This article is sponsored by LUMOS.
Projectors are becoming an increasingly popular addition to the home. Compared to TVs, they have the advantage of displaying a much larger image at a lower price point. Projectors are also much more versatile – they do not leave a large black rectangle on your wall when not in use, nor do they take up as much space as a TV console. This makes them a perfect solution for bedroom entertainment.
LUMOS’s new projector, the ATOM, takes this versatility a step further with its lightweight and portable design. Weighing just 800g and sized like a Bluetooth speaker, the ATOM can be easily shifted around the house, or even outside the house.
I’ve used the LUMOS ATOM for a couple of weeks and it’s left me rather impressed, so here’s 5 key features of the LUMOS ATOM, and why you might want to consider it for your home. But first, the specs.
LUMOS ATOM Specifications
- Size and weight: 10 x 10 x 16cm, 800g
- Brightness: 6000 Lumens
- Native resolution: 1080p
- Speakers: Dolby Audio
- Battery life: 2 hours
- Memory & Storage: 2GB RAM, 16GB ROM
- Operating System: Android 7.1.2, comes with pre-installed YouTube, Netflix, Play Store, AirPlay
- Connectivity: WiFi, Bluetooth 5.0, HDMI x1, USB-A x2, 3.5mm audio out
- Keystone Correction: Horizontal & vertical ±15°, autofocus
- Misc: Comes with a remote control
- Price: S$999 ($1,054 with adjustable height stand)
Portability
Let’s start with the headlining feature of the LUMOS ATOM: its portability. As its name suggests, the ATOM is really small. It’s about the same size as a Bluetooth speaker; roughly the same height as a Pixel 7 Pro, and hardly any wider. It’s rather light too; at 800g, it’s lighter than basically any laptop.
At this size and weight, you could chuck it in just about any bag, carry it to someone else’s house, and start a viewing party so long as they have a white wall for you to project on. You can even do this if your destination has no WiFi, as you’re able to pre-download videos onto the 16GB of onboard storage.
In fact, that’s exactly what I did. I downloaded the latest episode of Spy x Family on the inbuilt Netflix app, put the LUMOS ATOM in a tote bag, and drove to my new empty apartment, where my fiancé and I watched the episode on a blank wall. No Internet connection, no additional cables, no external speakers required.
Battery Life
That’s where battery life comes in. It’s rated for 2 hours of playback, and from my testing this is rather accurate. To be exact, I hit 1hr 57mins of continuous use in one test, where I spent the first ~30mins to cast some documents from my iPad via AirPlay, then watched a YouTube video on loop, with audio playing through the built-in speakers, until the battery died.
You might be thinking that 2 hours is not remarkable. But consider this – you could bring the LUMOS ATOM to a friend’s house and watch a 1.5-2 hour movie without also having to bring the charger or any external speakers. If you really need to go beyond the 2 hours, you could bring the charger, which doesn’t add a lot of weight. Considering the size and weight of the LUMOS ATOM, that’s plenty acceptable to me. Even more so considering the quality of the image that the ATOM is able to produce. So let’s talk about that.
Display
The LUMOS ATOM projects at a native 1080p Full HD resolution. It’s no 4K, but I was impressed at how sharp the image looked, even at a diagonal of roughly 80”. It’s far sharper than some of LUMOS’s other offerings, which have 720p or even 480p native resolutions. I also found the colours to be vibrant and pleasing. No complaints here.
The LUMOS ATOM also gets plenty bright, being able to output 6000 lumens. That’s bright enough such that I’m able to comfortably view content on it in the evening with my bedside lamp turned on, and without the window blinds drawn. Of course, the darker the better, and if you want to use the LUMOS ATOM in the day, you’ll need decent light control in the room you’re in. There are 3 brightness modes: standard, high light, and energy saving. I found energy saving to be bright enough at night, and it has the advantage of quieter fans and longer battery life.
The image that the LUMOS ATOM casts is large. On my table, about 2m away from the wall, the image cast is roughly 2m diagonally. Don’t worry if your wall isn’t large enough to accommodate the full image, as you’re also able to adjust the zoom in the settings to fit the image onto smaller walls. LUMOS claims that the ATOM is able to cast up to 300” diagonally.
The LUMOS ATOM also comes with automatic autofocus and keystone correction. The latter is the adjustment to ensure a flat image even if the projector is casting at an angle. They work well, and you can also do manual adjustments in the settings if necessary.
Audio
LUMOS has provided Dolby Audio speakers in the ATOM. It sounds decent considering the ATOM’s size, and I definitely didn’t mind watching Netflix or YouTube with the in-built speakers.
For those who want to use their own audio setups, the LUMOS ATOM comes with a 3.5mm port for audio out, and you can even connect your Bluetooth headphones to it.
A nice touch that LUMOS has added is the ability to use the ATOM as a Bluetooth speaker. Upon enabling Bluetooth speaker mode, the ATOM turns off its projection and turns on Bluetooth. You can then connect your phone to the ATOM and use it as a Bluetooth speaker.
Software
The LUMOS ATOM runs on Android 7.1.2, and basically functions like an Android tablet. You have Netflix and YouTube pre-installed, and can download and install more apps (e.g., VLC) via the Play Store as you would on any other Android device. I was even able to sideload some apps (YouTube Vanced and Disney+) via APKs and they worked pretty much as expected.
There’s an inbuilt file explorer which lets you access the file system on the LUMOS ATOM. Using it, I was able to view the files present in a USB thumb drive which I plugged into the ATOM’s USB-A port. I was even able to copy a video file from the thumb drive onto the ATOM’s internal storage, and launch video from the file explorer, into VLC.
The LUMOS ATOM can be controlled via the touchpad on its top surface, but for greater convenience, LUMOS has also provided a remote control in the box. And it is an excellent remote. There are two modes of control: (1) the traditional d-pad; and (2) using the remote as a pointer a la the Wii remote or LG’s TV controllers. While some apps work great with the d-pad (e.g., YouTube), others (e.g., Netflix) will require the use of the pointer remote to mimic touch input. The latter might be a bit finnicky at first, but is easy to get used to.
I found the UX of the ATOM is clean and easy to navigate. There are also other more advanced features, such as inbuilt AirPlay, which required no setup and worked instantly with my iPad. Android devices are also able to do screen mirroring, but will first require a download of the EShare app.
Price & Conclusion
If you are looking for a portable, bright, and sharp projector that’s easy to use, you might want to consider the LUMOS ATOM. Personally, I was considering getting a more expensive 4K projector for my bedroom, but given the performance of the LUMOS ATOM and its small size, it more than meets my needs as my bedroom projector.
The LUMOS ATOM is available for S$999 on LUMOS’s website.