display technology the VW40ES uses.
Black levels are superb whilst greyscale from white to black is very good which results in detailed images in darker scenes rather than blocks of black as can be the case on competitor models. Using the Dark Knight as reference material for black levels and dark scenes, the detail in the tumbler and the bat suit is finite with all areas of it being visible.
Out of the box presets are above average and as ever these presets are the Manufacturers best guess at the environment it will be used in. Its well worth spending a little time to tweak the VW40ES to suit your own environment. Investing in a basic calibration disc such as Spears and Munsil is a wise investment or if you have an Apple TV and an iPhone/iPad then THX do a brilliant app for basic calibration.
At this pricepoint there really is only 2 contenders, one is the Sony VPL HW40ES and the other is the
Epson EH-TW7200. Both are superb units with little to choose between them and really comes down to personal preference.

This model also comes in a white finish..
Sony VPL-HW40ES(White)