The home laser projector market is seeing meteoric growth, and a big part of that push is the rise of Chinese manufacturers. Brands like XGIMI and Dangbei have made huge inroads into the west with their products, and AWOL Vision is another brand that's of particular interest. The brand's LTV-3000 Pro is a standout choice, and after using it for nearly a year, I'm convinced that it is one of the best UST projectors available today.
AWOL Vision is doing things slightly differently with its latest product launch; the manufacturer recently launched a sub-brand called Valerion, and it is rolling out the VisionMaster series. There are four products available: VisionMaster Plus, Plus 2, Pro 2, and Max. Valerion is taking the crowdfunded route with these projectors, turning to Kickstarter.
What I like about the VisionMaster series is the design; the models have similar designs with metallic fins going around the chassis, and it looks pretty cool. There's also decent connectivity, and the usual table stakes features: auto keystone, autofocus, and obstacle avoidance.
The Plus is the basic model in the series; it delivers a projection of 1500 lumen, and is sold in a blue chassis. It is available for $1,199 now, which is a sizeable 40% discount from its retail price. The Plus 2 is the interesting choice in the series, offering a 2000-lumen projection and coming in at $1,499.
The VisionMaster Pro 2 is the one I'm testing later this month, and this version goes up to 3000 lumen, has 0.9- 1.5:1 optical zoom, and is available for $2,099. To round out the portfolio, there's a Max model that also has the same 3000-lumen brightness, but it has a unique vertical lens switching system and Dynamic Iris, which automatically adjusts the lens to deliver the best contrast levels in any lighting condition.
Outside of the differences in brightness, all models share the same tri-laser light source, and are powered by MediaTek's MT9618 platform. They come with built-in Google TV, 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, and you get Dolby Vision integration as standard. Clearly, there is a lot to like with these projectors, and while Valerion is a new brand, it is owned by AWOL Vision, so that gives it some amount of legitimacy.
If you're interested, you can head to Kickstarter to get your hands on the VisionMaster series. The Plus, Plus 2, and Pro 2 will be going out to backers starting December 2024, with the Max available in May 2025.
