Best Outdoor Projector for 2022

Best Outdoor Projector for 2022

Enjoying a movie with your family is great. Enjoying it outside, relaxing under the stars, is even better. As projectors have gotten smaller, brighter, and cheaper, it's become easier than ever to set up a backyard movie night. You can choose between easily portable, battery-powered models, or wired models with built-in streaming and tons of brightness.

Ideally, you'll have some sort of screen, but even a big sheet or posterboard can do the trick. All the projectors on this list have speakers, but if you have a big yard, or want the movie to be heard over the ruckus of some younglings, it'd be best to connect to a Bluetooth speaker. If your Wi-Fi isn't strong enough to reach where you want to show the movie, you can turn your phone into a hotspot. In a few cases you can download some content to the projector itself, but don't expect this from every model nor with every streaming service.

Here are the best outdoor projectors we've tested.

Geoffrey Morrison/CNET

The small Mars II Pro isn't the brightest, nor smallest, nor cheapest projector on this list. It's not even the easiest to use. But it does combine a pleasing image with decent sound for a good price. It's an all-around great option without the serious drawbacks of many other portable projectors.

The main issue with the Mars II Pro is it doesn't use the full version of the Android TV streaming service like some newer models. As such, it's not as easy to use and you won't get every streaming service. The big ones are here, of course, like Netflix and Disney Plus, but no HBO. You can connect a streaming stick, of course, and there's a USB connection to power it right on the back.

The battery lasts about the length of a long movie.

Check out our in-depth review of the Mars II Pro..

Geoffrey Morrison/CNET

The AAXA P6 throws out an impressive amount of light, and lasts up to a claimed 4 hours with its built-in battery. You'll need to add a streaming stick to watch anything, but there's a USB connection to power one so that's easy to do.

Overall the image quality is OK, but not great. The colors are off, the contrast ratio isn't great and its resolution of 1,280x800 pixels is noticeably softer than 1080p and especially 4K projectors.

That said, it's bright and inexpensive, which is a great combination.

Check out our full review of the AAXA P6X.

Geoff Morrison/CNET

The Vimgo P10 regularly hovers around $250, and often drops even cheaper. It's a strange product, doing something right and a lot of things wrong. The image it produces is watchable, and has an impressively high contrast ratio, but the colors are flat-out atrocious. The brightness and sharpness uniformity are some of the worst I've seen, which means everything that's not dead center in the image is dimmer and softer than the middle. It also has no upwards throw, so it needs to be placed at the same height as the middle of the screen, which is, like I said, strange for an inexpensive projector.

The biggest drawback for this list is its lack of a battery. But for the added price of an extension cord it's still cheaper than most other projectors on this list.

But for the price, it's hard to beat. But if you can spend more, you'll get more.

Check out our full review of the Vimgo P10..

Geoffrey Morrison/CNET

The AAXA P8 is tiny, like the Nebula Capsule, but rectangular to that projectors cylindricalness. It's significantly brighter than the Capsule, but it lacks that projector's battery.

Like its big brother, the P6X, the P8 doesn't have the best picture quality. However, it's inexpensive and bright, two things we like a lot. For similar money the Vimgo P10's picture quality is a little better, but that projector has its own serious drawbacks.

All ultra-budget projectors have concessions to price, but with the P8 those concessions don't include brightness and size.

Check out our full review of the AAXA P8..

Geoffrey Morrison/CNET

The Laser 4K's claim to being portable and "outdoor" boils down to a huge handle built into its design. It lacks a battery, is quite heavy, and it's really expensive.

It is, however, exceptionally bright. One of the brightest projectors we've ever tested. It has built-in Android TV too. It's more portable, and better suited to outdoor movie nights than, say, the Epson 5050.

The Optoma UHZ50, the BenQ HT2050A or the Epson Home Cinema 2250 are better overall, however. They're all bright, cheaper and easily carried, though they lack a stylish handle.

Check out our review of the Anker Nebula Cosmos Laser 4K.

Four kids lay in the grass under the stars watching a movie on a small screen. — Klaus Vedfelt/GettyImages

Other products we've tested

Anker Nebula Solar Portable : The Solar's sibling, the Mars II Pro, is better. The Solar's main disadvantage compared to others on this list is its relatively dim image, which means it can't project as large a picture and still look good. If you want a sleek, budget-friendly portable with 1080p and plan on keeping the image on the small side, however, this is a solid choice. Read our Anker Nebula Solar Portable Review.

LG CineBeam PH30N : The tiny LG PH30N is only slightly larger than the AAXA P8. It's not particularly bright, however, nor does it have built-in apps. The battery doesn't last as long as the AAXA P6X although it is a bit cheaper. Read our LG CineBeam PH30N review.

Samsung Freestyle : The small, stylish, cylindrical Freestyle is an interesting idea, but it's not very bright, lacks a battery, and is quite expensive. Read our Samsung Freestyle review.

The Samsung Freestyle portable projector on a yellow background. — The Samsung Freestyle is a cool looking design but too expensive for what you get.
Geoff Morrison/CNET

Xiaomi Mi Smart Projector 2 : Is another relatively expensive small projector that could be better. You may appreciate the compact size, 1080p resolution and built-in Android TV streaming, but it's relatively dim, especially for the price. It also lacks both a built-in battery and compatibility with a USB power source, so it's not truly portable. Read our Xiaomi Mi Smart Projector 2 review.

How we test outdoor projectors

We don't treat outdoor projectors any differently, testing-wise, than any other projector. Just because a projector has the convenience of being portable doesn't mean it shouldn't perform to reasonable standards. The biggest difference is checking the performance on the battery vs. plugged in. That almost always just results in a difference in light output.

Read more: How We Test Projectors

Outdoor projector FAQs

Can any projector work outside?

Yes! Well, sort of. No projector should live outside. The humidity and temperature variations will quickly ruin a projector, just like it will with a TV. But if you plan to bring it inside after every use, something we highly recommend, you can use any projector outside.

What if my Wi-Fi doesn't reach outside?

Most phones can work as a Wi-Fi hotspot, using your cellular data instead. If you're not on an unlimited data plan, this can drain your available data however. Also consider some free, or low cost, improvements to your home's wireless network. That might extend the reach enough.

Do outdoor projectors have streaming apps? Netflix, Disney, etc?

Sometimes. Most of the projectors on this list either have full, or partial, streaming interfaces like you'd find in a modern smart TV. They might not have every streaming app, however. Netflix is pretty much a given, but beyond that, it varies.

All the projectors on this list have an HDMI input, and all except the Capsule also have a USB connection, so you can connect any streaming stick to them and get all the apps you're used to.

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This cheap Halloween decoration will terrify your neighbors

This cheap Halloween decoration will terrify your neighbors

What's scarier: a life-size plastic skeleton dangling on the door or a life-size animated poltergeist that appears to be floating in mid-air until it lunges right at you?

Exactly.

That's the kind of high-tech effect you should be thinking about this Halloween. And you can get one for surprisingly cheap: AtmosFX sells a variety of really cool Halloween-themed animations, with prices starting at just $6. (Want to test-drive one? Here's a limited-time freebie.)

These animations can work on a variety of surfaces, but I'm going to focus on the "hollusion," which I think is the coolest: It creates the aforementioned mid-air holographic effect. (See below for other options.)

What supplies do you need?

atmosfx-hollusion-materials — Got any of these lying around the house? Hang them up to create a holographic effect for your projection.
AtmosFX

Here's the short-list of required items and the expected costs:

One or more of the aforementioned AtmosFX videos. ($6 and up.)
A projector. (Free if you can borrow one, at least $70 if you buy one.)
A large piece of semi-translucent material, like mosquito netting or a sheer curtain. (Price will vary depending on what you use.)

What kind of projector?

The big piece of this puzzle is the projector. If possible, borrow one from work, a friend, a neighbor, etc. It's only for one night, so you should definitely try to get a loaner if you can.

No luck? Consider buying one. You might be surprised to learn that for as little as $70, you can get a model that will work just fine for this task. That's because the requirements here are much lower than those of a home theater.

For example, the Ozmer Mini LED Projector normally sells for $90, but it's currently on sale for $76. (Ignore the rather misleading 1080p spec, which you'll see attached to a lot of projectors in this price range; it supports 1080p sources, but its native display resolution is actually just 800x480. That sounds low, but it's definitely sufficient for the Atmos animations.)

Whether you buy or borrow a projector, try to get one with built-in speakers. (The Ozmer has them.) The animations referenced here incorporate sound effects, and it's an added hassle to have to connect external speakers.

Setting up your space

AtmosFX sells a ready-made hollusion sheet, which you can hang in a doorway or set up outside, but it's currently sold out.

That's OK, because you can probably rig up something of your own. The company recommends bridal mesh, fine gauze, mosquito netting or scrim -- basically anything that's not super-visible when it's reasonably dark. I actually used an old sheer curtain that was lying around; it worked pretty well. A clear shower curtain might do the trick, too.

atmosfx-hollusion-ghosts — The sheer curtain I used here is barely visible, but the ghosts look great! The projector: a Tenker Mini with 854x480 resolution.
Photo by Rick Broida/CNET

AtmosFX has a terrific how-to video for this, so I won't reinvent the wheel. I will say that there are tons of options for hanging your sheet in your yard, including the wood frame and archway mentioned in the video, but also hanging from a tree branch (provided you can secure the bottom to the ground so it stays taut) or building a freestanding frame out of PVC pipe.

How to play the animations

Normally, using a projector means connecting a laptop. But it's not exactly convenient to set one up in your yard. That's one reason I recommend a portable projector, as most models can utilize memory cards and flash drives -- no laptop required. In other words, just copy one or more of the AtmosFX animations to the card or drive, plug it into the projector and set the playback to loop mode.

Again, built-in speakers are great for this, but if they're not loud enough, consider connecting a portable, battery-powered speaker. (Most projectors have an audio-out jack, and most speakers have audio-in.)

Finally, give some thought to covering the projector, in part to help protect the illusion of the floating frights, and in part to protect it against the elements. (Here in Michigan, Halloween rain is all but guaranteed.) One good, inexpensive option: a clear plastic storage tote, turned upside down to cover the projector, with a hole cut in the side to allow the projection to pass through.

And that's it! Grab a spooky animation, feed it through a projector and point it at a translucent sheet. Now you've got a Hollywood-caliber decoration that's equal parts fun and frightening.

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Best Outdoor Projector Under 100