Beamer: How many lumens do I need? Clearly explained

You should ask yourself how many lumens a projector should have if you want to set up a real home cinema for your home. Because the information about lumens is crucial when it comes to a good projector. This practical tip explains how much lumen your projector should have.

Beamer: That means the term "lumen"

• The brightness of the image is very important for the projector. The brightness is measured in lumens.
• "Lumen" stands for the brightness that the image of the projector can achieve per specific area.
• The larger the projection area of ​​the projector, the more lumens it should have.
• The number of lumens is also significantly influenced by the ambient brightness. The darker the room, the better the picture is displayed and the less lumens you need for an ideal picture.

Your projector should have that much lumen

When buying a projector, you should always keep the following values ​​in mind:

• Projectors with less than 100 lumens / m² are generally not recommended for your home cinema. The image is reproduced too dark and with too little contrast - even when the surrounding darkness is ideal. Such projectors are at best suitable for a small presentation that contains little to no pictures and a lot of text.
• Projectors up to 250 lumens / m² should only be used in very well darkened rooms. In order to get the ideal result of your home theater evening with such projectors, you should always close the roller shutters when looking at them.
• On the other hand, projectors up to 500 lumens / m² are also recommended if you do not want to completely darken the room. You can safely leave the shutters open a bit. In direct sunlight, however, the picture can quickly become too dark.
• The best experience can be achieved with a projector over 500 lumens / m². This means that you always have the perfect picture, both in bright rooms and in direct sunlight. You can also enjoy your film outdoors in sunlight with such projectors.

This way you always create the perfect picture for your home theater evening

So that the overall brightness per area is correct, you should stick to the following calculation:

• Multiply the image size in m² you want to project by the maximum lumen number of the projector you want to buy.
• Do you want z. B. throw a 6m² picture on the wall, your projector should have between 600 and 3000 lumens. If you can then completely darken the room, 600 lumens are sufficient. If you want to enjoy the perfect picture experience in the light instead, you should use a projector with about 2000 lumens.

If new projectors are too expensive for you, you can also buy a used projector. In another article, we will tell you what to look for when buying a projector. Tip: You can also find projectors at the Voelkner online shop, although you can also save a lot of money with our vouchers.