XGIMI is now offering its flagship projector technology in a more affordable package. The Horizon S Pro clocks in at a cool $1,299—far less than you’d pay for other 4K projectors with its capabilities. Plus, we’re now learning more about the Horizon S Max, a projector that aims to bring the IMAX experience into your living room.
The Horizon S Pro is a slightly downgraded version of the Horizon Ultra projector that we reviewed in 2023. It offers the same 4K resolution, HDR10 functionality, dynamic 1000000:1 contrast ratio, and 20ms low-latency game mode, and integrated 12-watt speakers as its big sibling, but it shines quite a bit dimmer at 1700 ISO lumens.
It’s a reasonable “downgrade” for most people. While 1700 ISO lumens isn’t great for daytime use, it’s fine if you have blackout curtains, and it’s awesome in the dark of the night. The Horizon S Ultra also retains XGIMI’s auto keystone, auto focus, and automatic screen alignment features, so the setup process is just as easy as that of its bigger sibling.
Also, notably, the Horizon S Pro has one thing that the Horizon Ultra lacks—an integrated gimbal. You can tilt the Horizon S Pro at nearly any angle, so there’s no need to use a tripod (or prop set the projector upside-down on a slip of cardboard, as I did during my Horizon Ultra review).
We’re also learning more about the Horizon Max projector that XGIMI teased at CES 2024. Well, it’s not called Horizon Max anymore—the name is now Horizon S Max, and the retro brown-ish color scheme that we saw in January has been swapped for a modest gray and white design.
The XGIMI Horizon S Max offers a 4K resolution, 3000 ISO lumens of brightness, a 1000000:1 contrast ratio, a sub-20ms response time, HDR10, Dolby Atmos, and IMAX Enhanced functionality. It also packs the full suite of XGIMI’s automatic picture technologies, including auto keystone, auto focus, and auto screen alignment.
These are effectively the same specs and features that we saw in January. However, one feature has been completely removed from the production model of Horizon S Max; the motorized gimbal (it’s now just a normal gimbal). Admittedly, the motorized gimbal was kind of overkill—very few people need to reposition a home projector after its initial setup—but it was cool to see the projector automatically orient itself at XGIMI’s CES demonstration. I’m sure that the difference in manufacturing costs is pretty substantial, too.
Speaking of pricing, the Horizon S Pro costs $1,299 (an MSRP that’s $400 lower than that of the Horizon Ultra). Pricing for the fancy Horizon S Max is still unknown. The projectors should show up on XGIMI’s online store and other retailers.
Source: XGIMI
