TCI Movielux Screens Video Format ML160 - projection screen

Author's product rating:   

Reliability	Good
Ease of Use	Very Easy
Quality	Good
Durability	Good
Value for Money	Good

Advantages:	Easier to use than a tripod, smooth screen, easy to carry, height adjustable
Disadvantages:	Full width base takes up more space than tripod

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

If you have to go out of your office from time to time doing presentations in a range of places like village halls and schools you will be only too well aware that you can't always depend on there being a proper projector screen to hand. Nor can you rely on there being a suitable blank wall, in just the right place, to enable you to project your carefully prepared PowerPoint presentation on to it.

Fear not! Help is at hand in the form of the TCI Movielux Screens Video Format ML160 - projection screen - (what a long title for a product!) Quite simply it is a projector screen encased into a spring loaded casette and the casette also serves as a stand. Retailing at around £145 the Movielux projector screen is a reasonably priced screen that it ideally suited to being transported around.

It is a simple idea which works very well indeed - all you need to do is to pick it up by the convenient, built in carrying handle and load it into your car and you are ready to go to the venue. Once there you simply unclip the telescopic vertical support from the bottom of the base of the unit and insert it into the slot on the top of the base and extend the support to the height you require. The screen itself can then be unrolled to the right height by pulling on the handle and then hooking the handle over the top of the telescopic support. This takes minutes, that is all, and you have a smooth screen just waiting for you to project your images!

Packing it away it as simple as reversing all the previous steps and carrying it away. There are no bags to mess about with (or to need to 'hide' while you do the presentation), everything clips into a single unit ready for carrying away. If you don't want to extend the screen to it's full height (which is well over 6ft) you can open it just halfway (or any height in between) and stand the unit on a table top - this makes it really flexible to suit different venues.

I have had mine for about a year and had no problems with it. I like the cassette storage system as I think it protects the fabric of the screen from accidental damage when it is not in use and when in transit. The fact that the whole thing is so easy to erect and dismantle makes it less likely to get damaged in normal use either.

What I particularly like about this projector screen is that it is so simple to put up - there is nothing worse than wrestling with a tripod and screen as people are gathering for a meeting especially if the tripod appears to be winning! Also once you put the screen up it is flat and aligned directly with the base - the tripod ones often seem to 'blow in breeze' or twist themselves and you don't have that problem with this screen. If you need to change the angle to the audience you can simply do so just by moving the base and because the screen goes right down to floor level you can even hide your laptop case and briefcase behind it!

I believe using this makes me look more professional and businesslike which gives me more confidence before I start. At a cost of around £145 these are more expensive than the some of the more traditional screen and tripod kits but I feel they are well worth the difference. They also come in a range of widths to suit varying needs and pockets! Overall if you need to take a screen with you on a fairly regular basis then I can recommend the Movielux Projection Screen as part of your presentation kit.