Philips GamePix 800 Review

Price

The GamePix 800 sells for £1,099 in the UK, and $899 in the US. Shop for one in Australia and it’ll set you back around AUS$2799. This makes it one of the more expensive HD resolution gaming projectors available, if you consider the BenQ GV50 sells for £629 and the 2nd Gen Samsung Freestyle is now £449.

It sits just below the GamePix 900, which offers 4K display resolution, but can’t match this model when it comes to brightness and refresh rate – it’s locked to 1000 lumens and 60Hz respectively.

Design

• Two HDMI inputs
• Manual zoom and focus
• Bluetooth remote control

While most multimedia projectors favour white plastic shells, the GamePix 800 is dressed in black. It’s chunky, but has a modest footprint, measuring 302 x 218 x 99 mm (WHD).

Weighing in at 2.7 kg, it’s solidly made. The lens is offset, ringed with a red accent that immediately marks it as part of Philips’ GamePix line.

Manual zoom and focus adjustments can be found atop the chassis, with a digital zoom available via the remote. Up top, you’ll also find on-body controls for source selection, keystone correction, power, and various image modes.

The rear panel offers two HDMI inputs, plus a USB-A power output, 3.5mm headphone jack, and an RS232 control port. Focus and zoom are manual, with vertical keystone correction (+/-40 degrees).

The supplied remote has quick keys for YouTube, Netflix, Prime Video, and YouTube Music; there’s also the usual collection of home, settings, zoom, input, and volume buttons. There’s provision for ceiling mounting, though most buyers will likely place it on a table.

Features

• Google TV smart platform
• DLP picture engine
• HDR 10 support

Images are delivered by DLP technology, powered by a 0.65-inch DMD chip and a long-life LED light source, which is rated stable for 30,000 hours – enough to see you through years of nightly gaming sessions without ever worrying about maintenance. Native resolution is 1920 x 1080p, but it accepts 4K signals which are downscaled for display.

Console owners will appreciate the fast refresh rate, and it offers an impressively low 8ms input lag in Game mode.

This is an easy enough projector to install. Keystone correction of +/-40 degrees and a digital zoom function are all available. The throw ratio is 1.49:1, giving a 120-inch screen from just under four metres; maximum image size is quoted at 150-inches.

Google TV integration comes via a plug-in dongle, offering familiar smart functionality. Synced with your Google account, you can download preferred apps or go browsing in the Google app store. A Sleep Timer lets you wind down late-night viewing without leaving the projector running until morning, while 3D support (via optional DLP-Link glasses) nods to legacy enthusiasts.

The Google TV platform is generally well honed, from a usability point of view, however, for reasons best known to itself, this projector frequently disconnected from its paired Bluetooth remote (resulting in full-screen requests to re-pair the zapper). I suspected at first batteries were failing, but even new cells didn’t stop this irritating behaviour.

Picture Quality

• Full HD resolution
• HDR 10 support
• 2500 lumens brightness

Well suited for use in a room with ambient light, the GamePix 800 pumps out 2500 lumens of peak brightness. This makes it one of the more practical options for everyday use. You don’t need blackout blinds to use it.

That said, I found the projector’s LED light engine hampered by a middling contrast and a limited black level performance, with dark greys standing in for true blacks.

During the more moody sequences in Prey (Disney+): shadow detail is flattened and lacks depth – but when daylight breaks and Naru, our feisty Commanche warrior, sets out to train with her axe, the projector’s punchy brightness injects life back to the picture.

Philips quotes a 1500:1 native contrast ratio, and 98% Rec.709 colour accuracy.

However, hues aren’t without quirks. Watching Emily in Paris (Netflix), the show’s fashion-forward costumes lack intensity, and reds are sometimes skewed towards orange, a typical LED trait.

Motion handling is generally excellent, and the projector copes well with animated or fast moving visuals.

There’s a wide variety of image presets: Brightest, Standard, Movie, Action Gaming, Adventure Gaming and Sports Gaming, along with two user definable settings.

Beware the Standard mode, it’s simply too dull, even in a darkened room, for general use. I found for most video content, the Movie default is the safe harbour, and offers the most agreeable balance. The trio of gaming modes, by contrast, are unapologetically punchy, which works to the projector’s advantage.

In the land of consoles, vibrancy, not accuracy, is generally king. Playing Disney’s Dreamlight Valley on the Nintendo Switch, the world is garish and engaging, and detail excellent.

Similarly, Xbox and PS5 owners will appreciate the fast refresh rate, which makes motion fluid and naturalistic. Overwatch 2 looks gorgeous, 120Hz gameplay is silky smooth.

HDR support is available, but as with most projectors, it’s more a case of brightness management than true high dynamic range. Highlights are handled rather than extended. 

Rainbow fringing, that familiar DLP artefact, also makes its presence known on occasion. High-contrast transitions, such as the white-on-black Alien Earth opening sequence (Disney+), arrives with flashes of colour. It won’t bother everyone, but I certainly noticed it.

Downscaling is handled well enough. Feed the projector a 4K source, and it translates smoothly to its native 1080p resolution, preserving what fine detail it can.

Operating noise is rather high, although you can mitigate this by changing the Light Source setting from Normal to Eco, which drops the general fan noise down; there is a small penalty to be paid in brightness, though.

Sound Quality

• 5W power output
• Mono speaker

The integrated audio system surprised me by sounding rather good, if monophonic. It delivers clear dialogue and here masks fan noise during quieter moments, although it lacks bass and spaciousness. I really wouldn’t want to recommend it for movie night viewing, but for a quick casual gaming session, it’s perfectly acceptable.

Should you buy it?