The imagination of projectors as hefty, gnarly-looking monstrosities has long been refined, and I’m happy to see it. The Xgimi Play 6 series is another simplistic model launched today in China. It’s the complete package with a built-in battery, 360-degree hidden gimbal, and dynamic lighting. The projector is now on sale; here’s everything to know about it.
The Play 6 projector has a compact design
Chinese projector maker Xgimi officially released its Play 6 projectors. In a 50-second video, they teased the Play 6 and Play 6e on their Weibo account. Two cylindrical models resemble a microphone.
They have a silver metallic finish and a perforated speaker grille around the lower half. Around the base is a built-in gimbal you can adjust to get your desired angles and directions. Right underneath the projectors is a tripod mount.
Bright orange accents surround the detachable strap, which holds a mini remote if you get the Play 6. The Play 6e has a lanyard you can hook on to something. The brand describes the remote as a self-contained control that requires no pairing. That tells you there’s an infrared or pre-configured wireless connection. I noticed a return button, which means it’s for interactive use and quicker access.
Each version has a separate sound quality. One model comes with Harman Kardon audio, and the other with XGIMI Sound. Both have 2x6W speakers that support Dolby Audio and provide 360-degree surround sound.
Spotted in the box are the typical contents you’d expect. There’s the main device, depending on the model you choose. There’s also a white remote, a power adapter, a user manual you’d probably replace with YouTube tutorials, and four lens attachments.
Play 6 Projector specifications
Appearance aside, the Play 6 projector is light and weighs only 1.05kg, which is approximately 2.3 lbs, and shouldn’t be a burden to carry around. In an interesting demonstration, Xgimi compared it with a portable mug. It also comes with 600 CVIA Lumens of brightness, 1080P HD resolution, a 20,000mAh battery with a Type-C charging port for your convenience, and a 124% Rec.709 color gamut.
The base supports ambient lighting, although some find the dramatics of projector lighting unnecessary. To others, the color shift makes the viewing experience immersive.
Also, it’s a bit like how biased lighting works behind TVs, where it balances the contrast. When lights around the projector match the mood or tones of a scene, it looks like the action is spilling out from the screen and makes you feel like a big part of it.
Another area where light is essential is in the attachable lenses. Xgimi’s video shows four different lens attachments for the projector. The foreign labels suggest they’re called sunset, lunar, ripple, and dreamscape filters.
Most of these features are largely the same as those offered by the Xgimi Play 5 or the Mogo 3 Pro. Except that the Play 5 had a more boxy design and a lower brightness of 450 ISO Lumens. The Play 6 model is presented as a better compact upgrade.
Both variants of the Xgimi Play 6 projector are now on sale. The Play 6 starts at ¥2,099 (≈ $290), while the Play 6e starts at ¥1,599 (≈ $221) with government subsidies. Hurry and grab one before it returns to the original price of ¥1,799 (≈ $249). The wide-angle lens kit is sold separately at ¥299 (≈ $41). There’s no word on global availability yet.
