We’re going to have to file this one under the “I know what it does, but not how” category. Like, I get what a short throw projector is: it’s a projector that can be set mere inches from a flat wall (or hanging screen) and create a clear image up on said flat surface. That doesn’t confuse me. And I get that there are devices that can project a screen down onto a desk or tabletop and then track your motions as you engage with the projection, working like a touch screen.
But the mechanics behind combining the technology needed for both of those functions into a box roughly the same size as a paperback dictionary? That’s pretty well beyond me. (For the record, in wall projector orientation this semi-magical box does not create a touch screen - we’ll get there in the future, friends.)
Puppy’s Hachi Infinite M1 looks from a glance like a little black box, though it’s more like a prism with a handful of buttons, a thin strip of glass, and a USB-C port (there are a few other inputs hidden behind a flip-up panel, FYI.) Behind that strip of glass is where the magic/science happens: three different lenses that both watch what you are controlling and control what you watch.
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Let’s talk movie projection first: when perched a mere three inches from a wall, the projector can create a screen that’s a solid 40” or more, and in stunning HD. I just screen mirrored my phone now looking at a web page on the wall of my office, and despite lots of sunlight and the overheads being on, the colors are pure, the lines crisp, and overall the projection looks as good as either of my monitors.
After dragging the thing back about a foot from the wall, making the “screen” closer to 100”, it automatically refocused itself. Given that its built-in speakers aren’t even that bad for a dictionary-sized box, I’d already be sold. Wouldn’t you?
Alright then, now for the fun part. Standing it upright on any flat surface (that’s relatively uniform in color and texture), it automatically reorients and now projects what looks like a computer or phone home screen. Go ahead, tap on one of your apps. Open a document and try typing on your table there. Pull up a piano app and play notes on your desk. Open a drawing app and use your finger as a digital pen or paintbrush.
Yeah, you’re sold, no?
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