A 2.5-metre picture on your bedroom wall, Netflix on the remote, and it sharpens and squares itself in about 2 seconds. Bright enough to leave a lamp on.
#1 Rated Smart Projector for Film Night
Cineva One + 360° stand, voice remote with air mouse, power cable
Worth £449Projector, light source, fan, board and remote, repaired or replaced free
Sixty nights of films on your own wall. If it is not for you, every penny back.
Projector, light source, fan, board and remote. Repaired or replaced, free.
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She reads with her lamp on and the picture's still clear on the wall. Netflix was on the remote the first night, no stick, no faffing.Dan W. · Leeds
Life with the Cineva One
Film night in bed, in the lounge or out in the garden, ready before the popcorn is.
A 2.5-metre picture on a plain wall, and when it is off, the wall is just a wall. No black rectangle hanging over the bed, no bracket, no holes to fill.
It sets itself up in seconds, so a film in bed on a Tuesday is as easy as one at the weekend. At 1.7 kg it goes to the bedroom, the lounge or the garden in one hand.
The question everyone asks
Yes, with a lamp on. You do not need a pitch-black room. Here is what to expect, room by room.
Keep a lamp on for the snacks and the kids, and bring the picture down to 2 metres with the digital zoom or by moving it closer. It stays bright and clear.
In the bedroom or the lounge with the big light off, 650 ANSI lumens fills a 2.5-metre picture, bright to the corners.
Outside, the film starts once the sun is down, while the sky is still blue. What no projector this size beats is the afternoon sun through a window: draw the curtains or wait for the evening. If it is not bright enough for your room in 60 nights, send it back.
The picture
Most cheap projectors look great in the listing photos, then dim, grey and blurry at the edges on your wall. Here is what you see instead.
A true 1920 × 1080 chip, so text in the corners stays crisp and faces keep their detail on a 2.5-metre picture. 4K and 8K films and files play on it, shown in sharp native 1080p.
The giant number on most cheap boxes is made up. This one is 650 ANSI lumens, the standard way projector brightness is rated, in the brightest of three modes.
Drag the handle. Left is a 15,000-lumen box from Amazon. Right is the Cineva One. Same bedroom, same night, the light on.
“Unless the room is pitch black, the picture is washed out.”What owners say about the cheap projector they had before
No faff
Your apps
Netflix, YouTube, Prime Video and Disney+ come from the app store built into the projector, so film night starts from the remote: no laptop, no cables, no "app not supported" message. For iPlayer, ITVX and Channel 4, plug your Fire TV Stick, Roku or Chromecast into the HDMI port and every app and login from your telly comes with it. Or cast from your phone.
Sets itself up
Autofocus sharpens the picture and auto keystone squares the corners on its own, even with the projector off to one side. A shelf or a frame in the way? It moves the picture off it. Set it about 2.7 metres from the wall for a 2.5-metre picture, closer for a smaller one, or shrink it with the zoom without moving a thing.
The 360° stand
The stand turns all the way round and tilts straight up, so the picture lands on the wall, the ceiling or anywhere in between. Lie back, point it up and watch from your pillow. It can sit right on the bedside table: you hear a soft fan in a silent room, and most people stop noticing it once the film starts. The stand comes off if you want it flat on a shelf.
An installer's view
Nineteen years fitting screens and projectors in people's homes. He sees the cheap boxes every week.
Every week someone shows me a projector box that says 15,000 lumens and asks why the picture looks washed out with a lamp on. That number is made up. The figure that matters is ANSI lumens, and those boxes never print it. Half of them are 720p chips sold as "4K supported", so the edges go soft, and Netflix says "not supported" the first night. The rest are people about to spend £400 or more on a Samsung Freestyle or an XGIMI, asking if they have to. The Cineva One gives you 650 ANSI lumens, a true 1080p picture and Netflix on the remote, and it focuses and squares itself in a couple of seconds. It tilts up to the ceiling and takes a Fire Stick or a console in a normal HDMI port. That is why I tell people to buy it.
Compare before you buy
They cost less. Here is what you give up for it.
| Compare | Cineva One | The 15,000-lumen boxes on Amazon (£60 to £150) |
|---|---|---|
| Brightness on the box | 650 ANSI lumens, the real rating | "15,000 lumens", no ANSI figure |
| Resolution | Native 1080p chip, 4K & 8K supported | Often a 720p chip sold as "4K" |
| Netflix | From the built-in app store, on the remote | "Not supported", or buy a Fire Stick |
| Focus and a square picture | Autofocus and auto keystone, about 2 seconds | Turn a wheel, drag the corners |
| A shelf or a frame in the way | Moves the picture off it by itself | Move the projector and try again |
| Films on the ceiling | 360° stand tilts straight up | A fixed foot and a pile of books |
| Cover | 2-year guarantee and 60 nights to try it | 30-day marketplace returns |
Customer reviews
Based on 1,642 reviews · 100% verified buyers
The other half wouldn't have a telly in the bedroom, full stop. This sits by my alarm clock, a foot from my head, and fills the wall above the chest of drawers. Once something's on I can't hear the fan. We got through a whole series in a fortnight. I nod off halfway through most nights and she switches it off.
Pegged an old bedsheet to the fence, sat this on the patio table, and my two hauled every cushion off the sofa. We started not long after sunset and could see it fine. Ran the sound through our little speaker so next door didn't get the whole film. They've asked for it every weekend since.
Bought it to give my eyes a rest from the telly. Clear picture, and it covers the chimney breast nicely. Four stars because the sun hits that side of the house after lunch, so it's curtains shut or wait till evening. The pointer on the remote took me a week to get the hang of.
My flat is one room and a kitchen, so there was nowhere to put a telly. I aim this up at the ceiling and watch flat on my back. Getting my phone connected took a minute the first time. A couple of episodes before sleep most nights. No more holding an iPad over my face.
Plugged the PS5 in and played FIFA on a picture as wide as the sofa. I'm not fussy about numbers and it felt fine to me. Had the lads round on Saturday for the match and nobody left till gone midnight. Curtains shut and it looked spot on.
Bought it for my husband's birthday as he'd been dropping hints for months. The box sat on the kitchen table a whole day before he twigged. He had a film going upstairs in about five minutes without asking me once. Now he's on about the garage.
Tell other people how it works in your home.
What's in the box
Streaming sticks, HDMI cables and screens are not in the box. Keep the box for 60 days in case you want to send it back.
| Resolution | Native 1080p, 4K & 8K supportedA true 1920 × 1080 picture. Plays 4K and 8K files and streams, shown in sharp native 1080p. |
|---|---|
| Brightness | 650 ANSI lumensIn the brightest of three modes: Standard, High brightness and Eco. |
| Picture size | 1 to 3.8 mA 2-metre picture at about 2.1 m from the wall, 2.5 metres at 2.7 m, 3 metres at 3.2 m. |
| Setup | Autofocus and auto keystoneSharp and square by itself in about 2 seconds. Moves the picture off a shelf or a frame on the wall. Manual focus and keystone too. |
| Zoom | Digital, 50 to 100%Makes the picture smaller without moving the projector. |
| Stand | 360°, removableTurns any angle and tilts straight up to the ceiling. |
| Smart system | Android 14Netflix, YouTube, Prime Video and Disney+ from the app store, plus casting from your phone. Any streaming stick plugs into the HDMI port too. |
| Wireless | Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.4Dual-band Wi-Fi, 2.4 and 5 GHz. Bluetooth out to a soundbar, a speaker or headphones. |
| Screen mirroring | AirPlay, Miracast, DLNAFrom a phone, a tablet or a laptop. |
| Sound | Built-in stereo speakers |
| Ports | HDMI, USB, 3.5 mm audio outThe power lead plugs straight in, no power brick. |
| Remote | Bluetooth voice remoteWith a 6-axis air mouse: point and click. |
| Light source | LED, rated about 30,000 hours |
| Weight | 1.7 kg |
| Guarantee | 2 yearsProjector, light source, fan, board and remote. Plus 60 nights to try it at home. |
Questions about a spec? Email support@shopcineva.com.
The Cineva 60-Night Guarantee
Never heard of Cineva? Try it at home for 60 nights: films in bed, the match on the lounge wall, a night in the garden. If the picture is not what you hoped, send it back and get every penny, no quibbles. After that it is covered for two years: projector, light source, fan, board and remote.
Sixty nights at home. Full refund, no quibbles.
Projector, light source, fan, board and remote. Repaired or replaced free.
Fast and tracked to your door anywhere in the UK. Nothing to pay on the doorstep. Tracking number emailed the moment it leaves.
Questions before or after: support@shopcineva.com. Someone answers around the clock.
Common questions
Native 1080p: a true 1920 × 1080 picture, so text and faces stay crisp on a 2.5-metre picture. It plays 4K and 8K files and streams too, and shows them in 1080p. A lot of cheap boxes say "4K supported" on a 720p chip, which is why their pictures go soft at the edges.
Yes. Netflix, YouTube, Prime Video and Disney+ come from the app store built into the projector, and you can cast from your phone. For BBC iPlayer, ITVX and Channel 4, or the exact apps and logins on your telly, plug a Fire TV Stick, Roku or Chromecast into the HDMI port.
It has a fan to keep the light cool, like every projector, and you can hear a soft hum in a silent room. Once a film is playing, most people stop noticing it, even with the projector on the bedside table. If you want the sound closer to you, pair headphones or a soundbar over Bluetooth.
About 2.1 metres for a 2-metre picture, 2.7 metres for 2.5 metres and 3.2 metres for 3 metres. It works well anywhere from 1 to 3.8 metres. To make the picture smaller without moving the projector, use the digital zoom in the settings.
No. Switch it on and autofocus and auto keystone sharpen and square the picture in about 2 seconds, even if the projector sits off to one side. If a shelf or a picture frame is in the way, it moves the picture off it. You can still focus by hand from the remote and adjust the keystone in the settings.
You get 60 nights to try it at home, and every penny back if it is not for you. After that, the 2-year guarantee covers the projector, the light source, the fan, the board and the remote. Send a photo or a short video and your order number, and you get it repaired or replaced, free. A real person answers by email, any hour, every day. None of this affects your legal rights.
Both are good projectors, and both cost £400 to £700. The Samsung Freestyle has a micro HDMI port and the XGIMI MoGo 3 Pro a mini HDMI port, so a Fire TV Stick or a console needs an adapter. The Cineva One has a normal HDMI port, 650 ANSI lumens, native 1080p, autofocus and auto keystone, and a stand that tilts to the ceiling, for a lot less. Put it on your own wall for 60 nights and decide there.
Yes, once the sun is down. Hang a white sheet over the fence or use a plain outside wall, start the film at dusk, and pair a Bluetooth speaker for the sound. It runs from a plug socket, so bring an outdoor extension lead, and take it back indoors when the film ends.
Yes. Plug a console, a laptop or a streaming stick into the HDMI port, or play films and photos from a USB stick. Phones, tablets and laptops can also mirror to it without a cable, over AirPlay, Miracast or DLNA.
The built-in stereo speakers are fine for the bedroom. For the lounge or the garden, pair a soundbar, a speaker or headphones over Bluetooth 5.4, or plug into the 3.5 mm audio out.
Yes. The stand turns all the way round and tilts straight up, so the picture lands on the ceiling above your bed. It squares the picture up there too. The stand comes off if you would rather sit it flat on a shelf.
Stop holding an iPad over your face in bed. Stop fighting a dim, blurry box that says 15,000 lumens. Netflix on the remote, a picture that focuses and squares itself, a stand that tilts up to the ceiling, and a two-year guarantee. It is delivered free and fast from our UK warehouse.
