HORIZON S Max

I just got and hooked up my Horizon S Max in my home theater. The picture is OUTSTANDING! Coming from a full 4k Sony VPL-VW285ES, this is a very worthy upgrade. However, I've experienced several issues that just bug me.

1. There appears to be no way to default to the HDMI input at startup. I simply will NEVER use the ATV/Google stuff since I have an AppleTV. I really hope Xgimi can do a firmware upgrade to make this possible.

2. I have this connected to my AVR via HDMI. Even though I have it setup to do so, the projector does not turn on or off when the AVR does. This only appears to work with a directly connected media device (AppleTV, laptop, etc.).

3. The user manual sucks. Way, way too brief as it does not cover the menu items, what they do, and how to get this thing to work optimally. I've been doing Home Theater for 25 years, and I had to guess how some of the settings would affect the picture.

4. XGIMI's support sucks. Try a live chat, and it says to email them. Call the support number, and the recording says... email them. COME ON!!! When you're spending $2000 on a projector, I think it's reasonable to expect some LIVE support when needed.

5. There appears to be no way to connect this projector with my Logitech Harmony Elite. I am FORCED to have a second remote at hand just for the projector.

6. When the projector senses a change in video format (e.g., from 4K to 2K, Dolby Digital to TV, or even between TV programs in the same AppleTV app), it is slow to switch over. You'll see the "HDMI" screen logo for as much as 3 - 5 seconds while this is happening. I assume this is the result of XGIMI electing to use the VERY OLD and VERY SLOW Android TV interface (side note: XGIMI - PLEASE UPDATE THIS TO GOOGLETV ASAP), but either way, it is annoying.

To be clear, I don't regret the purchase. The video quality is top notch and everything I could have wished for. But, the list above makes this a less than 5 star review.

First time buying this brand after much research. Coming from a BenQ machine. The quality, ease of use. I am a dedicated Apple TV user so use that as an interface. I so cannot comment on the native interface. Once my Apple TV connected I was able to link the two devices so that projector would turn on/off automatically with the Apple TV.
Picture quality is amazing.
sound quality is better than I expected and watch football games regularly with the built in Harmon Kardon System
Highly recommended product, exceptional value for money

I upgraded from a benq ht3550.

Love this projector! My benq was getting very dark even inside my light movie room.

The auto keystone and focus are amazing! Price is too good to pass up for a super bright 4k projector with dolby vision and enhanced Imax

The Horizon S Max is one of the latest projectors released by XGIMI. XGIMI have become renowned for exceptional design and cutting edge features that make their top of the line projectors stand out amongst their many competitors. I have owned and reviewed more projectors than I care to remember, and from so many brands; XGIMI have become my favorite.

Unboxing the S Max was easy and the packaging is for the most part recyclable. Inside are the remote control with two AAA batteries, a user guide and the power brick. The brick is large and heavy and I am a tiny bit disappointed that it's so large as placing this for use requires thought on the power brick placement. That being said having a larger power brick allows for a more compact projector. This isn't really a portable projector. You could move it from room to room but with the power brick you'll likely want to set up in your room for the longer term.

The Horizon S Max has the same design DNA as the Mogo 3 Pro, the Elfin Flip, and the flagship Aura 2. They all feature the same color scheme and materials. The S Max is a beautiful and refined machine. It's compact and doesn't take up much space. I love the flexibility of the built in stand which allows you to adjust up or down to 135 degrees, and there is also a rotating bezel under the base for ease of movement from left to right. You can also attach to a projector stand and even have it mounted on the ceiling if that's your thing.

Like the Aura 2 which is an ultra short throw projector the S Max also has a retracting fabric cover which helps to protect the lens when not in use. It activates as soon as you turn on the power. It's a really nice and slick touch, and looks impressive.

Prior to the S Max, XGIMI released the Horizon S Pro which looks identical but has lower ANSI Lumens. The S Max features 3100 ISO Lumens vs 1800. 1800 isn't bad but the 3100 shows a far greater brightness in use. I have an ALR screen and the image looks fantastic, especially at night.

The image quality is excellent given it's 4K. Colors out of the box looks great, very natural and of course can be adjusted. One of the main features that I love with the S Max (and Aura 2) is the 'intelligent screen adaptation'. It works extremely well. Keystone is a breeze and it's easy to tweak the image to fit onto your screen or wall. The auto focus also works very well. There is even a feature that allows you to take an image of your wall (if not using a screen) which you then upload and the projector then adjusts to best provide an accurate image shape and position.

The audio is crafted by Harman Kardon and there are two 12W speakers inside. The sound is wonderful, very immersive and crystal clear. Depending on the size of your room you may wish to use bluetooth to connect to a louder speaker or soundbar but for me and the size of my living room, the sound is ideal and won't have my neighbors complaining.

The projector runs on Android and sadly isn't compatible with Netflix. There is an HDMI port on the back so it's easy to attach a Fire stick and you can watch Netflix on that if desired but pretty much all other apps are available to download. It really opens up the viewing options and as mentioned the 360 speaker technology also makes it a joy to use for listening to music on Spotify or similar. Once you turn on the S Max for the first time you will need to follow the prompts on the screen and login to your Google account. If you do not have one you will need to set up an account to be able to use this.

I would say in the general sense both the Aura 2 and the Horizon S Max are very similar but for different room scenarios. The S Max does have the highest lumens but you will be using it from further away so it makes sense that it's brighter. The Aura 2 has 60W audio speaker power so is louder.

If you decide on the Horizon S Max you will not be disappointed, it's an exceptional 4K projector with stylish design and a load of useful features. It's also competitively priced versus the many other projectors out there in the market.

Great Projector , Very Bright, Contrast has improved from my Previous Xgimi Horizon. Works well with all my Home Theater equipment. The only cons is short on audio Output Ports needed for portable situations , i expected to have all the same Ports as previous Xgimi Projectors , Removing Most Ports on a S Max is not superior to previous Projectors by Xgimi, I need to buy an HDMI Audio extractor now to replace what’s missing .