LG announced CineBeam Qube (Model HU710PB) Yesterday’s Laser Projector: Featuring a minimalist look and height, it weighs 3.28 pounds, measures 135 mm square on one side, and is just 80 mm wide at the front. (For comparison, the iPhone 15 Pro is just under 147mm tall.) It also has an unspecified number of HDMI eARC and USB-C ports, and a 3W built-in mono speaker. What’s impressive is that LG says it can project up to 120-inch images at full 4K resolution with a fairly standard 1.2 throw ratio. Oh, and it even has a handle!
This diminutive projector has some obvious drawbacks. First, it pushes out a relatively dim 500 ANSI lumens (compared to the 2200 ANSI lumens of the larger Xgimi Horizon Pro we reviewed two years ago). So while LG says this projector supports HDR 10, it won’t pop out like a brighter HDR TV outside of a very dark room. The Qube uses the company’s webOS, which is fine as a standalone OS, but doesn’t have the versatility of Google TV or Apple’s tvOS.
But if you want a neat little thing that’s only cursorily useful, none of that may be important. It’s a bit like the intersection between. binome 90’s CGI Cartoon ReBoot and Hand Crank Bell & Howell 8mm camera It was floating around my house. And while I usually balk when companies describe their devices in terms like “stylish interior accessories,” as someone who’s willing to forgive the shortcomings of quirky, boxy technology with handles; I have to admit that Qube is calling to me. For example, GameCube. (Obviously, the GameCube isn’t flawed, but it’s just a convenient example here.)
LG has not announced a price or release date for the Qube, nor has it said whether it will support other LG projector features such as AirPlay 2 or smart voice control. It doesn’t say anything about functionality other than basic functionality. As mentioned above.