GoKawiilPremium home theater projectors often come at premium prices, usually north of $10,000. The Xgimi Titan Noir Max is different. It’s priced at $5,999, well under five figures, but it supports IMAX Enhanced mode and has outstanding picture quality, a 10,000:1 native contrast ratio, 7,000 lumens brightness, and a unique dual intelligent iris system that makes on-the-fly adjustments.
Even though Xgimi has been around for more than a decade and is known for affordable home cinema models, the company ran a Kickstarter campaign for the high-end Titan Noir Max home theater projector and raised $19 million. In testing, it blasted through my benchmarks, edging out even top models like the Epson Pro Cinema LS9000 and the Leica Cine Play 1 that fall into the same price range. It only faltered a bit when I tried watching evening scenes from movies like Awake and Tron: Ares in a bright and sunny room.
Photograph: John Brandon
While any step-up in quality would likely call for names like JVC or Sony and a professional install that involves wiring and mounting on a ceiling, the long-throw Xgimi Titan Noir Max just sits on a table. It’s consumer-friendly but is highly configurable with advanced features. What really sets it apart is its inky black for movies that creates more of a true home theater look.
Editor’s Note: The Xgimi Titan Noir Max is currently only available through a Kickstarter campaign. As such it is officially unreleased, and the final product is subject to change. If you decide to back it, remember that the usual Kickstarter disclaimers apply and the product you get may be significantly different than the unit we’re reviewing here. (Also, it’s entirely possible you might not get anything at all.)
Easy Setup
I chuckled about the four adjustable legs on the Titan Noir Max at first, mostly because I wondered why no other projector company in my recent memory had tried that. With four legs, you can adjust the projector image up and down or even at an angle. For example, if the projector sits to the side of your couch on a table, you can angle it and adjust the legs as needed. Most projectors I’ve tested recently only have adjustable front legs.