How to Show Movies With a LCD Projector

Sometimes a big-screen TV just isn't big enough, and you need to go bigger. The easiest way to go bigger is with an LCD projector.

Things You'll Need

• Projector screen or other surface
• DVD or Blu-ray player
• Video cables
• External speakers (optional)

Instructions

1. Locate the surface you want to project on. This should be a projector screen, but a white wall or a sheet taped to a wall can also work.

2. Point the projector at the surface and power it on.

3. Find out what the image ratio (the shape of the picture) of your projector is. 4:3 ratio is almost a square, like an older tube television. 16:9 and 16:10 ratios are both longer rectangles and are pretty close to being the same. 16:9 is used primarily for movies and video games, and 16:10 is used for computer monitors.

4. Adjust the screen proportions and zoom settings of the projector until it is a properly proportioned rectangular image, depending on your aspect ratio. You can find these controls in the projector's configuration menu. If you have a 4:3 ratio but plan to show a widescreen movie, you may want to zoom in more so that the portion of the screen that displays the widescreen picture is larger.

5. Connect the DVD or Blu-ray player to the proper video and audio input.

6. Switch the projector to the input the player is plugged into.

7. Connect the external speakers to the projector's headphone jack if your projector doesn't have built-in speakers.

8. Power on the external speakers.

9. Turn on the DVD/Blu-ray player.

References

• Engadget - How-To: Build yourself a front projection home theater