These Giant Short-Throw Projectors Really, Really Want You to Replace Your TV

No, you don’t want to always have a projector taking up space in the middle of your living room. At IFA 2026, several companies are pushing new short-throw laser projectors that sit on your TV stand that make a better case for replacing your TV, even though they’ll inevitably cost boatloads of money. First, we should talk about the Awol Vision’s LuxVision projector and its “optical lens shift” capabilities. This means you can move the projected image without having to adjust the actual projector on your TV stand. That matters even more for short-throw projectors like LuxVision, since you’ll need to find space for it on your TV stand without the need to build a whole setup around the lone projector. Otherwise, LuxVision is a 4K projector capable of outputting 120Hz speeds. There are multiple other projectors at IFA 2026 with that higher refresh rate, including JMGO’s Iris series, and it means you won’t have to worry about maxing out frame rates when watching sports or playing games, especially on Xbox Series X and PlayStation 5 consoles that max out at 120Hz. The short-distance laser projector should seem smoother for these scenarios, but Awol Vision claims it may make 24 fps content look smoother with improved frame pacing. The Xgimi Aura 3 Max promises a brighter projection than the Aura 2 series. © Xgimi The LuxVision is a 6,000 ISO lumen projector, though just below that you have Xgimi’s Aura 3 Max short-throw laser projector that tops out at 5,700 ISO lumens. Xgimi’s new projector may not have the same optical lens shift capabilities, but it instead promises deeper blacks and better contrast from the resulting image thanks to a dual-iris optical system (again, like JMGO’s Iris Ultra Max). Xgimi’s triple-laser projector also maxes out at 4K and 120Hz, though it also promises to support Dolby Vision, HDR10+, HLG, IMAX Enhanced, and a separate Filmmaker Mode—better to pretend the projector is actually a full-scale TV. LuxVision supports Dolby Vision Gaming for the few titles that actually support that high dynamic range. On the flip side, LuxVision and the Xgimi projector claim to project up to a 200-inch visual onto your wall. Here’s the real kicker: the LuxVision will come in around $6,000 this October. Xgimi’s Aura 3 Max starts at $2,400, while a lower-end Aura 3 Pro will demand $2,100. However, you’ll have to go through a Kickstarter that is set to launch Oct. 20. Either way, these TV replacement projectors are not cheap. They’re all the more expensive considering how great QLED or OLED TVs seem to be getting cheaper all the time. If you’re looking for a short-throw projector that can meet or beat the size of those impossibly pricey 120-inch televisions, these may be your better bet. Just make sure you have the wall space available.