The bulb design brings the highs and lows of traditional projectors.

The 3.7-pound NP62 is only about as big as two hardcover books. It’s a traditional projector, with a consumable bulb rated for up to 2,500 hours of use. While bulbs can be pricey--a replacement costs $299--this projector easily overpowers the other two.

Bright images remain clear and legible in a lit room, look great in a dimmed setting, and show crisp detail in the dark. Colors look fairly bright in any of those settings--although best when dark. But compared to a similarly priced, full-sized projector, you’re still paying for size; its images can’t compare to a bigger device.

The 1,024x768-pixel images show a lot of detail, especially when connecting through the VGA port. The projector also includes the versatile extras of S-Video and composite RCA ports, so it’ll work with nearly any source.

A few other extras can be ideal for presentations or just sharing impromptu photos. Speakers are a nice touch, although hardly push volume above the whirring fan. And a USB port or included Bluetooth adapter can directly play photos from a flash drive or other device.