The Anker Nebula Mars 3 is a portable, outdoor-focused 1080p LED projector. It's medium-sized with an integrated carry handle, plus a big 185 Wh battery rated up to five hours of video in Eco mode. It's built with ruggedness in mind, with features such as IPX3 water resistance, 0.5 m drop resistance, and 0.7 mm dust resistance. The unit can also act as a power bank, and it has an integrated 40W sound system. It has a full suite of placement helpers, such as autofocus, auto keystone, and Screen Fit, so setup is quick. The projector runs Android TV 11 with Chromecast built-in; Netflix isn't TV-licensed and must be installed via Nebula's app store (Nebula Play). It's capable of projecting an 80-inch image at about 6.9 ft, up to 200 inches at roughly 17.4 ft (fixed 1.2:1 throw).
Our Verdict
The Anker Mars 3 is a solid choice if you're looking for an outdoor projector. It has a ton of outdoor features like IPX3 certification, dust and drop resistance, and a big internal battery that can also double as a power bank. However, if you're looking for a unit that provides top-notch image quality, it doesn't really cut it. Its brightness is barely mediocre, so you really need to turn off the lights to see the image well, or ensure the sun has set before using it outdoors. Unfortunately, it doesn't have the necessary contrast to truly impress in dark contexts. It's also not bright enough to project vibrant colors, even with its wide color gamut. Finally, it's not very accurate out of the box, so you really need to calibrate it for the best picture quality.
Robust unit with a ton of features geared towards being used outdoors.
Wide color gamut.
Contrast doesn't impress in dark contexts.
Isn't very accurate out of the box.
The Anker Mars 3 is unremarkable for gaming, even for casual play at 60Hz. It has relatively high input lag at 60Hz; it's fine for slower titles, like turn-based games and visual novels, but anything faster than that isn't optimal. There's no 120Hz support to make the unit more responsive. As for image quality, it's unremarkable overall; its brightness is mediocre, and its contrast doesn't impress in dark contexts. It's also not very accurate out of the box. Considering its portable nature, it's really not a bad-looking image, but it just doesn't excel in any facet for gaming.
Robust unit with a ton of features geared towards being used outdoors.
Wide color gamut.
Contrast doesn't impress in dark contexts.
Isn't very accurate out of the box.
Relatively slow input lag at 60Hz.
No 120Hz mode to make the unit more responsive.
No 4k or 1440p support; downscales signals to 1080p.
Changelog
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Updated Oct 15, 2025:
We've added Imaging, Optics, Noise, Supported Resolutions, HDR Format Support, 3D, Input Lag, and Audio Passthrough boxes as a result of our latest test bench. We've also added a Gaming usage in the Verdict section.
- Updated Oct 03, 2025: We've converted the review to Test Bench 0.10, which updates our Design tests, and adds a whole new suite of Inputs tests. We also added new gaming-oriented usage scores in Our Verdict. See the 0.10 changelog.
- Updated Aug 27, 2025: Review published.
- Updated Aug 22, 2025: Early access published.
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Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The Mars lineup ranges from a rugged, battery-first outdoor model like the Anker Mars 3 to a smaller Google TV option with native Netflix, like the Nebula Mars 3 Air. Key differences are light source, brightness, battery size/playback, OS/Netflix support, and max image size.
| Model | Light Source / Resolution | Brightness (ANSI) | Battery & Playback | Smart Platform / Netflix | Max Image / Throw | Speakers | Notable Extras |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nebula Mars 3 | LED / 1080p (DLP) | 800 | 185Wh; up to ~5 hrs video (Eco) | Android TV 11; Netflix via Nebula Play | Up to 200″; fixed ~1.2:1 | 40W (3-way) | Outdoor-ready (IPX3, dust/drop resistance), power-bank output; HDR10 (internal decode) |
| Nebula Mars 3 Air | LED / 1080p (DLP) | 400 | Built-in; up to ~2.5 hrs video | Google TV; official Netflix | Up to 150″; fixed ~1.2:1 | Dual 8W | IEA auto-setup (autofocus/auto keystone/screen fit/obstacle avoidance) |
| Nebula Mars II Pro | LED / 720p (DLP) | 500 | ~3 hrs video | Android 7.1; Nebula/Aptoide apps | Up to 150″; ~1.2:1 | Dual 10W | Older gen portable; simple carry-and-play |
Our unit was manufactured in August 2024.
Popular Projector Comparisons
The Anker Mars 3 is a projector tuned to be used outdoors, with full IPX3 water and dust resistance, alongside drop resistance. It also has a large internal battery that can double as a power bank. If you're primarily looking for a unit to take camping with you, it's a solid choice and is better than other comparable portable units, which are not typically very robust. But if you're not necessarily looking to rough up your projector, then other portable products, like the XGIMI Halo+ or the LG CineBeam Q, offer better image quality for a cheaper price.
Check out our recommendations for the best portable projectors, the best outdoor projectors, and the best home projectors. If you'd prefer to shop for another product in the same price range, look up the best projectors under $1,000 instead.
The XGIMI Halo+ has slightly better image quality than the Anker Nebula Mars 3, but the Anker is a much more robust unit, truly meant to be used outdoors. While the XGIMI is smaller and easier to carry around, it's more fragile, so it's better used indoors. Ultimately, if you value outdoor robustness, the Anker is more attractive, but if you want a small and easy-to-carry-around unit, and you just want to bring it to your friend's house, the XGIMI is better.
The Anker Nebula X1 is far better than the Anker Nebula Mars 3, but they're not in the same price bracket. The Nebula X1 is a heftier unit, and it doesn't have an integrated battery, but it provides far better image quality. In turn, the Mars 3 is lighter and has a ton of features meant for the outdoors, but its image quality isn't close to the X1.
The Anker Nebula Mars 3 and the NexiGo TriVision Ultra are two mid-sized projectors with a carry handle, but of the two, the NexiGo is the superior pick. It's far brighter than the Anker, with deeper contrast, so it looks punchier in any room condition. The NexiGo also delivers a sharper image with its pixel shifting technology, while the Anker is limited to 1080p. They're both inaccurate out of the box, with the NexiGo being more so than the Anker, but the former is easier to calibrate. The NexiGo is the superior pick for gamers, too, as its input lag is far lower at 4k @ 60Hz. If you instead game at 1080p, then the Anker's input lag is slightly lower at that resolution, but they're both pretty slow there. Both units have a handle for easy transport and weigh about the same, but the Anker is a tad more portable due to its fully featured smart OS; the NexiGo requires a dongle for apps.
We've independently bought and tested over 60 projectors, and we've published all the detailed results for each so you can decide which one to buy. These have all been tested under the same standardized methodology, allowing you to compare them side by side. We still have all these projects in our lab so we can continually go back and compare them to ensure our reviews are still accurate. All our test methodology is also public on our website, so you can validate the results yourself.
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Test Results
The projector's brightness is mediocre. It's very uniform, so you don't get any dark spots across the image, but it's just not bright enough for anything but a dark room or a dark night. It's also not bright enough to project truly vibrant colors.
The unit's contrast is disappointing. Black levels look elevated, and it struggles across most scenes; it holds up a little better in brighter content, but not by much.
The Anker Mars 3's pre-calibration accuracy is poor. Blues are overrepresented in most shades of gray, and reds are underrepresented in the same shades. This makes the projector's color temperature way too cold out of the box. As for colors, they're mostly off track, with some noticeable mapping issues in most saturated colors.
The Anker Mars 3 only has 1-point white balance calibration, but it's enough to significantly improve the projector's color accuracy, especially when it comes to white balance and color temperature, which is not right on target. Colors still have noticeable accuracy issues, however, especially with blues and magentas.
The unit's color gamut is great. It displays almost the entirety of the Rec. 709 color space used with SDR content. Still, most colors are off the mark, especially so for blues. It does an okay job with the wider Rec. 2020 color space, but here, almost all colors are noticeably off mark, especially blues, greens, cyans, and magentas.
This is a DLP projector with a single-chip RGB LED light engine. Colors are punchy and consistent, and there's no lamp to replace. As with most compact DLPs, the black floor is on the high side, so dark scenes look more gray than inky in a completely dark room, but it holds up nicely with a bit of ambient light. It accepts signals up to 4k @ 60Hz but displays at 1080p.
The Anker Mars 3 has no optical zoom or lens shift, so placement matters. You get auto focus and auto keystone for quick setup, but keystone slightly softens the image, so center the lens on the screen without keystoning when you can.
Here are some typical throw distances:
- 80" image: ~6.9 ft
- 100" image: ~8.9 ft
- 120" image: ~10.6 ft
- 200" image: ~17.4 ft
The Anker Nebula Mars 3 projector is very portable. It has an integrated carry handle and a built-in adjustable stand, so it’s easy to move around and prop up quickly. Setup is fast thanks to Intelligent Environment Adaptation with autofocus, auto keystone, and Screen Fit. It's built for outdoors with IPX3 water resistance, 0.5 m drop and 0.7 mm dust resistance, plus a sliding lens cover that doubles as the power switch, a camping light, and a battery/power indicator.
There's a 185 Wh battery for up to five hours of video (Eco) or 15 hours of music, and the projector can even act as a power bank for your phone. The unit has a 40W built-in speaker system with Dolby Audio, so you don't need to carry extra speakers for casual use.
Overall, the fan is clearly audible in quiet rooms but blends in during movies or outdoors, so you won't hear it in typical use.
You get 1× HDMI with eARC for sending audio to a soundbar/AVR, USB-A and USB-C ports for media playback and power-out (10W and 15W respectively), a 3.5 mm AUX-out, dual-band Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth 5.1.
Power/charging the projector itself is via the included 19V/9.47A AC adapter through DC-IN; the USB-C port doesn't charge the projector.
The Anker Mars 3 is a 1080p projector, so it downscales 4k and 1440p signals to 1080p. There's no 120Hz option at any resolution.
The Anker Nebula Mars 3's input lag is on the high side, even in the Game (Extreme) picture mode; barely enough for slower single-player titles. It'll do in a pinch, but this isn't the unit to play at higher difficulties with. It doesn't have a higher refresh rate mode, so there's no way to increase its responsiveness further.
The HDMI port supports eARC for audio return, but the projector has only one HDMI and no true passthrough controls; this means that you can't passthrough external sources through the unit. Plan on stereo from the projector's apps, or connect your streaming box/console directly to the sound system and send video to the projector via HDMI-out from the AVR.
3D is supported with the common formats: frame-packed, side-by-side, and over-under.
The projector runs Android TV 11 with Chromecast built-in and Google Assistant. Streaming apps come via Google Play; Netflix isn’t natively licensed and must be installed through Nebula Play. The built-in 40W (3-way) speaker system supports Dolby Audio, and you can switch to Bluetooth Speaker Mode when you just want music.