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Review: LG Minibeam PH300

Introduction

If you find yourself giving presentations while on the road often, the LG Minibeam PH300 ($449, £290, AU$603) may be worth looking into. Competing in the same space as other small projectors such as the $400 (£270, AU$530) ZTE SPro and the $599 (£385.24, AU$738.45) Epson EX7235 Pro, the compact LG PH300 packs a capable number of ports, a decent LED lamp, and a built-in battery rated for up to 2.5 hours on a single charge.

If your main concerns in a projector are connectivity options, you may be better served with the previously mentioned Wifi-capable Epson EX7235 Pro or the ZTE SPro, which packs Android on board. However, from a portability standpoint, the LG Minibeam PH300 competes quite well. Although a bit bigger than the ZTE, the LG offers a similar spec sheet, and it's much, much smaller than the Epson Pro.

Whether you're making this purchase to view crisp images, or to transport your presentation across state lines, the LG Minibeam should suit your needs.

Design

The LG Minibeam PH300 features a brown and white color scheme that should look familiar if you've used LG products in the past. The colors certainly help the device stand out in a market full of black boxes, but they're unassuming enough to make sure the device itself doesn't become too much of a distraction.

If your main concerns in a projector are connectivity options, you may be better served with the previously mentioned Epson or the ZTE SPro, which packs Android on board. However, from a portability standpoint, the LG Minibeam PH300 competes quite well, coming in at 4.4 x 2.5 x 3.4 inches (112 x 64 x 85mm) at the front, and weighing in at just 15.2 ounces (431 grams).

For comparison, the ZTE SPro is comparable at 4.7 x 4.7 x 1.1-inch (120.6mm x 120.6mm x 28.5mm), but weighs slightly less than the LG PH300 at 14.1 ounces (400 grams). The Epson EX7235 Pro, on the other hand, is quite a bit bulkier at 5.29 pounds (2.68 Kg) and measuring 11.7 x 9.0 x 3.0 inches (297.2 X 228.6 X 76.2mm).

The LG Minibeam PH300 features a brown and white color scheme that should look familiar if you've used LG products in the past. The colors certainly help the device stand out in a market full of black boxes, but they're unassuming enough to make sure the device itself doesn't become too much of a distraction.

Moving on to the materials, the case is largely plastic with the obvious exception of the ports on the back. The construction feels sturdy enough to hold up under repeated journeys in whatever bag you may be carrying around. One concern I have is that the largely white exterior may pick up some scuffs along the way, and we really wish LG would include a carrying sleeve or case in the box to address this.

Specs and performance

The front of the device should look familiar, featuring the cutout for the LED bulb and intake slots for the fan. On the back, you'll find a power port, one full-size HDMI port, one USB port, a 3.5mm audio jack, a coaxial input for the built-in TV tuner, and a power switch. Additionally, there is a speaker grill just towards the bottom to help pump out audio.

On top is the familiar LG logo, above which are a number of capacitive buttons for powering the device on, accessing the settings menu, and navigation. Flipping over to the bottom of the device, you'll find four angled rubber feet – allowing you to place the PH300 on a smooth surface with confidence – along with a tripod mount for keeping things sturdy.

Specs

The LG PH300 features an LED bulb that is rated at 300 lumens with an estimated lamp life of 30,000 hours, and can project in 720p with either a 16:9 (native) or 4:3 aspect ratio. While 300 lumens is a bit on the low side of the brightness scale and may leave you sticking to dark environments for your presentations, it easily beats out the ZTE SPro's 100 lumens.

Finally, the LG PH300 comes with decent file support that should work well for most professional users. You can load up PowerPoint, Word, and Excel files from a connected USB stick for example, in addition to HD DivX video files, JPEG images, and MP3 files. The HDMI input is MHL compatible, allowing you to easily mirror content from a connected Android device - though you'll need an adapter for iOS devices.

Below is the LG Minibeam PH300 configuration sent to TechRadar Pro:

Performance

As far as image quality is concerned, the LG PH300 performs pretty well for such a small device. The 720p resolution is good enough for projecting HD content, but a step up to 1080p would be preferable for those who are accustomed to higher resolution images from larger, more expensive projectors.

Straight out of the box, you may find that the color accuracy may need adjusting depending on what you're viewing. Thankfully, LG's setting menu is virtually identical to its TV sets, and allows for great control over different color profiles. Basically, if you've used an LG television before, going through the settings should be familiar fare.

After a bit of tinkering, I found the PH300 to perform pretty well on image quality. Documents and presentations were easy to read, and movies were enjoyable to watch without any nagging color issues. However, the 300 lumen bulb isn't going to hold up well in brightly-lit rooms. You'll definitely want to keep the lights dim for optimal performance.

One minor qualm that's worth pointing out revolves around the PH300's focus wheel. At times, it felt a little loose, making it hard to pin down a proper focus setting. It wasn't horrible for presentations where you can easily spot fuzzy text, but for movies and videos, I'd recommend pausing during opening credits to use the text as a guide.

Where the PH300 succeeds in image quality, however, it disappoints on sound. Perhaps this is one sacrifice that must be made for such a portable projector, but the two watt output comes off tinny and hollow. Combined with a somewhat loud fan, you may find yourself pulling your hair out. We'd definitely recommend putting that 3.5mm jack to use with an external speaker, though it'd be even better if the PH300 came with Bluetooth onboard so you could scrap the cables altogether.

While it sports only three inputs due to its small stature, the connectivity options offered by the PH300 work as advertised. Particularly interesting is the addition of a coaxial input and built-in TV tuner, which works remarkably well with over-the-air broadcasts.

Using the USB port to attach a thumb drive, we found that the PH300 handled all of the office documents we could throw at it. One addition we would like to see, however, is support for PDF files - though we're sure they'd get much less play than PowerPoint presentations and Excel spreadsheets.

The single, full-size HDMI port also works as you'd expect. Connected to a laptop, were able to mirror and extend our display. Similarly, display mirroring through Android devices is well supported and may come in handy if you prefer to use your phone or tablet as a presentation tool.

One area in which we really appreciated the HDMI port was that it supports streaming dongles like the Fire TV Stick and Chromecast. Not only will this let you use the PH300 to easily stream some YouTube videos and other content, but it could act as a great entry to using your mobile device as a wireless presentation tool if you're a Google Drive user. Simply plug in the Chromecast, fire up Google Drive on your mobile device, and cast away.

Finally, LG estimates the the Minibeam PH300 will last about 2.5 hours on a charge, and that seems to be about right. In testing the device, it lasted around 2 hours and 15 minutes while playing video, and we squeezed a tiny bit more out of it when browsing Office files.

Final verdict

It's hard not to like something so small and so effective. Although there are a few major flaws, you probably won't do much better for the amount you'll spend on the Minibeam.

We Liked

The main draw to the LG Minibeam PH300 is its sheer mobility. The size and weight of the device is such that it's extremely easy to just throw in a bag and go. Combined with its built-in battery, the PH300 makes for an excellent option if you find yourself hopping around the city from sales pitch to sales pitch.

Though it lacks wireless connectivity options that you may find in other projectors, you'll enjoy ample file support through the included HDMI and USB ports. Besides, you can simply add a Chromecast to your setup and you have a ready-to-go solution for running your next presentation sans wires. Plus, the added TV tuner is an interesting inclusion if you plan to use the PH300 in a home setup.

Finally, despite its 300 lumen bulb, the picture quality on this little guy is fantastic. With support for 720p, excellent color controls, and included Auto Keystone for correcting vertical distortions, your presentations and videos will certainly hold up well.

We disliked

For its portability, you're definitely making some tradeoffs with the PH300. With no wireless connectivity options built in, you're looking at having to tote around at least an HDMI cable, in addition to a USB stick or two.

On that same topic, Bluetooth audio is one area where the PH300 would really benefit. The built-in speakers are utterly disappointing, and though that issue can be remedied with an external speaker setup, you're stuck with toting around yet another cable if you need to work around that limitation.

Additionally, though it may not be doable in its current form factor, a built-in SD card slot would have been nice to see for those that prefer SD to USB.

Finally, despite its excellent image quality, you're going to want to stick with dim-to-dark environments with this one. If you have control over the lighting in your presentation space, you should be fine. However, if your next sales pitch is in a sun-drenched meeting room, the PH300 may not hold up well.

Final Verdict

The LG Minibeam PH300 is definitely a worthy contender for those looking for a portable projector solution. At a list price of $450, it's a great projector that won't break the bank. However, if connectivity and wireless options are your main concern, you might be better served by other projectors on the market. That being said, the LG Minibeam PH300 certainly competes with others in its class on size and display capabilities, and its shortfalls can be overcome with a little ingenuity.

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