Asus today announced its new ZenBeam Latte at CES 2021, and it’s quite cute. It’s a mobile movie projector that looks like a one-eyed, dust-covered mini-robot. Importantly, it shoots its 720p image with up to 300 lumens of LED light, making it brighter than capsule projectors we’ve seen from Anker, and has an integrated 10W Harman Kardon tuned speaker system to boot.
Oddly enough, Asus insists that its projector looks like a coffee mug.
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It does not. It’s not the right shape (just watch the video!), And why would a ‘home’ coffee mug (Asus’ word) be gray instead of a glossy brown? Asus also claims that it is ‘the first projector to offer an exterior of material’, which is demonstrably false.
Of course, you can not drink Asus’ slats, because it only gives light and sound. However, it can project your phone or an HDMI device wirelessly.
So consider this an opportunity, device makers: build the coffee mug that Asus did not. Just make sure it lasts longer than a movie – Asus quotes three hours from a 6,000 mAh battery – and gets bright enough to create a decent-sized screen. Asus says that this one can deliver a 40-inch picture if it is one meter off the wall, 80 centimeters by two meters and a maximum of 120 centimeters (presumably three meters). However, do not expect a 300 lumen projector to be very bright at nine feet further.
Asus says it will be coming to the US in the second quarter of the year, but there is no word on pricing.