Barco announced the launch of the UDX projector range during an exclusive press and partner event with the official launch done live from a theatre room within the company’s One Campus HQ yesterday.
The models in the new range include the flagship UDX-4K32 (pictured), the UDX-W32 and UDX-U32 in the 32,000-lumen segment and the UDX-4K22 and UDX-W22 each 22,000 lumens.
Aimed at large venue fixed installs and the rental market, the projectors were three years in development and are the most compact 4K laser projectors with integrated cooling on the market.
“People ask ‘can these projectors serve two markets?’ Well, as a matter of fact because of the compactness of the design – we can do it,” said Carl Rijsbrack, VP events and pro AV at Barco.
“We involved our customers closely during the development of our brand-new UDX to focus on their needs and challenges. The result is a projector platform that allows rental houses and venue owners to deliver exceptional audience experiences while reducing installation time and cost. It’s designed and built with our customers, for our customers.”
On the reason for the higher brightness, Rijsbrack explained: “There’s always a race for more light, why? Because of ambient light.”
The size and brightness are two key drivers as is the higher resolution, “It’s not just about illumination, it’s about resolution, where we step up towards 4K,” said Alexis Skatchkoff.
“The UDX fulfils the requirements we are looking for,” stated Thomas Gellermann, head of R&D at Kraftwerk Living Technologies. “It features high-resolution 4K which is essential for bright images. It also has the power of laser phosphor illumination up to 32,000 lumens and that’s the range our large-screen installations are going for. What’s more, the design is easy to maintain and handle.”
The brand-new UDX projectors are beginning a world tour, taking in more than 40 locations as they showcase Barco’s latest 4K image processing technology. Trade show stops include Prolight + Sound in Frankfurt next week, as well as InfoComm China, (12-14 April, Beijing), InfoComm Brazil (São Paulo, 23-25 May) and InfoComm17 (Orlando, 10-16 June).
The UDX projectors will ship in June.
