---   BUYING USED PROJECTORS   ---


Tips for Purchasing Used Projectors
 -- Jim Gelder, Projectorian.com


There is a brisk market for used projectors, and it is possible to get an excellent model to suit your needs at a very low price.


Like any piece of technology, the price of projectors goes down rapidly over time. And when other companies look for the biggest and best, they often trade in perfectly functional projectors that have very little use on them.


It is very possible to get an excellent projector with many features and functions for a fraction of the price of a new model. Of course, buying used carries the disadvantage of not having a warranty, but in reality, a gently used model that is only two or three years old still has a lot of life left in it.


Depending on your needs, you may be able to do very nicely with an SVGA resolution model, which delivers a resolution of 800 x 600 pixels. Although higher resolutions are widely available, and do deliver a very good picture, the SVGA is adequate for most day-to-day presentation purposes.


It won't do if you're showing highly detailed graphics, or CAD diagrams, but for the basic business Powerpoint presentation, the SVGA model is more than adequate, and the higher-resolution models will not deliver that noticeable of an improvement for these ordinary graphics. The secondhand market is filled with SVGA projectors, since many companies do trade up to models with higher resolution, leaving behind many SVGA models that are quite serviceable, and still have many good features and functions.


Before deciding to buy a used model though, consider what sorts of features you really need. There are many brand new models with basic features that sell for under $1,000. Probably one of the biggest downsides to buying a used unit is the replacement lamp cost. Replacement lamps can sometimes cost as much as the used projector itself, with some lamps costing as much as $400.


A projector lamp will usually last for at least 2,000 hours. Before buying used, find out what the price is for replacement lamps. You are not likely to know how much life the lamp already has on it, and may be surprised when it burns out after just a few uses, leaving you to go out and spend several hundred more dollars for a new lamp.


In many cases, the cost of purchasing a used projector, along with the cost of purchasing a new lamp, will equal the price of a new projector, which will have a brand new lamp and a complete warranty with it.





If you are looking to sell your used projector, you can find a great website offering owners the ability to sell here. If you aren't sure of the value of your projector (whether you are buying or selling) you may want to check out your projector's value via Orion's Blue Book website.