Canon REALiS SX7 Mark II

Noise (7.38)

The Canon SX7 Mark II isn’t very noisy compared to most projectors. You can definitely hear its fan whirring—it added about 10dB to a room with 37dB of background noise—but it isn’t obnoxious. The projector also has a quiet mode which helps reduce the fan noise considerably, at the expense of quite a bit of brightness.

Heat

Projectors can output a lot of heat, to the point where operating one in a small room can get uncomfortable fast. The SX7 Mark II heated up the air in the room between 52° and 60°—from 80° to somewhere in the 135° range—depending on its display mode. Presentation was a bit hotter than quiet mode, but only by a few degrees. Considering many projectors out there could double as space heaters, the SX7 Mark II runs relatively cool.

Power Consumption (6.58)

Projectors eat up a lot of electricity, and the SX7 Mark II is no exception. The projector will draw about 350 watts, regardless of display mode. Activating quiet mode will reduce the draw to about 284 watts. To put this figure in perspective, a 60-inch plasma HDTV can draw about 280 watts on an all white screen.

Below is a chart of the SX7 Mark II’s power consumption rates along with the rates of a few competing models.

Mode	Average Watts	Cost per Year
Standard	350	68.35
Presentation	350	68.35
Movie	350	68.35
Movie (Quiet)	284	55.46

Lamp Life

Canon’s estimate on lamp life is either 2000 or 3000 hours: the latter figure assumes quiet mode is always enabled.

Read Reviews of Comparison Products
ViewSonic PJD6531w	Canon LV-8310	Optoma HD66