The Cibest Projector is a low-budget projector aimed at the low-end market. It’s a solid video projector, capable of accepting 1080p input, though its resolution is lower than advertised, which I’ll get into. Cibest claims it’s good for PS4, Xbox, and other console use, and its low price makes it good for a low-price TV stick setup. It’s one of the best long throw projectors in the ultra-budget range, but it’s the poster child of the saying “you get what you pay for”. This may be a good time to think about a quality laser projector instead.
Why We Like It – Cibest Projector
The Cibest Projector is a solid home theater projector aimed at budget markets that are focused primarily on media consumption. While it has a lot of issues, as $89 pieces of technology are wont to do, it provides incredible value.
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- Very low price
- Decent picture quality
- Long lamp life
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- Bulb isn’t user-replaceable
- Misleading advertising; resolution is 800×480, it only accepts a 1080p signal
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Performance/Resolution Etc.
As far as home theater projectors go, the Cibest Projector is a mixed bag. For starters, Cibest is misleading in its marketing–the actual resolution of the product is a very measly 800×400, NOT 1080p. It only accepts a 1080p input, which is downscaled to 800×400 at max. Cibest only hints at this in their marketing; they claim it’s “not recommended for PPT business presentations”, which would be odd if it was 1080p given that only very low-res projectors are bad for PowerPoints. That said, the picture quality is otherwise fine given the price, but if you want real 1080p projectors at low prices, the Vankyo V600, Topvision projector, and the POYANK projector are options to check out.
Brightness/Lumens
Cibest doesn’t post an official spec, but user reviews say the Cibest video projector gets bright enough in dimly lit rooms. As with all projectors, it will appear dim and washed in direct lighting, though it’ll do the job even in medium ambient lighting. You can also try the ViewSonic PA503S if you want to produce really bright images with its 3800 lumens. Or, you can check out the Optoma short-throw projector with 4200-lumens.
Adjustability/Viewing Angle
Supporting HDMI, VGA, and audio jacks, the Cibest mini projector features adequate port selection. Its range of size ranges from 30” to 200” according to Cibest’s own specifications, though anything close to its max range would make for a miserable experience given its pitiful resolution. You can get a slightly better resolution from the Asus Zenbeam E1, but it might get washed out in brighter rooms.
Durability
Cibest claims the Cibest Projector has a lamp life of 50,000 hours, though that claim should be taken with a grain of salt given they outright lie about the projector’s resolution. That figure beats out high-end DLP projectors like the BenQ TK850 Projector and ViewSonic 4K Projector, even claiming to nearly double the shelf life of very high-end laser projectors. Needless to say, their claimed lamp life is incredibly dubious, though longevity shouldn’t really be an issue regardless.
Value
Value is the Cibest Projector’s main saving grace, considering how misleading their marketing is. For $89.99, it’s very hard to ask much; it has a decent selection of inputs, the picture quality is okay, and it comes in at the fraction of the price of even decent low-end televisions.
Cibest Projector Wrap-up
Despite the lies and misdirections in Cibest’s marketing and spec sheets, the Cibest Projector isn’t a bad product overall. Its low price is very attractive, and while it sacrifices a lot to hit that price (and tries to lie its way out of those sacrifices), at the end of the day it’s incredibly cheap and it works for what it’s meant to do. If you’re after a budget projector, I highly recommend the Vankyo V600 over this, but if you’re trying to pinch every penny that can possibly be pinched, you can’t entirely go wrong with Cibest’s offering.
