In this review we're covering the new Epson Lifestudio Grand Plus, the follow-up to one of our favorite ultra short throw projectors, the LS800. Back in 2022 when Epson released the LS800, it featured 4,000 lumens of brightness and you could place it just a few inches from the wall, pair it with a 120-inch ambient light-rejecting screen, and get a bright, sharp image even with some lights on. It came with Yamaha 2.1 speakers, a Google-powered smart TV interface, Epson's 3LCD chipset, 10-bit color, and low input lag for gaming. For a projector that sat on your media cabinet and replaced your TV with a 120-inch picture, it was hard to beat for the price.

The Grand Plus is the next chapter. It's designed to replace the LS800 and move the whole concept forward with a shorter throw distance that supports up to 150 inches, an improved 4K system, HDMI 2.1 with 4K at 120Hz for gaming, Bose audio, and Google TV with Gemini built in natively.

Before we get into the details, it's worth addressing the obvious question: why a projector instead of a big TV? TVs are getting larger and more affordable, and a good TV will still beat a projector on contrast, black levels, and peak brightness. But if you want to go really big, 120 inches or more, a UST setup is still the more practical and cost-effective way to get there. A 115-inch TV runs anywhere from $20,000 to $30,000. The Grand Plus paired with a large screen comes in well under that, and you're looking at a bigger image.

If a ceiling-mounted front projector isn't an option for your space and you want that large-screen experience in a normal living room, this is one of the best ways to get there. We have a full video on the projector versus TV debate linked below, and if you're still on the fence, our team is always happy to help you figure out what makes sense for your space.

Build & Design

In terms of build and design, the Grand Plus doesn't stray far from what Epson has been doing with this line. It comes in black or white and shares the same dimensions as the LS800, designed to sit on a media cabinet or credenza right up against the wall. It still fits the Salamander Designs Chicago cabinet, which is built specifically to house it, and Epson offers wall mount options if you'd rather get it off the furniture entirely.

One thing worth noting on the remote: it now has a built-in microphone for Gemini voice interaction, but it is not backlit. The layout is intuitive enough that it becomes comfortable to use in the dark fairly quickly, but it's worth knowing going in.

Throw Distance

One of the things that makes the Grand Plus stand out, even against other USTs, is the throw distance. It needs only 6.8 inches from the lens to the wall to produce a 120-inch image. At 100 inches that drops to less than 4 inches, and at 150 inches it's 11.2 inches. Those are extremely short distances even by ultra short throw standards. Competing USTs like the Hisense PX3-PRO or the Nexigo Aurora Pro MKIII require more distance at every screen size.

This means it fits on a shallower piece of furniture without overhanging the front and gives you more flexibility with placement. If you're working with a standard 8 or 9-foot ceiling, there's also enough headroom for a 150-inch screen. With a thin-frame screen, the total system height at 150 inches comes out to around 7.6 feet — a massive, nearly floor-to-ceiling image in a standard-height room.

Throw Distance Reference:

• 100" - 3.84" from wall
• 120" - 6.8" from wall
• 130" - 8.3" from wall
• 150" - 11.2" from wall

Picture Quality

This is where the upgrade from the LS800 is most apparent. The Grand Plus uses Epson's new 4K Display Technology, which works differently from the 4K PRO-UHD system in the LS800. Where PRO-UHD shifted pixels along one axis, the new system uses dual-axis precision shift glass plates to produce a full 3840 x 2160 image on screen. During our testing, fine detail was more resolved, textures read more clearly, and the image held up better on content with a lot of fine patterns like fabric, sports uniforms, and background detail in films.

Brightness is rated at 4,000 lumens for both color and white output, and that balance matters more than most people realize. A lot of projectors advertise a high white lumen number but have much lower color brightness, which is what you're actually seeing during normal content. Because Epson uses three separate LCD chips — one for each primary color — the color and white lumens are equal. You also avoid the rainbow effect that can show up on single-chip DLP projectors, and color accuracy stays consistent across content types.

HDR Performance

The Grand Plus takes a step forward over the LS800 with Dynamic Tone Mapping. The previous generation used a more static approach to tone curve adjustments, while the new processing does a better job preserving bright highlights while holding onto shadow detail. Dark scenes reveal more information, bright scenes look more controlled, and overall HDR has a more balanced feel. Worth noting: the Grand Plus supports HDR10 but does not support Dolby Vision or HDR10+, so keep that in mind if those formats matter to your setup.

Color Gamut

One area where there are some real-world limitations is color gamut. The Grand Plus covers roughly 78 percent of the DCI-P3 color space, which is solid for a UST projector but not the full picture. On most everyday content — TV shows, sports, standard films — you won't notice. But on content with very heavily saturated colors, particularly deep reds, the projector can struggle to fully reproduce them as intended. It's not a dealbreaker and the image still looks good, but it's honest to acknowledge.

Picture Modes

The Grand Plus has four picture modes: Dynamic, Standard, Cinema, and Natural. For sports and everyday viewing with the lights on, Dynamic gives you the most brightness. For movies, Cinema is where we spent most of our time — more accurate and easier on the eyes for longer sessions. Natural is the most precise if you want to dial things in further. Our recommendation is to find the mode that fits your daytime lighting situation and switch to Cinema or Natural for movie nights.

ALR Screen Recommendation

You can project onto a wall or a standard screen, and some people do. But we'd strongly recommend pairing this with an ALR screen, especially if your room has overhead lighting or windows. The screen surface uses a sawtooth optical pattern that rejects ambient light from above and the sides while directing the projected image toward the viewer. That's what keeps the picture clean with the lights on. In our LS800 testing, even with overhead lights and natural light coming through the windows, colors stayed relatively vibrant and the image held up well. Dim the lights and it gets noticeably better, but for everyday use you don't need to manage the room the way you would with a front projector.

One other note: the Grand Plus runs at 29dB maximum noise versus 32dB on the LS800. Not a massive difference, but in a quiet room during a quiet scene the fan is less noticeable.

Gaming

Gaming is a significant upgrade over the LS800. The LS800 topped out at 4K60. The Grand Plus supports 4K at 120Hz with Auto Low Latency Mode, which means the projector detects when a game console is connected and switches to low latency mode automatically. There's also a dedicated Game Mode you can enable independently if you prefer more manual control. For fast-paced games like shooters and sports titles, the combination makes a meaningful difference.

In testing, input lag measured around 20ms at 4K120 and 29ms at 4K60, which puts it in a comfortable range for most gamers. The HDMI 2.1 ports support HDR gaming, so you're getting the full picture from a PS5 or Xbox Series X. Two of the three HDMI ports are 2.1 rated for 4K120, the third is HDMI 2.0 for up to 4K60, and one of the 2.1 ports carries eARC for routing audio to a receiver.

Input Lag Reference:

• 1080p / 60Hz - 29ms
• 1080p / 120Hz - 21ms
• 4K / 60Hz - 29ms
• 4K / 120Hz - 20ms

Audio - Sound by Bose

The Grand Plus has a Bose system built in — a 2.1 configuration with two 1.8-inch full-range drivers and a 3.1-inch woofer, plus custom spatial processing and four EQ modes: Cinema, Dialogue, Music, and Standard. It's a step up from the Yamaha system in the LS800, but if you're used to a proper sound system you'll notice the gap pretty quickly. It works fine for casual use — a backyard movie night, a room where dedicated audio isn't in the plan yet — but at this screen size the experience really calls for a dedicated audio system. Even a good soundbar will be a noticeable improvement, and ideally you're pairing it with a full surround setup.

Google TV with Gemini

This is one of the most unique parts of the Grand Plus. Google TV with Gemini is built in natively, developed in partnership with MediaTek and Google. The Grand Plus is among the first projectors in the world to ship with Gemini integrated at this level.

The difference from the older Google Assistant experience is how the interaction works. Google Assistant was command-based — short prompt, short answer. Gemini is more conversational. You can follow up, add context, and refine what you're looking for without starting over. The interface also adjusts its layout based on what you're asking, so a sports query looks different from a content search or an educational topic.

Say you finished watching Silo and want to find something new. Instead of a flat list, you get a visually organized response with cover art, show info, and follow-up suggestions. You can ask things like "tell me more about Severance" or "where can I watch Fallout" and it keeps the conversation going naturally. Drill into a title and Gemini shows a summary, ratings, and a direct link to the streaming service that carries it. If Severance is on Apple TV and you have a subscription, it takes you straight there without bouncing between apps.

Sports searches pull up scores, highlights, and quick access to related content on YouTube. For educational or visual content, you can ask to see Van Gogh's most famous paintings and get a full-screen gallery experience. Google Photos is also integrated, so you can pull up pictures from your own library directly on the projector.

This is one of the clearest day-to-day differences between the Grand Plus and the LS800, and one of the reasons we'd actually recommend using the built-in Google TV platform here instead of immediately reaching for an external streaming device. The built-in app supports Dolby Atmos passthrough via eARC, so if you have an Atmos-capable soundbar or receiver you're not giving anything up by staying in the native interface. You don't have to choose between Gemini and good audio.

Connectivity & Screens

The rear panel includes analog and optical audio outputs, Bluetooth in and out, and USB-A ports, all covered by a removable panel so it doesn't look cluttered from the front.

For screens, the Grand Plus works with EPV DarkStar UST3 screens from 126 to 150 inches in motorized, fixed frame, and electric drop-down configurations. If you're not going that large, Epson's SilverFlex ALR screen in 100 or 120 inches is the more approachable option and pairs well with this projector. On cost, the projector paired with a 138-inch EPV DarkStar screen comes in around $6,300 combined. Compare that to a 115-inch TCL Mini-LED at $20,000 or a Samsung 115-inch at around $30,000, and the value case becomes pretty clear.

Our Recommendation

If you're shopping for a UST projector and coming in fresh, the Grand Plus is where we'd point you. The picture is better than the LS800, the gaming specs are a real step up, the software is more capable, and the throw distance gives you more placement flexibility. If you already own an LS800, the picture and gaming improvements are real and worth considering — especially since the LS800 will not receive a Gemini firmware update, so if that's the main draw you would need new hardware.

Overall the Grand Plus is a well-rounded package and one of the more complete UST options available at this price. Just go in knowing that a dedicated audio system and a good ALR screen are really part of the full setup — the projector on its own is only part of the equation.

If you want to talk through screen pairing, placement, or whether this makes sense for your room, our team is here to help. You can also plan your space using our free home theater design tool linked below. When you buy from Audio Advice you get our exclusive setup guide, lifetime expert support, and a price guarantee.

Based on everything covered in the article, here are the questions people are most likely to ask:

Do I need a special screen or can I project onto a wall? You can project onto a wall, but we strongly recommend an ALR screen, especially if your room has any ambient light.

Will I lose Gemini if I plug in an Apple TV or Roku? Yes, Gemini only works through the built-in Google TV interface, which is one of the main reasons we recommend using it natively.

Does it support Dolby Atmos? The projector supports Dolby Atmos passthrough via eARC, so if you have an Atmos-capable soundbar or receiver you'll get the full signal. It does not support Dolby Vision for picture.

Is this compatible with the Salamander Designs cabinet? Yes, it fits the same Chicago cabinet built for the LS800.

Will the LS800 get the Gemini update? No. The Gemini firmware update applies to the Lifestudio Grand, not the LS800, which runs Android TV on a different platform.

Is it good for gaming? Yes, 4K at 120Hz, ALLM, and a dedicated Game Mode with input lag around 20ms at 4K120 makes it a solid option for most gamers.

What screens does it work with? EPV DarkStar UST3 screens from 126 to 150 inches, and Epson's SilverFlex ALR screen in 100 or 120 inches for smaller setups.

Does it fit in a standard 8-foot ceiling room at 150 inches? Yes, with a thin-frame screen the total system height comes in around 7.6 feet.

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