BenQ TH685 HDR Projector Review

Reading Time: 5 minutes

Stand Out Specs

Resolution	1080p (1920×1080)
Brightness (ANSI lumens)	3500lm
Display Colour	30 Bits (1.07 billion colors)
Resolution Support	VGA(640 x 480) to WUXGA(1920 x 1200) / Ability to play 4K HDR content in 1080p HDR via HDMI 2.0
Image Size	30″~300″
Speaker	5W Chamber Speaker x 1
Response Time	8.3ms Response Time

Make Every Room a Games Room

“Turn any space into your private entertainment arena”…it sounds like a gamer’s dream! But the BenQ TH685 says it will make that a reality. A HDR projector with the ability to connect to consoles, streaming devices and more, you can watch films and play games on a wall anywhere in your home!

With a resolution of Full HD 1080p, it almost sounds too good to be true. When I think of projectors, I often think of faded images and perhaps a little grainy. But did the BenQ TH685 go above and beyond my expectations, or project my thoughts of poor quality? Let’s find out.

An Absolute Unit

Pulling the BenQ TH685 out of the box, I immediately could tell it was fairly heavy and sturdy. It’ll need to be set up on something that can take its weight and which has enough room for it. Of course, it also has to be positioned towards a blank wall at the right height. You may want to take some measurements before buying so you know where it can fit in your home; the projector itself is 12 x 4 x 9 inches (W x H x D), so think about where would be best to put it. You don’t want to purchase it and then find there’s nowhere for you to use it!

Though it is quite large, it isn’t unnessecarily, and the chances are if you’re going to splash the cash on it, you will be willing to accommodate it. The white design with the black lens is sleek, and it also has a textured feel to it. It fit right at home with my black and white computer case alongside my Xbox Series S!

Mind-Blowing Quality

Though you can connect the BenQ TH685 to a range of things, using the HDMI slot, the USB type A slot and the VGA slot, I spent my time with it connected to my Series S. Immediately, I was shocked at the crystal clear quality! The colours were bright, nothing was blurred or faded, and it genuinely was no different from a TV screen.

Though it does work in daylight and bright environments, I definitely got the full effect from playing in a dark room at night. It’s perfect for turning your room into a mini cinema to watch your favourite film! Also, the projector has a range of features to make the most of the space you have available, without losing quality. It has a 1.3X zoom to adjust to the throw distance you want, and a digital lens shift allows you to alter the projection height. There’s a throw distance calculator on the BenQ website to help you out.

Glorious Gaming

Of course, as the BenQ TH685 is catered for console gaming, I have to mention that using my Series S with it went as smoothly as possible. With an 8.3 ms response time and gameplay of 1080p at 120Hz, input lag is extremely low, playing in real-time. I’ve mainly been playing Assassin’s Creed Valhalla and Cyberpunk 2077, so this was perfect for reacting swiftly in combat. I can imagine this makes online shooters a much better experience too.

The wide screen makes it more than ideal for party games too, so all of your friends or family can gather around and see gameplay clearly. There’s actually a Game Mode to truly use the projector’s capabilities, such as enhancing dark scenes, and turning on Fast Mode enables low input lag. I found out this information via a reviewers guide I was sent, not within my actual package. This may be just because I was using a review unit, but I think all this information should be included within the box if not!

The 5w built-in speaker in the TH685 is high quality too. Game Sound Mode, allows you to hear any enemy or the tiniest of details. While playing Assassin’s Creed I could hear the sound of birds tweeting which I don’t usually pick up on, and it genuinely sounded as if they were in my bedroom!

Burning Up

Something I did notice about the BenQ TH685 was that it did get quite warm almost straight away. Though this didn’t cause any problems, it does make me a little concerned about using it for long sessions. It also had quite a noisy fan, but I suppose both of these things show the power the projector has too. The noise also became much less noticeable when watching or playing something, so it wasn’t an overwhelming issue, and depends how close you are to it too.

Worth Every Penny

At a fairly hefty price tag, you are paying for what you are getting, and that is a high-quality projector perfect for gaming and entertainment! The BenQ TH685 is made for those mad about technology, and well worth the investment. I was thoroughly impressed with the HD visuals that a projector can cast with up to a 300″ screen. It truly surpassed all my expectations. Compatible with all your gaming and streaming devices, I could not recommend the TH685 more to bring the big screen to anywhere in your home!

Rapid Reviews Rating

You can purchase the BenQ TH685 from the official website here.