The InFocus IN2116 ($759 list) is a formidable projector with good brightness and resolution. With solid image quality, a good feature set, and a five-year limited warranty, it’s a more than reasonable choice as a data projector suitable for a conference room or classroom.

The IN2116 is matte black and rectangular, with rounded edges and corners. At 4.6 by 12.4 by 9.5 inches and a weight of 7.0 pounds, you won’t want to lug it around very frequently or far, but it does have a soft carrying case. The projector’s focus and zoom wheels are accessible through a recess in the top, and are easy enough to manipulate. Atop the projector is a backlit control panel, which you can use along with or in place of the remote control. The projector is rated at 3,000 lumens. Its native WXGA (1,280 by 800) resolution translates to a 16:10 aspect ratio.

This projector has a solid selection of connection ports: Two VGA-in ports for connecting to computers, a VGA-out for connecting to a monitor; S-Video; a serial port; an Ethernet port; a mini-USB port; an RCA jack for composite video (though lacks the corresponding audio RCA jacks); and both audio-in and audio-out jacks. The LitePort Type A USB port lets you run a JPEG presentation computer free using a remote. A notable absence is an HDMI port.

An optional Wi-Fi module lets you connect to a wireless network, though you’ll have shell out $249 (list) for it.

Data and Video Testing

The IN2116 threw a six-foot diagonal image to fill our test screen from about 10 feet away. It proved bright enough to stand up to significant ambient light in a small to mid-sized room. In my testing using the DisplayMate suite, data image quality proved adequate for typical classroom or business presentations. The most notable issue was tinting: some grays showed a slight greenish cast, some bright areas showed traces of yellow or blue fringing at their edges, and the smallest white-on-black text in our text testing was a bit blurred and showed some reddish fill.  

In my testing, the IN2116 showed traces of the rainbow effect, a phenomenon that affects many DLP-based projectors. In it, some bright areas break down into their component colors to appear as rainbow-like flashes when one shifts one’s gaze—or, in  video, when an object moves. People vary in their sensitivity to the effect; I seem to be about average. With this projector, the rainbow effect was mild enough that few people are likely to be distracted by it (if they even notice it).

Video quality is good enough to show short to mid-length clips as part of a presentation. There was some loss of detail in brighter areas of our test clips, and some scenes showed traces of posterization: the tendency for sudden shifts in color where they should be gradual. The rainbow effect in the IN2116’s video was typical for DLP projectors; I noticed it in certain test scenes, and it could be distracting to someone sensitive to it, though probably not to the average viewer.

Other Issues

The IN2116 is 3D ready, compatible with both TI’s DLP Link and Nvidia’s 3D system, though you’ll need to buy the glasses, and the Nvidia system requires a compatible Nvidia video card in your computer.

The IN2116’s audio is a plus: its two 5-watt speakers can play decent-sounding audio at a volume that’s fine for small to mid-sized classrooms or conference rooms. If it isn’t enough, the audio-out jack lets you connect to powered, external speakers.

The InFocus IN2116 is a solid, reasonably bright WXGA projector for classroom or business use. Its data image quality is fine for typical presentations, video is adequate for shorter clips, and audio is loud and of reasonably good quality. It does have an optional Wi-Fi module, though it’s on the pricey side.

The Editors’ Choice NEC NP-M260W ($850 street) has a more robust selection of ports (most notably HDMI), and better image quality for both data and video; like all LCD-based projectors, it’s immune to the rainbow effect. The Editors’ Choice Optoma TW675UTi-3D ($1,800 street, 4 stars) is pricier, but lets you create interactive presentations for the classroom or conference room.

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