The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 is a long-throw DLP projector with an LED light source and a native 1080p resolution. For setup flexibility, it features an auto keystone, a manual 1.2x zoom lens with a 1.30–1.56:1 throw range, and manual focus, but lacks lens shift. Connectivity features two HDMI 2.0 inputs, VGA, RS-232C, audio in/out, and two USB-A ports (one for the included Wi-Fi dongle and a 5V power USB port). It doesn't run a smart OS, but it supports wireless casting, includes built-in speakers, and supports 3D playback.
Our Verdict
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 is a decent choice for movies in a dim or light-controlled room. It gets bright enough for a large image without looking washed out, and it generally looks clean and natural for SDR once you pick a sensible picture mode. Its main limitation is contrast: it looks its best in mixed and mid-bright scenes, but in very dark content, blacks lift, and the image loses depth compared to stronger home-theater models.
Bright enough for a 100-inch image in a dim room.
Wide color gamut in SDR.
Solid contrast in mixed and bright content.
Rather limited number of ports, with no eARC.
No included smart OS.
Blacks are noticeably lifted in very dark scenes.
Not bright enough to deal with bright ambient lighting.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 is a serviceable gaming projector for casual play, but it isn't built for gaming. It accepts common console signals, such as 1080p @ 60Hz, and can also handle 4k and 1440p inputs, although these are scaled down to 1080p. Input lag is quite high; in a pinch, you can play slow single-player titles on it, but forget playing anything faster. On the plus side, its DLP imaging keeps motion looking clean, and its wide color gamut helps games look colorful.
Bright enough for a 100-inch image in a dim room.
Wide color gamut in SDR.
Solid contrast in mixed and bright content.
Very high input lag leads to an unresponsive gaming experience.
No high-resolution support.
No high-refresh rate support.
Blacks are noticeably lifted in very dark scenes.
Not bright enough to deal with bright ambient lighting.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 produces a fairly bright image, so it works well for typical living-room viewing and holds up on larger screens as long as you're not fighting direct light. It also keeps color content from looking dull, so bright scenes and animation retain good punch instead of turning pale. That said, it still benefits from some light control for the most satisfying image, especially on very large screens.
Bright enough for a 100-inch image in a dim room.
Not bright enough to deal with bright ambient lighting.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1's contrast is serviceable overall, and it holds together best in mixed and brighter scenes where shadow detail and highlights stay separated without the picture looking flat. Where it falls behind is very dark content: blacks sit noticeably higher there, so moody, low-light scenes don't have the same depth you'd get from higher-contrast home-theater options. It's not distracting in most everyday viewing, but it's not a standout for black-level performance.
Solid contrast in mixed and bright content.
Blacks are noticeably lifted in very dark scenes.
Changelog
-
Updated Jan 23, 2026:
We've modified the text in our Brightness and Native Contrast text boxes as a result of our latest test bench. We've also added Brightness and Contrast performance usages in the Verdict section.
- Updated Jan 16, 2026: We've converted the review to Test Bench 0.11, which renames our Contrast test to Native Contrast, and adds a Sequential Contrast test box. We also added new Brightness and Contrast performance usages in Our Verdict. See the 0.11 changelog.
- Updated Jan 05, 2026: Review published.
- Updated Dec 18, 2025: Early access published.
Check Price
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 doesn't have any known size or variant differences, and it's sold as a single model.
Our unit was manufactured in June 2023. You can see a photo of our unit's label here.
Popular Projector Comparisons
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 is better thought of as a straightforward, do-it-all 1080p projector than a dedicated home-theater or gaming model. It can deliver a clean, pleasing image for movies in a light-controlled room, but it lacks the deeper contrast and richer cinema look you get from more home-theater-focused options. It's also not a great fit for gaming, as it doesn't support any true high-refresh modes and its latency is only well-suited to slower, more casual titles. If you're considering the ASUS ProArt Projector A1, it's worth cross-shopping a few models that better match specific use cases. The BenQ HT2060 is a close alternative: it's also a straightforward standard-throw projector, but it leans more towards a home-theater aesthetic overall, with a more cinematic look in a dark room. If you want a clear step up in overall performance and versatility, the Hisense M2 Pro is the more compelling option. It's the kind of upgrade that tends to feel immediately noticeable for both movies and general mixed-use.
See our recommendations for the best projectors for home theater and the best home projectors. If you're looking for something more general, look up our list of the best projectors instead.
The Hisense M2 Pro is much better than the ASUS ProArt Projector A1. The Hisense does it all; it has great contrast, is very accurate right out of the box, comes with a smart OS, and has a wide color gamut. It even excels as a gaming projector due to its high refresh rate support and low input lag. The ASUS is the brighter of the two, but that's basically all it has going for it.
The BenQ HT2060 is a bit better than the ASUS ProArt Projector A1. While the ASUS is brighter and has a wider color gamut, the BenQ has much better contrast and is much more accurate out-of-the-box. This gives the BenQ a clearer use case, as it's better suited as a budget home-theater option than the ASUS is. Still, if you're looking for a brighter projector that can handle a variety of rooms, the ASUS is a bit better in this regard.
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.
Throw Calculator
Global Controls
Test Results
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 produces fairly bright images, making it suitable for handling a typical living room or home theater setup. Its color light output is close to its white light output, helping bright scenes and colorful content stay punchy rather than washed out.
Brightness uniformity is decent, with only some mild falloff across the image that most people won't notice during normal viewing. One thing to keep in mind is that the lens shows a slight fisheye-style distortion that's easiest to spot on test patterns and straight-line geometry, but it's much less obvious with real movies and games.
The table below shows how brightness varies between picture modes. Some of the brighter modes, like 'Dynamic', 'Game', and 'Scenery', push more light overall, but the extra output comes with a wider gap between white and color brightness, which can make highly colorful scenes look a bit less rich, even when the image is brighter.
| Picture Mode | WLO | CLO |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 1218 lm | 1178 lm |
| sRGB | 1432 lm | 1364lm |
| Theater | 1727 lm | 1706 lm |
| Scenery | 1930 lm | 1188 lm |
| Game | 1923 lm | 1028 lm |
| Dynamic | 2583 lm | 1554 lm |
| User | 1710 lm | 1674 lm |
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 has solid native contrast in mixed and brighter content, where darker areas stay separated from highlights well enough that the image doesn’t look overly washed out. It's at its weakest in near-black scenes, where black levels lift, and shadow-heavy content loses a lot of depth compared to higher-contrast home-theater models.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 offers great SDR color coverage, closely aligning with Rec. 709 and accurately rendering most standard content, although whites appear slightly off. Where it falls behind is with wide-gamut Rec. 2020; here, coverage is limited, so content isn't as richly saturated as on projectors that can reproduce a wider gamut.
It also doesn't give you a dedicated color gamut setting to choose between Rec. 709 and a wider gamut, so you need to be in the inaccurate 'Theater' Picture Mode to reach the wider Rec. 2020 gamut.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1's image accuracy is decent out of the box, but not especially accurate. White balance is fairly close to the target, and so is its color temperature; therefore, grayscale content usually appears reasonably natural. However, color accuracy is noticeably worse, especially with saturated cyans and greens, meaning colors don't land exactly where they should, and some scenes can look a bit off. At least gamma tracking is close to the target, so overall brightness looks correct even if it isn't perfect.
After calibration, the ASUS ProArt Projector A1 can look noticeably more accurate overall, but there are clear limits to how far you can push it. You can adjust the gamma and perform color calibration, but there's no way to properly calibrate the white point or grayscale, so any factory tint in neutral tones largely remains even after tuning.
The color management tools are also fairly limited: the HSL controls apply only to the primary colors, and some colors (especially cyan) can be difficult to fully control, even with the controls maxed out. In practice, you can still get a cleaner, more faithful image than the default, but it's not the kind of projector that gives calibration enthusiasts full control.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 uses a single-chip DLP imaging system with an LED light source. That combo is low-maintenance and should hold up well over time, with the added bonus of quick on/off behavior compared to a traditional lamp. DLP also tends to look clean and crisp in motion, which helps for sports and gaming. Still, as with most single-chip DLP projectors, rainbow artifacts can be visible to RBE-sensitive viewers in high-contrast scenes.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 keeps setup pretty straightforward. It features manual zoom and manual focus, so you'll need to physically adjust your image settings, but once it's set, the process is simple and predictable. It also includes auto keystone, which can help if you can't place it perfectly centered. You can use our Throw Calculator if you want to calculate your throw distance.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 isn't really built for grab-and-go use. It's fairly large and heavy for something you'd want to travel with, and it doesn't have a battery, so it's better suited to be left on a coffee table or a stationary stand than as a true portable option. On the plus side, it does have auto keystone and a 10W built-in speaker, and the two adjustable front feet make it easier to level on a coffee table. Just keep in mind that there's no autofocus, so moving it around means you'll need to refocus manually.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 has two HDMI 2.0 inputs and a 3.5mm audio out for external speakers. It also supports Wi-Fi for wireless mirroring, but this feature is handled through an included USB Wi-Fi dongle rather than built-in smart capabilities. While the projector has two USB-A ports, one is dedicated to the Wi-Fi dongle, and the other is power-only (5V/1.5A).
Beyond that, it includes older/installer-friendly connections like VGA and RS-232C, along with line in/out. There's no optical audio out and no Ethernet.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 is a native 1080p projector with fairly limited signal support. It can accept a 4k @ 60Hz input, but it's scaled down internally, so you're mainly getting the convenience of broad device compatibility rather than true 4k output. It also doesn't handle 120Hz properly, as trying to run 1080p @ 120Hz results in frame skipping.
The projector's input lag is high. There are no real high-refresh options to lean on, and without a low-latency mode to meaningfully cut delay, fast competitive titles will feel noticeably sluggish compared to a projector with a proper Game Mode.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 doesn't support ARC/eARC (or optical), so you can't pass audio back to a soundbar or AVR over HDMI. If you want external audio, you'll need to use its 3.5mm analog audio out instead.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 supports 3D playback, including side-by-side, top-and-bottom, and frame sequential formats. It also includes a 3D sync invert option, which can help if you encounter inverted depth or compatibility issues with certain sources or glasses.
- Power cable
- Remote control with batteries
- User documentation
- Calibration report
- Wi-Fi USB dongle
- HDMI cable
- Carry case
Note that the remote control is very unresponsive on this unit and has a limited effective range. Even when you're in range, you need to press buttons multiple times to register. Luckily, all buttons are also on the projector itself, and those work well.
The ASUS ProArt Projector A1 doesn't run a smart OS, so it's best paired with an external streamer dongle, laptop, or console for apps and playback. It can cast wirelessly, but you need to switch to the Wireless Projection input and connect to Wi-Fi using the included USB dongle. It also features built-in speakers for basic use, though you'll still want to use external audio if you're concerned about sound quality.