Introduction

XGIMI is a bit of an upstart to the projector world, so much so that the company's first projector is barely 7 years old. Since then, it has diversified the product lineup to offer a variety of portable offerings and recently launched its first 4K projector as part of a next-gen lineup. Before we get there, it only seemed prudent to set up a base using currently available products. As such, knowing that projectors are not necessarily our forte yet, we sought to do it differently when the company approached us by having two reviewers with differing backgrounds and opinions cover a projector each. The first came in the form of the MoGo Pro+, where the main issue seemed to be the low maximum luminance. Today, we take a look at the XGIMI Halo, and thanks again to the company for sending review samples to TechPowerUp!


The XGIMI Halo builds upon the MoGo/MoGo Pro/MoGo Pro+ projectors in taking things up a notch throughout. It is the current portable flagship from the brand, at least until the newer Horizon and Horizon Pro come out, and aims to address the maximum brightness issue that my colleague had with the MoGo Pro+. This is a DLP projector maxing out at 1080p as well, but with bigger speakers, a bigger battery, and of course a much brighter lamp. So let's see how the XGIMI Halo fares as we begin with a look at the specifications in the table below.

Specifications

Packaging and Accessories

XGIMI operates several retail channels directly, so we begin with a look at the shipping packaging, which is relevant for a device that has batteries and optics while having to look cool at the end of the day. A thick cardboard box greets us, with all the appropriate labeling and safety regulations tended to, as well as a confirmation that I indeed have the UK version inside catering to the power plug, of course. Opening the box, we see the actual product box is quite snugly packed in with minimal space around. I would have preferred about an inch of space on all sides filled with, say, packing peanuts, but the box arrived safely enough.


The product box itself is predominantly white, matching what we saw with the MoGo Pro+, and honestly looks like it could be a Google product based on my history with the brand. It is clean, with minimal writing on the sides and large renders of the product inside. The company logo and product name are on the front along with a mention of Google Assistant thanks to the use of Android TV as the operating system (built upon Android 9.0). More renders, specifications, and marketing features are on the other sides, and a double flap keeps things in place during transit.


Opening the box, we see a registration pamphlet and FAQ/quick start guide. These are on top of extremely thick foam with cutouts to host the projector underneath even more snugly for good protection during transit. There is a second foam piece underneath the projector as well, and then we see two cardboard boxes surrounded by more cardboard on the sides that hold the included accessories.


Taking out the actual boxes might be harder than you think since everything is packed so tightly. But once done, we see that the smaller of the two boxes holds the power plug cable and remote control for the projector itself. I have the UK cable here, with the prongs protected by a plastic cover. It terminates in a connector that no doubt plugs into a power brick and is capable of providing 2.5 A from the AC mains (250 V rated for some reason). The remote comes inside a wax paper wrap and is quite petite, making it comfortable to hold, similar to a high-end smart TV remote from Samsung if my own TV remote is anything to go by. It is white with predominantly black buttons, which in turn get a matte rubber finish for the smaller buttons and a metallic finish for the D-pad itself. Plenty of buttons to help easily navigate through the Android TV interface, and a cutout on the back opens up to reveal the battery compartment for two AAA batteries, which are not included. Come on XGIMI, why make a big deal about the integrated high-capacity battery in the projector and then cheap out on no remote batteries at all?


The larger accessory box contains the now-expected power brick, which in turn accepts 1.5 A from the AC mains and supplies a surprisingly precise 4.74 A on an equally uncommon 19 V line. This means the XGIMI Halo requires 90 W of power; hence the need for a dedicated brick. This is also about 30% more than what the MoGo Pro+ took. We also get some additional paperwork, including a detailed user guide (online copy here) that is very handy if you get in a spot during setup and navigation. That's it as far as the bundled accessories go, which are honestly the bare minimum I would expect. It would have been nice to see a 100 W Type-C charging option, although perhaps we will see it on the company's next-generation products. I would have also liked a carry case, especially with all the portability spiel from XGIMI. The company does separately sell a case for the MoGo lineup, but there is no first-party offering for the Halo as of the time this review was written.