The price is the best part about this - if you're on a minimal budget and you just want a projector, this may be the best option for you.
Note: this is my first projector. I just ordered one of these
Optoma HD600X 720P HD Ready Home Cinema Projector and when it has arrived and I have tested it I will write a comment with some information about how they compare.
Pros:
* Very cheap
* Everything included - power cable, HDMI cable, spare bulb, remote control, batteries, lens cap
* Easy to set up
Cons:
* Not only is this projector very loud but it is inconsistently loud, i.e. the fan noise is not at a constant volume, so it is very difficult to ignore. This means that anything with quiet sections (such as quiet dialogue) are very hard to concentrate on. Unfortunately that means that those serious, dramatic moments in films with whispered dialogue are pretty much ruined for me by this up-and-down whirring noise (in a decent sized room - me at the front and the projector at the back). This is the main reason I decided to go for another projector. If you can put up with the noise or your use case isn't affected by this then you may well want to go ahead and buy it.
The next two downsides are more subjective - other people may have had better experience than me so I don't want to misrepresent the quality of this product as I am not an expert on projectors, but regardless of tweaking, these two issues remained:
* On a light (off-white) wall the picture is essentially invisible unless all lights are off and it's night-time. As I understand it, darkness is preferable for optimal performance for most projectors but not a requirement for basic visibility. Perhaps the projector was too far away from the wall; it is placed at the back of the room which is just about far enough for it to cover the wall, which is just the size we want it. I may be expecting too much from a projector in this price range - I am very interested to see how the Optoma compares.
* I was unable to get the entire picture in focus. No matter how hard I tried to ignore it, the blurriness of the picture was very off-putting and took quite a lot away from the novel experience of watching movies and TV shows on a huge screen. This was nowhere near as distracting as the fan noise and it's possible that others didn't even notice it, but it was definitely there for me. It was possible to get either the top or bottom of the picture reasonably sharp, but not the entire picture. Maybe the projector needs to be level and not keystone-corrected, but this is not possible in my living room.
So if you really can't afford more than this price and you don't mind putting up with the noise, you may well be very satisfied with this product. You may also find that your specific set-up isn't affected by the brightness and blurriness issues that I encountered.
I'll post a follow-up comment when the Optoma arrives - if it resolves all of the problems I mentioned then I think the extra £200 or so will certainly be worth it.