TCL’s PlayCube projector is more fun than a Rubik’s Cube

The champion all-in-one portable projector is the 1 that makes each the correct compromises. It needs to equilibrium image and sound value pinch artillery life and responsiveness successful a instrumentality that’s not excessively costly and mini capable to return anywhere. TCL’s nosy small PlayCube delivers the correct operation to warrant paying $800 for a 1080p projector successful 2026.

I tested the TCL PlayCube moving Google TV during a two-month roadworthy trip, and past again for a fewer months astatine home. It’s truthful small, adaptable, and enjoyable that I’ve had nary problem mounting it up astatine a moment’s notice, time aliases night, anyplace I’ve been.

TCL says the PlayCube’s 90-degree rotating creation was inspired by the Rubik’s Cube. Just springiness it a twist whenever you request to assistance the image complete obstacles. Otherwise, you tin equine it connected a tripod via the threaded connector astatine the bottom, aliases flip it complete onto its backside for immoderate bedtime ceiling viewing. The PlayCube besides features each the automatic accommodation modes you’d expect successful a modern portable projector, including focus, keystone correction, obstacle avoidance, surface detection, and oculus protection.

The different notable point astir the PlayCube is its brightness. 750 ISO lumens isn’t agleam for a location theatre projector, but it’s very agleam for a portable that easy fits into the thenar of your hand, measuring 149.8 x 96.6 x 96.6mm (5.90 x 3.80 x 3.80 inches) and 1.3kg (2.7 pounds).

It’s agleam capable to watch videos during the time erstwhile each those lumens are focused into a tight 30-inch rectangle wrong my van, aliases astatine 100-inches erstwhile projected against it astatine night. Unfortunately, it doesn’t person that color-adaptation tech recovered connected Samsung’s caller (battery-less) Freestyle+ projector, truthful the blue-gray hull affected the palette. Regardless, it was still very watchable.

The audio produced by the PlayCube’s lone 5W speaker is fine. There’s nary stereo separation, but it’s large capable to capable a room. It conscionable lacks fullness, warmth, and detail. Music from Florence and The Machine and Kendrick Lamar sounds shrill and thin. The screeching tires, gunshots, and explosions from a 007 pursuit segment produced a alternatively muddled soundscape, but it was still enjoyable. The sound is uncomfortably harsh supra 60 percent volume, which is still plentifulness loud. During 1 outdoor movie night, I felt compelled to group the measurement nary higher than 20 percent to debar bothering the closest neighbour immoderate 50 meters away.

Alternatively, you tin link headphones aliases self-powered speakers done the audio jack aliases complete Bluetooth. The projector tin besides beryllium utilized arsenic a Bluetooth speaker, which turns disconnected the lamp but, annoyingly, not the fan. That instrumentality produces 27dB erstwhile measured astatine a region of 1 meter, which is reasonably quiet for a projector but still noticeable during still moments.

The runtime from the PlayCube’s 66Wh artillery was inconsistent, but it performed very good successful caller tests. TCL claims up to 3 hours – I measured precisely 3 hours and 1 infinitesimal aft a afloat complaint successful the projector’s brightest mode, while streaming The Aviator complete Netflix, a movie that runs for 2 hours and 50 minutes. It besides useful pinch USB-C powerfulness banks if you request moreover much time. The PlayCube recharged from zero to afloat successful 104 minutes from a 65W USB-C charger.

I knowledgeable chaotic shifts successful artillery life complete my 4 months of testing, which I deliberation tin beryllium attributed to TCL’s powerfulness guidance successful standby mode. A short property connected the powerfulness fastener puts the projector to sleep, allowing it to aftermath successful little than 30 seconds. In standby, the instrumentality spins up periodically, sapping power — which could beryllium the logic I saw terrible artillery drain erstwhile vanlifing successful warmer climates. The rumor vanished erstwhile I returned to the mild temperatures astatine home. A firmware update mightiness person besides helped.

Regardless, you tin long-press the powerfulness fastener for a afloat shutdown to debar immoderate phantom powerfulness drain suffered successful standby. The PlayCube past takes astir 80 seconds to footwear up, but that tin beryllium accelerated by turning disconnected immoderate of the automatic surface accommodation features.

The personification interface tin besides beryllium sluggish astatine times, for illustration astir battery-powered projectors. Sometimes Google TV needs a frustrating 2nd aliases 2 earlier it’ll respond to navigation commands from the distant control. The automatic image set features are besides alternatively slow to footwear in. But I’m grateful erstwhile they do, moreover if obstacle avoidance tin beryllium deed aliases miss. Fortunately, everything tin still beryllium fine-tuned manually.

TCL says the PlayCube is “designed specifically for camping projection.” That makes maine — an avid vanlifer — its superior target, and I’ve travel distant very impressed. At $799.99, TCL’s PlayCube projector isn’t cheap, but you won’t typically find this operation of brightness, artillery life, and portability for less. Xgimi’s Halo+ comes adjacent for the aforesaid price, only successful a bigger package that offers improved stereo sound but shorter artillery life… but it’s presently connected waste for conscionable $449, which is simply a very bully deal.

Photography by Thomas Ricker / The Verge