Get insider access
Preferred store
Your browser is not supported or outdated so some features of the site might not be available.
We've recently launched Projectors! Read the R&D Article to learn more.

VANKYO Leisure 3 Projector Review

Tested using Methodology v0.8
Reviewed Feb 13, 2024 at 10:37 am

The VANKYO Leisure 3 is a very basic, entry-level projector. It's designed to quickly share media from your phone or mobile device over a wide selection of inputs, including USB, microSD, or even VGA for older devices.

Our Verdict

2.8 Movies

Unfortunately, the VANKYO Leisure 3 Mini Projector is bad for watching movies in a dark room. It has poor contrast, so fine details are very hard to make out in dim scenes. There's also noticeable vignetting in the corners, and it's so dim that it's not useable at all in a room with any light.

Pros
  • Decent portability.
Cons
  • Poor contrast.
  • Terribly low peak brightness.
  • Terrible accuracy.
  • 2.8 Movies
  1. Updated Feb 13, 2024: Review published.

Differences Between Sizes And Variants

We bought and tested the VANKYO Leisure 3 projector. This brand has a wide selection of projectors, including a wireless variant of this one known as the VANKYO Leisure 3W. The 3W supports wireless casting and streaming from many popular streaming services, including Netflix, but the projector itself is the same.

Compared To Other Projectors

This projector is terrible, and you shouldn't buy it. It's so dim that it isn't useable if there's any light on in the room, and it looks terrible in a dark room due to its low contrast.

VANKYO Leisure 470

The VANKYO Leisure 470 is better than the VANKYO Leisure 3. Both projectors don't get bright enough for use in a room with any lighting and have dull and inaccurate colors, but the Leisure 470 has deeper blacks thanks to its much better contrast, so it looks better in a dark room. The Leisure 470 is also more versatile since it has two HDMI ports, whereas the Leisure 3 only has one.

KODAK LUMA 150

The KODAK LUMA 150 is better than the VANKYO Leisure 3, but only because the KODAK is much more portable due to its smaller size and integrated battery. When it comes to image quality, they're both equally abysmal.

Test Results

perceptual testing image
Design
7.0
Design
Portability
Height 3.2" (8.2 cm)
Width 7.8" (19.9 cm)
Depth 6.4" (16.2 cm)
Weight
2.1 lbs (0.9 kg)

This projector has decent portability. It's compact and lightweight, and it comes with a carrying case, so you can carry it around easily. There's no battery, and it has to be plugged in, though, so you can't just use it anywhere. There's also no automatic keystone adjustment, so you need to adjust the screen geometry each time you move it. There are speakers, but they're not very loud. There's also a built-in fan to help with cooling, but it's very loud.

Design
Projector Technology
Imaging Technology
LCD
Light Source
LED
Resolution
Other
Aspect Ratio
5 : 3
Minimum Throw Ratio
1.31
Maximum Throw Ratio
1.31

This compact projector uses an uncommon aspect ratio with an 800x480 native resolution. It uses an LCD panel with an LED backlight, so you'll likely never have to replace the backlight.

Picture Quality
1.2
Picture Quality
Brightness
White Light Output
41 lm
Color Light Output
50 lm
Brightness Uniformity
45%
Screen Brightness
5 cd/m²

Unfortunately, the VANKYO Leisure 3 has terrible brightness and bad uniformity when projected on a 100" screen. The center of the projected image is nearly twice as bright as the sides, and there's noticeable vignetting. It's too dim to be used in a room with any ambient light.

4.4
Picture Quality
Contrast
Native Contrast
72 : 1

Unfortunately, this projector has bad contrast. Blacks are deep, but mainly because the projector is so dim.

1.2
Picture Quality
Pre-Calibration Color Accuracy
White Balance dE
13.30
Color dE
12.17
Gamma
2.02
Color Temperature
13,550 K
Picture Mode
Custom
Color Temp Setting
Warm
Gamma Setting
No Gamma Setting

This projector has terrible accuracy. The white balance and color accuracy are completely off, to the point that some colors show up as something completely different.

2.1
Picture Quality
Post-Calibration Color Accuracy
White Balance dE
9.23
Color dE
10.03
Gamma
2.05
Color Temperature
9,657 K
White Balance Calibration
1 point
Color Calibration
No
Picture Mode
User

Even after calibration, the accuracy is terrible, as this projector has almost no calibration features available. The white balance and color accuracy are slightly better, but it still looks terrible.

5.5
Picture Quality
Color Gamut
Rec. 709 xy
78.22%
Rec. 709 uv
78.30%
Rec. 2020 xy
46.72%
Rec. 2020 uv
55.01%

The color gamut is sub-par. This projector can't even display anything close to the full range of colors in SDR content, and it's no better with Rec. 2020 content in HDR.

Features
Features
Inputs & Connectivity
HDMI
1
ARC/eARC
No
Wi-Fi No
USB Data Ports
1
Features
Smart Features & Sound
Smart OS
No
Cast Capable
No
Speaker(s)
Yes

There's no built-in smart interface, so you'll have to connect an external streaming device or phone/tablet to play videos.

Features
In The Box

  • Power cable
  • Remote
  • Carrying case
  • HDMI cable
  • Cleaning kit
  • Documentation