XGIMI has released two advanced lifestyle projectors, including a new flagship model, to the company's Horizon series.

The new top-end Horizon S Max, priced at $1,899, and the Horizon S Pro, at $1,299, will for now sandwich the company's pre-existing Horizon Ultra, which is offered at $1,699 list but is currently being promoted by XGIMI at $1,499. The key differentiator in the new models is a hybrid light engine dubbed Dual Light 2.0 that combines a narrow bandwidth triple laser RGB architecture with an additional wide bandwidth LED element to achieve both wide color gamut (110% BT.2020) and little to no laser speckle and color fringing, plus a claim of improved eye comfort. The Ultra, introduced last year, uses it's own unique hybrid LED+ red laser light source that provided similar benefits though with less brightness potential and more narrow color gaumt that topped out at DCI-P3. The Horizon S Max, at 3,100 ISO21118 lumens, eclipses the Ultra's 2,300 ISO lumens, while the S Pro will offer the S Max's more advanced light engine technology at 1,800 ISO lumens, sacrificing some brightness and other features of the S Max in the name of affordability. The new light engine is itself a spin-off from the dual-light engine developed for the Horizon Max, a model we reported on from CES in January, that was apparently released overseas but never really came to market in the U.S.

Features shared by both Horizon S models include a built-in gimbal stand that in this case provides 360 degree horizontal rotation and 135 degree tilt. A similar feature was first seen in JMGO's N1 Ultra and more recently in Epson's new EF22. Along with advanced auto-setup features seen here and in those other models, the flexible stand seems to be increasingly in demand and helps these projectors achieve the quick setup and ease of use that are a hallmark of the lifestyle category. XGIMI also released a modular stand for the S series, for $159.

On the setup front, both models use XGIMI's most recent and advanced iteration of its Intelligent Screen Adaptation system, which like its predecessors uses optical and TOF (time of flight) sensors that quickly assess the screen/viewing environment to correct image geometry and provide fast and effective auto-focus. Among the features of ISA 5.0 are auto-focus, auto-keystone, auto-obstacle avoidance (which will engage the zoom to shrink the image if a wall hanging or house plant are detected in the light path), auto eye-protection for viewers who come into the projection area, and auto-color correction based on the paint color of the viewing wall.

Both projectors are DLP models that achieve 4K UHD resolution on screen with Texas Instrument's 0.47-inch chipset that utilizes XPR fast pixel-shifting. They boast a claimed 1million:1 dynamic contrast ratio and compatibility with DolbyVision HDR along with HDR10 and HLG, though the S Max adds IMAX Enhanced compliance.

Both also offer a high accuracy mode, first introduced in the Ultra, that provides a near-perfectly tuned image out of the box, and they offer the same Harmon Kardon sound systems consisting of a pair of 12 watt-speakers. A similar audio system on the Horizon Ultra scored exceptionally well among the lifestyle projectors tested for the ProjectorCentral/ProjectorScreen.com 2023 laser and lifestyle projector Showdown, and the DTS-Virtual X faux surround mode we liked has been carried over. Gaming is accommodated with a claimed input lag of less than 20ms with the auto-keystone feature inactive.

Connections on both projectors include a single HDMI port (with eARC support for an outboard audio system), a pair of USB ports, and a wireless Bluetooth 5.1 option. Dual-band WiFi 5.0 supports the Android TV OS and streaming platform, though unlike some other XGIMI models introduced this summer that utilize the Google TV platform, it does not include a native Netflix app. Like the Horizon Ultra model that precedes them, both S series projectors utilize an external power brick to acheive their compact size.

Both new Horizon S series models are available now at Amazon and the XGIMI website.

For more detailed specifications and connections, check out our XGIMI HORIZON S Max projector page.

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