Q. I do presentations for new clients and I have to carry around one of those portable projectors (sure, it’s portable—it weighs only 36 pounds) so I can do my PowerPoint sales pitch. When I fly, I dare not stow it with my luggage—it’s too expensive and it’s fragile—so I have to lift it into the overhead rack. And since I weigh 112 pounds, this is a bit difficult. Isn’t there something lighter I can use?
A. There sure is. How about a 5.6-pound projector? Lightware (
www.lightware.com ) recently introduced the Scout. It’s the lightest projector on the market, but you pay dearly for that. First of all, it’s expensive—$2,995. Second, it lacks some key features, which, while inconvenient, is not fatal. For example, its remote control can’t move the cursor around; the control buttons are hard to push—for them to work, you’ve got to stay fairly close to the projector; and image resolution and brightness are marginal (you’ll need to darken the room). But flaws aside, it fits easily in the overhead rack.