Micro Professional Projector MPRO110

• 3M MPRO110 MPro110 Micro Professional Projector, 1280 x 768 Resolution, Silver/Black
• Price per each SKU# MMMMPRO110

I bought this just a week or two after it was released, after reading a couple of reviews that were in the secondary (not mainstream) media. These reviews must have been written by geeks who never have to actually present anything. They said they liked it. I am not sure why! Because it is small?--maybe, but other than that, it is useless. I can't imagine subjecting a group of more than one to try to look at the image. They would question why I did not just show it on my notebook computer. The largest image possible was about 28" and the larger the image, the fuzzier and the fainter the image.

Don't waste your money! The reason you would buy this is to do presentations on the road, where the portable nature of the unit makes it easy to transport. Sure--it is very small, but the output is absolutely terrible. Why would you want to show any product or presentation through a dirty lens? That's what it looks like. Its like trying to hold up a candle to a negative or slide and trying to view it. The resulting image is skewed, fuzzy, and, in many cases, unreadible. I had it hooked up to my notebook computer with a 13" display and I compared both images. Realize that I had darkened the room to almost black (which is hard to do in most business environments) and the image on my notebook computer was stunning compared to the 3M output. It was like a weak flashlight trying to light up a Powerpoint. Waste of money. I returned the same day it came in, and had a 15% restocking fee for the piece of junk. This is the first product that I knowingly bought made by 3M. It is an embarrassment and certainly will make me think twice about buying a 3M-branded product. Stick with conventional alternatives or use your notebook display. Pocket the $300-$400 and let it grow for 30 years.

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If you are considering the 3M MPRO110, my recommendation is that you fully understand your use and purpose as well as the limited capabilities of this product before you buy it. It is definitely NOT a replacement for the typical portable projector by any measure. It certainly looks impressive and is a very compact unit. It will suit the specific needs of some but generally does not compare well with the capabilities of other portable projectors.

In my situation I was only looking for a personal unit to use in my office in a darkened environment with a white projector screen and a laptop/notebook computer to display Windows WMV video files and Apple Quicktime MOV video files. It appears that the MPRO110 may meet my very minimal requirements since I will be the only one using it as a study aid. The picture at maximum distance, projects large enough (nearly as large as my 61" Sony rear projection TV) in my case, which may justify the use of the MPRO110. However what is displayed is not equivalent or even close to the original display output because the brightness and sharpness of the image are not sufficient for most purposes.

The good, the bad, the ugly:

1. The MPRO110 cable for PC/laptop/notebook connectivity is way TOO short and in my opinion should be at least 3ft-4ft in length.

2. The MPRO110 unit really does needs a stand or tripod to rest on at sufficient height to allow the greatest distance 1800mm (71") around 6ft, in order to achieve maximum picture size and to justify its actual use.

3. The MPRO110 power connector cable should have been at the back because it seems to keep pulling the unit off balance because of the short length of the VGA cable despite its own ability to swivel around at the contact point. The cables tend to make it hard to keep the unit flat on a surface.

4. Brightness of the MPRO110 is only marginally acceptable in a darkened room although it is reasonable to expect better than what it projects.

5. MPRO110 focus is limited and I found the focus control range and use to be not very acceptable.

6. The on off button and the focus control are small and that's OK but the plastics lack tactile feel and a nicer button or control using some hardened rubberized material that a user can grip more easily would be much better.

7. To insert, charge and use the battery a small screw must be removed to take the cover off and this is not documented in the Operators Guide or Quick Start Guide.

8. I like the display compatibility and support all the way up to WXGA but would love to see it provide at least 1280 x 1024 support or greater in the future. The Operators Guide does not show the support for WXGA as is displayed on the 3M website.

9. The 3M MPRO110 has an impressive form factor being extremely compact and lightweight.

10. Connecting and setting the MPRO110 is not difficult and it is easy to use.

The 3M MPRO110 is an excellent product in concept. It is very evident to anyone attempting to use the unit in its current implementation that there are significant shortcomings for usability. 3M obviously understands the need for a compact portable projector but the execution could have been so much better. With an enhanced engineering effort and greater output capability, a unit like this done right would have taken the projection market by storm. There is a very real and a very large demand for a unit like this that can deliver. 3M in my experience is a quality vendor, however this unit does not live up to the promise of what it should have been. It does have potential and I can only hope that 3M acknowledge its shortcomings by making substantial improvements to the next generation.

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I have this and I still like it after about 80 hours of use.

As mentioned by others, the display is only VGA so you can't expect

laptop quality when projected 8 feet away. I actually use mine at up to 12 foot distance in a 80 to 90% darkened room.

The VGA cable is definitely a hassle due to it being only about 2 feet long and quite stiff. I'm looking for a replacement out of convenience rather than necessity.

If using a tripod, which I do and reccomend, I suggest, for stability you get the heaviest one you can. Mounting up on a tripod allows better cooling (there is no cooling fan) and that may convert to longer life since heat is notorious for slowly destroying electronics.

I've sampled 2 other brands and overall I'm still happy with this unit.

G'Day!

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I agree with both the good and the bad reviews. I bought this as part of a "road warrior office in a bag" kit that I put together. Everything I need (minus a printer) for less than 5 lbs. It's completely mobile. The projector is good, I can project a 36" PowerPoint slide show without turning off all the lights. I have to turn most of them off, however, and the cord length is a real pain. Jiggle the cable and the projector loses signal and needs a couple of minutes to reacquire the picture. What's worse is that there isn't a stand, so you end up building a platform out of books and coasters.

I recommend this projector to people who do small scale presentations in hotel rooms or customer's living rooms. It's better than having five people crowd around a laptop's screen, but it's nowhere near as nice as hooking into a big LCD monitor/TV

I had wanted one of these for a while mainly to watch movies in flight. Projecting on to the seat in front of me vs. viewing on an Ipod screen was too much to resist. I had a $200 pricepoint and was tempted to get it and am pleased so far. My take:

It's not fair that a reviewer pointed out that you needed to remove a screw to put in the battery. Hard to believe the reviewer did not have something that would allow them to easily open this. I'm glad it's there as I have too many devices that have the battery door pop off.

The tripod is not an option you really need this to position this for viewing. I have the one with the flexible legs that I use with a small video camera and it works great with the Mpro.

It's not intended as a replacement for a desktop projector and doesn't fill those shoes. The brightness is OK for what I need it for and better than other reviewers have reported.

The iPod connectivity is important to me. It comes with a male 1/8 plug 'in' to the unit and a male RCA to take the video input. Thoughtfully it comes with a female to female adapter; for the Ipod you can use the video cable that you would use with a dock, etc. So it's male 1/8 into the projector, male RCA, female RCA with adapter, to the male RCA plug out from the Ipod. This works but is way to cumbersome for my use. Instead I have purchased the retractable Ipod to male RCA and a connector that is female RCA on one side and male 1/8 plug on the other.

You can use the headphone's jack as output even though the composite audio is connected.

Get an extension cable if you want to use it with VGA.