Acer Vero PL3510ATV

Price

This Acer projector (one of a trio of Vero models) sells for £999 in the UK, which is at the high-end for a 1080p model. In the US and Australia, Acer doesn’t currently offer another projector in the Vero line that matches the PL3510ATV’s specs directly.

Design

• Two HDMI connections
• Android TV dongle
• Laser light engine

Physically, the Vero looks every bit the business tool. Finished in matte, it’s compact at 30cm wide by 23cm deep, and weighs just 3kg.

The offset lens is manually adjusted via zoom and focus wheels, while a tethered transparent lens cover protects the optics. There’s nothing flamboyant here – no sculpted curves, or fancy trims – just a simple, functional chassis. It’s not comparable to the more lifestyle solutions currently touted by XGIMI, Samsung and BenQ.

To the rear are two HDMI ports, one of which is ARC-enabled. There’s also a hidden HDMI and USB-C for a slot-in Android TV dongle (while this should be included in your retail box, it was omitted from my review sample). There’s also a USB-A port, digital optical audio out, 3.5mm audio jack and RS-232 for control.

Elevator feet are available for adjusting image height.

The projector ships with a matching white remote control, which offers menu navigation, source selection, and function buttons – some of which do nothing at all. 

The laser light source is good for 30,000 hours, at least in Eco display mode. It ships with a carry case, useful for road warriors.

Features

• 4000 lumens brightness
• Laser light source
• 29dB operating noise (in Eco mode)

Setting up this Vero model is straightforward, thanks to tools like 4-corner correction, horizontal and vertical keystone adjustment, and a 1.3x zoom.

The PL3510 is able to display 3D content using DLP Link technology, and there’s support for Blu-ray 3D discs, although without compatible 3D spec I was unable to test this feature.

Operationally, this model isn’t the quietest. In Eco mode it maintains a fairly constant 29dB, but at full brightness, that fan noise elevates to a point that’s difficult to ignore in a quiet room.

The projector may be 1080p but it still promises compatibility with HDR sources. There’s Auto HDR detection and selectable EOTF (Electro-Optical Transfer Function) curves, which can be set to Middle, Low or High. 

A long throw design, you’ll need between 3.1 – 4m to cast a 120-inch image. If you have 8m to play with, you can even project a 300-inch display (although given that this is an HD model, that might not be a great idea). The throw ratio is 1.15~1.5.

Peak brightness is high at 5000 lumens, meaning it will work in almost any lighting, no need to shutter the blinds. In Eco mode, brightness drops to a still impressive 4000 lumens.

Usability isn’t exactly seamless; I couldn’t jump from one source to another without instigating a significant pause. Watching Prime Video’s Reacher on a Fire TV stick, then exiting to the Fire OS home screen, results in the projector blanking out, as it has a think about what it’s doing, before it takes me to where I want to go. This happens a lot, which is quite irritating when you’re just content grazing. 

Picture Quality

• 1080p resolution
• HDR compliant
• ISF mode

With 5,000 lumens on tap, the Vero PL3510ATV is certainly bright enough to cut through daylight without having to dim the curtains. This makes it ideal for boardroom presentations and afternoon sports events, both situations where ambient light might be high.

There’s a wide choice of display presets available, including Standard, Rec-709, Movie, Dark Cinema, Game, Football and User Adjustable, and for Pro AV users, Bright and Presentation. There’s even a password-protected ISF mode for calibrators.

In Standard mode, colours lean toward cool, with reds drifting into purple. Lighter tones in shows like Reacher (Prime Video) have a slightly steely cast. Still, perfectly OK for casual viewing.

Switching to Movie mode lowers brightness slightly, improving black levels for dark-room viewing, although this tweak doesn’t lessen fan noise, which remains constant. The projector is unable to deliver true black, and so settles on a rather consistent darker grey. Contrast is quoted at 50,000:1.

Dropping the light output to 4000 lumens (Eco mode), translates to a moderate drop in average picture brightness, but not significantly so, and is perfectly fine when viewing in a dark room environment.

Detail, as I would expect from a single chip DLP device, is crisp. Text and graphics look pin sharp. Reassuringly, DLP’s classic ‘rainbow fringe’ artefact wasn’t an issue.

The Vero PL3510ATV downscales 4K to 1080p. Ultra HD content retains good detail, albeit without the native sharpness of true 4K. However, while ostensibly HDR compliant – the projector can detect the dynamic range of the source, or be forced into an HDR10 or HLG mode – it’s a challenge to identify any appreciable onscreen benefits.

Motion handling is solid, there’s no excessive blur on fast action, and sports remain crisp.

Sound Quality

The built-in mono speaker is a placeholder, not a solution. Dialogue is clear enough for presentations, but movies and music suffer from thinness and lack of bass. The Netflix ta-dum jingle sounds like it’s played on tin cans.

For anything beyond functional, external audio via HDMI ARC is strongly advised. The good news is that both multichannel 5.1 and Dolby Atmos can be routed out to an external sound system.

Should you buy it?