The Samsung 120 the Premiere LSP7T has ultra short throw design, 2200 lumens of laser-driven brightness, support for the latest 4K and HDR picture quality standards, powerful built-in audio system, and built-in tuner and smart system make it a true rival for a king-sized TV – especially as it produces mostly outstanding pictures. Can you watch 4K content or 4K game? Find details in Samsung 120 the Premiere LSP7T review.
Pros & Cons – Samsung 120 the Premiere LSP7T
Pros
- Software platform is rock solid as you would expect from Samsung. Again, comparing to Optoma it’s a night and day difference.
- Vivid picture with good colors for a projector. I can compare this to the Optoma P1 and P2 and say that it has better picture quality imo, not by a huge amount but enough to give it an edge.
- Used with an Elite Screens CLR (not the 2 or 3, just the CLR). Great combo. Daytime (slightly light controlled room) and night both looked great (with nighttime obviously looking fantastic).
- Connection/HDMI stability is also super rock solid with no issues whatsoever on a variety of sources. In my configuration I’m using a Denon AVC8500H connected to a CAAVO Control Center (and also with the Caavo removed) with multiple sources tested at 4k 60hz and lower resolutions: Xbox One X, Nvidia Shield Pro, Fire TV Stick 4k and Cube, Nintendo Switch and W10 PC with Geforce 2080ti at 4k 60hz. All ran without a hitch. Great!
- Fan noise is non-existent. Completely silent.
- Projector turns on and shuts down perfectly with CEC control.
- Start up time is in seconds (haven’t directly timed it but I would put it around 10 seconds). Very good imo.
Cons
- Focus issues at the corners and edges from mid to top. It’s enough to be distracting on content with text, lines or other details where sharpness is important. I’m working on contacting Samsung about the issue.
- Some shadow crushing in live content especially in scenes that are generally darkly lit. Not “bad” but as with the focus enough to be distracting. Could be due to calibration but I think it’s the nature of the projector. It is not enough for me to dislike the projector it’s just something I wish was better.
Specifications – Samsung 120 the Premiere LSP7T
Type: 4K Laser Projectors
Design
Design: Lifestyle
Ultra-short Throw and Compact Minimal Design: Yes
Video: HDR (High-Dynamic Range)
HDR
Picture Processor: UHD Processor
Film Mode : Yes
4K UHD Ultra Bright Laser: Yes
Audio
Dolby: Yes
Sound Output (RMS): 30W
Woofer: Yes
Speaker Type: 2.2CH
Multiroom Link: Yes
Bluetooth Headset Support: Yes
2.2 Channel System: Yes
Wireless Connectivity
Wi-Fi Direct: Yes
Features
Digital Clean View: Yes
Game Mode: Yes (Auto Game Mode)
USB HID Support: Yes
Mobile to TV – Mirroring, DLNA: Yes
SmartThings App Support: Yes
Multiple Voice Assistants: Yes
Smart TV Powered by TIZEN™: Yes
Inputs & Outputs
HDMI Connections: 3
USB: 1
Ethernet (LAN): Yes
Terrestrial / RF input: 1/1(Common Use for Terrestrial)/0
Digital Audio Out (Optical): 1
Audio Return Channel Support (via HDMI port): Yes
Dimensions
Set Size: 532.0 x 132.7 x 342.0
Weight
Set Weight: 9.1
Power
Power Supply (V): 100-240~50/60Hz
Maximum Power Consumption: 320
Standby Power Consumption: 0.5W↓
System
DTV Tuner: ATSC/ClearQAM
Digital Broadcasting
ATSC/ClearQAM
Analog Tuner: Yes
Accessory
Remote: TM1850A Base
Power Cable: Yes
User Manual: Yes
E-Manual
Yes
Key Features
HDR
Yes
Projection System
Resolution
3840 x 2160
Light Source Type
Single Laser
Light Source Life
20000hrs
Throw Ratio
0.25
Screen Size
229~305cm
Digital Keystone Correction
Yes
Eye Protection Mode
Yes
Display Type
DLP
Brightness (Ansi Lumen)
2200(Peak)
Noise (dB)
32dB(A)
Who is this for – Samsung 120 the Premiere LSP7T?
good for
You want the functionality of a TV in a projector
With its smart TV features, built-in tuner, ultra-short throw design and bright, crisp, colorful pictures, the LSP9T combines the image size of a projector with the convenience of a TV.
You want a seriously massive picture in your living room
The Premiere LSP9T can deliver 130-inch pictures while only sitting on your sideboard just a few inches from your wall.
You want a projector that works in dark or bright conditions
The Premiere LSP9T’s brightness and color performance is strong enough to hold up against ambient light, and offer a great dark room viewing experience.
Not good for…
You can’t afford it
While it just about offers enough unique features to justify its price, you can get other good UST laser projectors for substantially less – if you’re willing to sacrifice some picture performance and a few TV-aping features.
You want a dedicated home theatre projector
While the Premiere LSP9T succeeds as a ‘lifestyle’ projector for a regular living environment, you might prefer a model that focuses more on black level if you’re watching in a dedicated, blacked-out home theatre room.
You’re susceptible to the rainbow effect
Despite not using a color wheel, the LSP9T can produce flashes of color striping over small bright highlights that can distract – especially if you are someone who is very susceptible to seeing the issue.
Samsung 120 the Premiere LSP7T review
Build
The Premiere is slightly smaller than many ultra short-throw laser rivals, making it easier to fit on a sideboard. Another nice touch is the way its ergonomic, button-lite ‘smart’ remote control continues the crisp white finish theme.
Its gloss white finish looks and feels premium, and is offset nicely by the grey fabric that sits over the speakers. Its rounded corners are a welcome domesticated touch too, and build quality is impressive.
Brightness
Brightness and color volume are both exceptional for a projector, getting maximum value from an innovative new laser light source design. Here, for once, is a projector that actually handles HDR content well – despite that content being designed for TV rather than projection technologies.
How to setup
Connections are all tucked away on the projector’s wall-facing side, making it easier to hide potential cable spaghetti. The only catch is that, due to the projector’s ultra short-throw design, thick cables can be a bit of struggle to squeeze in.
Connections are eye-catchingly numerous, too. It’s particularly good to see there are three HDMIs rather than the normal two, and an RF input that – unlike most UST projectors, including LG’s HU85LS – the Premiere LSP7T carries a fully functioning digital TV tuner. This underlines just how much Samsung sees its new Premiere projectors as alternatives to huge and prohibitively expensive LCD TVs.
Audio output – Samsung 120 the Premiere LSP7T review
While most projectors lack built-in audio components, The Premiere models offer sound quality that should surpass most super skinny modern flat-panel TVs. Both models offer a 4.2 channel speaker system (two woofers and two tweeters) and the same Acoustic Beam virtual surround sound technology offered on some Samsung soundbars. When space is a consideration, this all-in-one sound solution will make it easier to achieve a sleek, modern, clutter-free look.
One of the HDMIs supports eARC functionality for passing lossless Dolby Atmos soundtracks out to compatible soundbars or AV receivers, and you’ll get a digital optical audio output thrown in too. For many people, though, the 40W 4.2-channel speaker system built into the Premiere LSP7T may well be good enough – at least in the short term.
Filmmaker mode
As an additional perk for movie lovers, both projectors will support the UHD Alliance’s Filmmaker Mode, which Samsung says is a first for a projector. Per the UHD Alliance, Filmmaker Mode will allow viewers to enjoy “a more cinematic experience on their UHD TVs when watching movies by disabling all post-processing (e.g. motion smoothing, etc.) so the movie or television show is displayed as it was intended by the filmmaker, preserving the correct aspect ratios, colors and frame rates.”
Amazon Fire TV Stick
The last connection of note is a powered (5v 0.5A) USB port for accessing AV files from USB storage devices, or letting you attach something like an Amazon Fire TV stick (assuming you can squeeze one between the projector’s connections and the wall, that is).
Smart TV (Tizen)
You can even issue verbal instructions to the TV via Samsung’s built-in Bixby system (with Alexa and Google Assistant supported via external listening devices if you have them).
The Premiere LSP7T fully implements Samsung’s excellent Tizen smart TV interface – the one used on most new Samsung TVs these days. That means you get the same economically-presented menus at the bottom of the screen, complete with pop-up content views above selected apps.
Samsung’s smart system covers all the key video streaming apps, from Netflix and Amazon Prime Video to Apple TV and Disney Plus, with impressively comprehensive catch-up services for whichever region you’re in (you get all the key terrestrial broadcasters in the UK, for instance).
Samsung 120 the Premiere LSP7T performance review
In terms of HDR, the LSP7T remains impressive, no doubt thanks to the RGB laser light source. My favourite 4K disc for colours is Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 and the incredibly wide gamut of the Samsung really did this film justice. The tone mapping was also excellent, with the LSP7T handling the brighter parts of the image without clipping the highlights. A projector is never going to compete with a TV in terms of peak brightness, but the LSP7T did a great job of mapping the HDR content to its inherent light output, especially in a darkened environment. The inclusion of HDR10+ support also helps thanks to dynamic metadata and, watching Robin Hood, the images produced were superb.
Watching the excellent Blu-ray of Samsara reveals gorgeous images, and while the blacks could have been deeper and the shadows more detailed, there’s no denying that the colours really pop, and while only being 1080p, the level of detail was often astonishing. This is primarily thanks to some impressive upscaling that makes the most of every pixel in the Full HD source. While I would like to see Samsung fine-tune the colour accuracy, especially relating to red and magenta, these issues weren’t apparent with actual viewing content (Samsung 120 the Premiere LSP7T review).
The LSP7T is undeniably capable when it comes to HDR, and a disc like Planet Earth II results in wonderfully detailed images and highlights that are nicely rendered. The limitations with blacks were obvious in the nighttime scenes with the hyenas, but in general this projector is sure to produce a pleasing HDR experience. A film like Blade Runner 2049 allows the Samsung to reveal all its strengths, from the detail in the 4K image, to the remarkable colours and the precisely rendered highlights. No matter what you’re watching, this projector is sure to please.
Alternate of Samsung 120 the Premiere LSP7T
The most obvious alternative is the LG HU85LS ultra-short-throw 4K DLP laser projector. This is very similar to the LSP9T, producing SDR and HDR images that are generally comparable to the Samsung. But the LSP9T does have a number of significant advantages that help justify the additional cost. For a start, the Samsung has built-in tuners, which the LG doesn’t, and unlike any other projector at the moment it supports HDR10+. The LSP7T also has one more HDMI input, supports eARC, and sounds better. Crucially, the Tizen OS is identical to the one found on Samsung’s 2020 TVs, with all the same features and a comprehensive selection of video apps. The version of webOS on the HU85LS is stripped down in comparison, with limited apps available.
