It lets you wirelessly cast from your laptop, smartphone and even your PS5 and Nintendo Switch.
Its built and designed fantastically, and its quite bright for its size.
However, resolution is limited to 720p and its battery life is short.
I love watching TV shows and playing video games, but sometimes, my 43-inch TV just isnt enough.
Grabbing one of thebest projectors, like the Aurzen ZIP Tri-Fold Portable Projector.
I cant help but describe the ZIP Tri-Fold as revolutionary.
But is it still worth buying?
Read my full Aurzen ZIP Tri-Fold Portable Projector review to find out more.
Portable projectors dont come cheap either.
Its Z-shape works well upright for films or on its side for portrait TikToks orYouTubeShorts.
The projector is highly portable when its folded down, measuring just 3.3 x 3.1 x 1 inches.
I placed theZIP Tri-Fold projectoron my bedside table without it taking up too much space.
It weighs just 9.88 ounces too, which is very lightweight and makes for easy transportation.
Its build quality is superb too.
The ZIP Trid-Fold is made entirely of machined aluminum, which gives it a premium edge.
Its nice and cool to touch.
This projectorcomes in two colors, Titanium Gold and Dark Gray.
I tested the former, which looks lovely.
An air outlet is located next to the lens, and another air vent is located on the back.
The fans arent so loud that they drown out the ZIP Tri-Folds speakers.
You get a USB-C port for charging and thats about it.
Aurzen sent us a pre-production unit for review purposes, and I thoroughly enjoyed testing it.
The dongle itself is no bigger than the ZIP Tri-Fold.
It sports a matching Titanium Gold (or Dark Gray) design.
Its light so, again, its easy to carry around.
Theyre straightforward to read and understand.
On its left edge, youll find power and volume buttons like on a smartphone.
Both give good tactile feedback when pressed.
To turn on the projector, you oughta keep the power button pressed for a few seconds.
Theres a brightness adjustment rocker switch located on the projectors right-hand edge.
I found the touch controls easy to use and highly responsive.
There were no latency issues either Id press a button and Id see it happen on the projected screen.
I turned it on by keeping the power button pressed for a few seconds.
Its auto keystone digitally skewed the image to compensate for the angle at which the projector was positioned.
And its autofocus worked well to project a clear image.
The projectors tri-folding design means you’re able to angle it to point directly at your ceiling too.
Want to watch a movie while lying down?
you’re able to adjust the ZIP Tri-Folds focus manually too, by navigating to the parameters menu.
This worked just as well with myMacBook Air M2andMacBook Pro M1too.
As I mentioned up top, I also tested the CastPlay HDMI dongle.
I plugged it into myPS5 Slims HDMI port and held down the button on its side.
This initiated pairing and within seconds, I was seeing my PS5s login screen on my wall.
It worked with myNintendo Switch, too.
I took bed-rotting to the next level by playing video games from bedwithoutphysically moving the consoles.
Due to DRM restrictions, you cant mirror these platforms, but the CastPlay dongle bypasses this issue.
Its small but mighty.
Its brightness is rated at 100 ANSI lumens.
which isnt a lot.
So, ideally, you should use the projector in a pitch-black room.
In comparison, the Xgimi Horizon Pro is rated at 2,000 lumens while theLGCineBeam Q is rated at 500.
I had a great time testing the projector, and it was bright enough for my bedroom.
Theres no HDR setting, unfortunately, but even with its basic resolution, I was impressed.
I love how faithfully the colors in Schitts Creek were reproduced.
Greens were bright while dark shades were muted.
I then switched to a show which has mostly dark scenes: Agatha All Along.
There were no latency issues and audio-to-video synchronization was accurate too.
But Agatha All Along appears quite dark even when watching on a laptop thinkHouse-of-the-Dragon-darkbut slightly less.
The ZIP Tri-Fold isnt anything crazy for gaming but it still does a respectable job.
The projector doesnt have a dedicated game mode, so the CastPlays latency is measured at 50-60ms.
Thats decent for casual gaming, and the projector has a 60Hz refresh rate.
I didnt experience any lag or latency issues in either game.
In both games, my attacks landed just as I executed them with my controller.
But this is an issue I face even when playing the game on my TV.
Most video games I played and TV shows I watched sounded good enough through the ZIP Tri-Folds speakers.
Loud action sounds, however, sounded tinny, especially at volumes higher than 75%.
In Agatha All Along, voices didnt sound as warm as they usually do.
Background music and tracks, though, sounded great.
It worked extremely well when I paired it withEarFun UBoom L($79).
This isnt bad but it isnt fantastic either.
The good news is that it’s possible for you to at least use the projector plugged in.
But the ZIP Tri-Fold isnt perfect.
Although its portable, its battery life is rated at just 90 minutes.
That means youll need a power bank to power it if youre traveling.
Overall, the ZIP Tri-Fold is fantastic.
I cant wait to travel with it and watch my favorite shows on a much bigger screenthan my smartphone.
Its the little projector that could.
