BenQ GS50 Review | Trusted Reviews

The BenQ GS50 is a bit sturdier than many of its competitors thanks to its splash-proof and drop-proof body, making it easier to carry around (especially since it comes with a bag). It ships with an Android TV streaming dongle, but like many of its competitors, it doesn’t support Netflix natively. The image quality is good, with Full HD image resolution and HDR support, but this model has low brightness and should be used in the darkest possible conditions.

prologue

One of the joys of having a portable projector is taking it outside to the backyard cinema. However, most portable projectors aren’t specifically designed for the great outdoors, which can be a problem when it starts to rain.

With the BenQ GS50, you don’t have to worry too much because it’s designed for outdoor use and is splash-proof and drop-proof (within limits).

In a neat cube package with a built-in battery and smart features via Android TV, it’s a decent portable projector at an affordable price, but it’s not very bright.

design

• Small cube with drip-proof exterior
• Android TV via dongle
• decent array of ports

Most portable projectors don’t look that exciting, but the BenQ GS50 is different. Decked out in a combination of green, orange, and white with soft-touch plastic, this projector looks more fun than many of its competitors.

As well as being fun, the projector is IPX2 rated and splash-proof, so it won’t be affected by rain. It can also withstand drops. Useful if a clumsy person knocks over the projector outdoors.

At 2.35kg and 186 x 154 x 146mm, the GS50 isn’t the lightest portable model. Then it’s good that BenQ offers a sturdy carrying case. It doubles as storage, provides ample protection for your projector, and protects the lens when not in use.

Ease of setup is key to any portable projector, and the GS50 excels in that regard. The front has an adjustable stand that offers different angles of tilt (a step up from the XGIMI Halo+’s one-position kickstand).

There is also a standard screw hole, so it can be attached to a tripod.

The range of inputs is good, with HDMI, USB-C (DisplayPort) and USB all available. Technically, there are two HDMI inputs, the second hidden under a cover on the back of the projector.

This port is designed to use the included BenQ QS01 Android TV dongle. With this installed, the projector gets her Wi-Fi, streaming and apps. It’s a bit strange that these features aren’t built in. Especially since attaching the dongle is a bit of a hassle. I had to push the dongle firmly to lock it in place and make it recognized by the projector.

Bluetooth is available on both input (using the GS50 as a speaker) and output (to connect to external speakers), plus HDMI ARC and a 3.5mm audio output.

It has a simple layout, supports Google Assistant voice control, and ships with a Bluetooth remote with responsive buttons.

A volume control is also located on the top of the projector, along with a power button and a button to switch the projector to Bluetooth speaker mode.

Features

• Automatic vertical keystone correction and autofocus
• Amazon Prime and Disney+ are supported, but Netflix is ​​not

When I turn on the BenQ GS50 and point it at the screen, it goes through an autofocus routine and works very well. There’s also an automatic vertical keystone to get a square image if you tilt the projector up.

This automatic correction is not very good. First, the projector “fixed” itself, but the horizon line appeared jagged and broken. I ended up setting up the projector manually with automatic mode turned off. XGIMI Halo+’s fully automatic keystone correction is better as it corrects both vertically and horizontally, and XGIMI Horizon Pro’s obstacle avoidance is even better.

Android TV is available via a dongle and has access to the Google Play Store. Here you can get Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and Paramount Plus, but there is no Netflix app as it is not certified to work with this device. Philips PicoPix MaxTV bucks this trend by supporting it, but this is a common limitation of portable projectors.

This projector had a not-so-smooth interface and some lag. Both XGIMI and Philips seem more responsive.

performance

• not so bright
• decent audio
• good image quality
• Pictures that sometimes frighten me

BenQ has not disclosed the size of the DMD chip in this DLP projector. Given the choices available, it’s unlikely that the chip is native Full HD. Instead, XPR technology steps in and moves the DMD chip to build a higher resolution image layer by layer.

The technology works well, and the images look nice and sharp, especially when compared to older, lower-resolution projectors like the Nebula Capsule Max.

The brightness is rated at 500 lumens, but it’s not that bright compared to the Philips PicoPix MaxTV and XGIMI Horizon+, which are both rated at 900 lumens. The difference is more noticeable in bright rooms, where the BenQ needs to close the blinds to project a larger image than a small TV.

When it’s very dark, you can easily get 100+ inch images from this projector. At dusk, you’re probably looking at more of the big 80-inch TV size picture.

The projector is rated at 1080p but accepts 4K input and supports HDR10 and HLG HDR. Both options look great, the scaled-down high resolution looks better than the lower native resolution film, and HDR improves contrast. Even if the projector’s maximum brightness isn’t enough to provide the full blazing brightness that a decent TV provides.

Overall, I was impressed with the quality of the image. When I saw something bright and colorful like Coco, I knew the image was bright and vibrant. More like Halo+ than Philips PicoPix MaxTV.

Looking at something as moody as Werewolf by Night, the BenQ GS50 does a reasonable job. HDR helps smooth out contrast, but details are lost in the darkest parts of the image, with blacks grayer than darker blacks and adding a slight greenish tint to the image.

You have very little control over your image as you can choose from preset image modes (Sports, Cinema, etc.). When watching HDR, the image mode is automatically set to HDR10. There are controls to adjust brightness, contrast, contrast, color, sharpness and color temperature, but it’s up to you.

I did notice a bit of judder on fast pans, but nothing to worry about.

The sound quality of this projector is very good. There are dual 5W speakers and his 10W woofer to add punch to movie soundtracks. The BenQ GS50 isn’t going to beat a decent soundbar. Still, it’s big and detailed enough, and importantly for a portable projector, it doesn’t need to be hooked up to a set of external speakers.

The LED light source is not replaceable, but is under warranty for 3 years or 20,000 hours. If you keep watching 8 hours a day, 20,000 hours is almost 7 years.

The built-in battery provides up to 2.5 hours of playback, depending on the projector mode. It’s worth dropping into low power mode to extend the run time, but this will reduce brightness. Wait until it gets dark to use this projector. Overall, you can watch a normal-length movie on a single charge.

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As part of this mission, every time we review a product, we ask the company a series of questions that help measure the environmental impact of the device and increase transparency.

There are currently no answers to questions about this product, but we will update this page as soon as we receive answers. You can find a detailed breakdown of the questions we ask and why on our Sustainability Information page.