According to market researcher Pacific Media Associates (PMA) the worldwide front projector market grew by 16% in Q2 2011 compared to the same quarter last year.
The sub-500 lumen market – primarily comprising picoprojectors, both standalone and, increasingly, being built into consumer devices such as cameras and phones – unsurprisingly saw the highest growth at 195%.
In what PMA calls the mainstream range – projectors delivering between 500 and 5,000 lumens – unit sales dropped by 4% in Q2 2011 compared to Q2 2010. PMA noted that, without sales into education – which remained strong – this market would have seen an even more substantial decline.
“The year/year slowdown in the mainstream market was seen mainly in developed markets, many of which saw buoyant sales during last year’s second quarter because of the industry’s post-recession inventory correction, sporting events like Euro Football, and strong education technology spending from the US stimulus” said Michael Abramson, VP of projector research at Pacific Media Associates. “Despite the weak comparisons, ultra-short-throw projectors, including the emerging interactive models, continued to outperform the overall market, even in developed countries.”
Sales of high-end models continued to outperform the overall market as volume rose 26% in the second quarter vs. the comparable quarter last year. D-cinema shipments registered another quarter of 50%+ growth, and the momentum is expected to continue the rest of the year with the announcement of many new financing and deployment agreements. The traditional high-end market for large venues also performed well, said PMA, with double-digit gains continuing in sales of Wide XGA and Wide UXGA models.
