XGIMI MOGO 2 Pro vs Nebula Capsule 3 - Projector Comparison - Laser vs LED - Which One is the Best?

My full comparison video between 2 new DLP video projectors, the XGIMI MoGo 2 Pro vs Nebula Capsule 3. Both projectors feature native 1080p with HDR and support 4K decoding. Both running Official Android TV and both projectors can produce impressive home cinema experience. But which one is better? Find out in this video.

XGIMI MoGo 2 Pro Smart LED Projector Review
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Nebula Capsule 3: Transformers (Limited Edition) Laser Projector
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Nebula Capsule 3 Specs:
* Laser DLP Projector
* Mediatek 9629 Quad-core 1.5Ghz
* Mali G52 (Integrated Graphics)
* 2GB RAM + 16GB ROM
* Brightness: 300 ANSI Lumens
* Native 1080p
* Contrast Ratio: 400:1
* Android TV v11
* Auto Focus / Keystone
* Max Optimal Screen 120”
* HDMI 2.1
* 8W Speaker (Dolby Digital Plus)
* 14,500mAh Battery
* Supports Fast Charging
* 40” - 120” - Projection Size
* 0.5m - 3.5m - Throw Distance
* 8.3cm x 17cm
* 900g
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XGIMI MoGo 2 Pro Specs:
* LED DLP Projector
* Lamp Life: 25,000 Hours
* 2GB RAM + 16GB ROM
* Brightness: 400 ISO Lumens
* 90% DCI-P3 Color Gamut
* D65 Color Temperature
* Native 1080p / HDR10
* Supports 3D
* Android TV v11
* Uninterrupted Auto Focus / Keystone
* Intelligent Eye Protection
* Max Optimal Screen 200”
* HDMI 2.0 / WIFI 5GHZ / BT 5.0
* 2X 8W Speaker (Dolby Digital Plus)
* No Built in Battery
* Type-C Power
* 40” - 200” - Projection Size
* 0.5m - 3.5m - Throw Distance
* 16.1cm x 11.9cm x 10.8cm
* 1.1kg
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Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:17 Design
00:46 Connectivity
01:10 In the Box
01:34 Price
02:18 Specs
02:25 Laser vs LED
03:31 ANSI vs ISO
04:36 3D Movies
05:08 Auto Correction
06:39 Speakers
07:56 Fan Noise
08:25 PS5 Gaming
12:35 Final Thoughts
12:53 Strengths / Weakness
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#XGIMIMoGo2Pro #NebulaCapsule3 #Projectorcomparison

[iamthgil]

I couldn't decide so I purchased both to compare. In the end, I chose the Nebula. It had the better image quality, and it was also the one whose image renders closest to the image on the screen of my macbook (the M1 from 2021). I am using this projector in my small studio to watch old films, but I also tested 4k clips from youtube, etc. First, I streamed videos directly from the youtube app on each device (after connecting to wifi), and then I compared these videos to those being screen casted or mirrored from my computer to the projectors. For me, this is just as important because I prefer to project videos wirelessly from my mac to the projector rather than relying on cables. Honestly, I was shocked the XGIMI had the poorer picture quality...I watched various videos (cartoons, b&w, 1970s cinema, national geographic, animated youtube ads) and I could still see pixels (and I adjusted my settings a few times to make sure). Also the colors were not as accurate to the image on my computer, shadows not as rich, etc. I don't care about (or didn't prioritize) the Nebula being wireless, nor if it has only half the audio bandwidth compared to the XGIMI. You can hook it up to an external bluetooth speaker, and I am going to keep it plugged in for now anyway. The image quality is what concerns me the most.

In terms of set up- both are Android, and both function in very similar ways. It's a pain to hook up if you have an iOS device, but after some trials, it was ok. For instance, for XGIMI, to screen mirror your computer screen, you use the "Cast" option on GoogleChrome (and check that it is for the "Screen" and not just a "Tab"); it's built into Google Chrome, if you have it downloaded. For Nebula, it was more complicated because I could not get NebulaCast to work from the device, so you must download "Airscreen" onto the Nebula from the GooglePlay app store. This is the only way my mac recognized the Nebula device to screenshare. I tested both the same day - and have yet to see how the nebula performs beyond this initial comparison. But I hope this review is helpful for anyone who resonates xxx

[NicolasGabrielRobez]

Hi, thank you for your review, it's great that we have a review of the two toughest competitors on this feature and price range. Not a major issue but I think you missed that Nebula has also 5GHz Wifi/BT support. Also after reviewing your video I was missing what's the advantage of the Nebula 3 having HDMI 2.1 support compared to the XGIMI having only HDMI 2.0 support. I would also like to know how HDR10 support impacts in 4k mode when one has HDMI 2.1 support and the other one has only HDMI 2.0 support. Thank you so much in advance for your time and support!

[disposable]

I love that you included the fan noise comparison - thanks a load for that. Mainly what I needed to know

[orlnpux]

Thank you very much.
It was a great review.
I have a Capsule 3 and wanted to see a comparison with the MOGO 2 Pro, so this review was helpful.

[johnmcdonald]

Nebula has Optimus Prime on the front that fu*kin cool, I'm sold 😂

[ps_]

Any noticeable difference in brightness between the two even though the XGIMI is brighter on the spec sheet?

[David-qpbq]

This is a very specific question but help would be appreciated. I would like to buy a projector but one of my main concerns is the wattage draw as that would drastically increase the electricity bill. Is it possible to measure the wattage draw from the socket of the Ben q x3000i for instance to see of its wattage draw is as high as they say, Additionally it would be interesting to see if lowering brightness settings makes a considerable difference. This would be a great stat that does affect some people's purchase decisions, like me, to add to the projector spreadsheets, e.g. Lowest wattage and highest recorded. Thanks for the help

[TheArtOfJerry]

Nebula is my choice. 😅 first time to hear you in antisocial hours😅. Thanks for the comparison.

[WyomingMuleDeer]

The choice to not include an internal battery is a net advantage IMO. If a Nebula projector is able to last even just a few years, its battery will gradually lose capacity until eventually it has little or none left. Remedying this problem for the sake of continued portable use will require either operating on the projector to replace the internal battery, or reliance on USB power banks. The lack of battery in the XGIMI creates more space within the projector for items such as the passive low-frequency radiator partially responsible for the better sound quality of the XGIMI, and negates the need to take apart the projector to replace an internal battery. Likewise, including an internal battery in the Nebula likely influenced the decision to use a lower ANSI lumens light source and only include a single speaker, which helps reduce power consumption and allows the projector to run longer between charges when relying exclusively on the internal battery, but at the expense of making a projector that is not as bright or loud. Additionally, when a portable projector is used indoors, which for most people it seems would be more often than not, there is generally no need for a battery. Exclusive reliance on power banks for portable use allows for the customization of power capacity and encourages the design of a portable projector with louder, more powerful sound and brighter projection.

In the short run, the Nebula has the extra convenience of not requiring a power bank for portable use, at the expense of the aforementioned. In the long run, if the internal battery is not replaced once it dies out, the result is a projector designed for lower power consumption with fewer features despite there no longer being any need for this design. If the decision is made to replace the internal battery, hopefully the projector is still under warranty and can be repaired for free by Anker (who can be fickle when it comes to warranty support). If not, hopefully whoever owns it can find a way to fix it without having to pay for labor. Repairing small electronics also comes with a risk of taking things apart and not being able to put them back together, or getting things back together and in the process creating a different problem, and can include finding and purchasing what can be expensive, hard-to-find parts. There is a possibility the projector stops working before the battery starts to appreciably lose capacity and whoever it belongs to decides it's not worth repairing, in which case replacing the battery wouldn't become an issue.

Internal batteries in portable projectors seem analogous to batteries in Macbooks. Many laptop brands have batteries that can easily be removed and replaced without having to take the computer apart, but to remove a battery from a Macbook one has to painstakingly disassemble it. Why internalize the one part in an electronic device that inherently will go bad within a few years when it can be externalized, either through an external portable power source or a battery that can be swapped out with no surgery required? Another instance of this is smartphones with batteries that start going bad within a few years. With older cell phones, if a battery started losing capacity, all one had to do was take off the back cover and replace it with a new one. Now, to replace batteries in a smartphone, one must use a heat gun to soften the adhesive and take apart a smartphone, carefully remove and disconnect all the parts and screws in the way, carefully heat the old battery's adhesive backing to remove the bad battery, put in the new one, then reassemble everything in reverse. I find it hard to believe internalizing batteries is a good thing with many types of technology, portable projectors included. Maybe if the aim is to sell more projectors or make money servicing projectors to replace batteries. Similar to how Apple seems to make their products hard to service so that people either stop using them and get a new one when they have an issue that requires repair, or to go to the genius bar to have it repaired for an order of magnitude or more than what it would cost to buy a part off eBay and fix it yourself.

Some companies such as Samsung are taking a middle path, creating proprietary external batteries that can easily be swapped out if one dies. But their are clear advantage to not having to use proprietary batteries and being able to use any high-wattage power bank. The Samsung batteries can be used to charge other devices, but their cylindrical shape is not the most portable, they have limited ports and features, and because they are a niche battery produced in lower volumes the cost is about $6 per 1, 000 mah, more than double the cost of similarly spec'd power banks on Amazon.

It seems like the Mogo Pro 2 is more of a hybrid projector. It is more powerful than most small form-factor portable projectors in terms of its combined brightness and relatively powerful built-in audio, and therefore in some ways closer to all-in-one home theater projectors like the XGIMI Horizon. Yet it can still be used as a portable projector because of its lower brightness and loudness relative to home theater projectors and its ability to be powered via USB. And unlike the XGIMI Halo+, it is not limited to internal battery capacity when used as a portable projector, and partly because of its lack of internal battery is smaller and lighter than the Halo+, and packs more punch into a smaller space.

Also, when the Nebula's USB-C port is being used for powering the projector and/or charging the internal battery, or with a power bank, there is no way to use a flash drive with it. Whereas the XGIMI has a USB-A port that can be used while the USB-C charging port is being used by a power bank or charger. It's not clear to me why Nebula removed the USB-A port, or why they didn't include two USB-C ports--one for power and charging or using a power bank, and the other for a USB-C flash drive--when they went from the II to the 3. Sometimes minimalism in design is an improvement, but other times it can overreach and eliminate older yet still useful features. Hopefully for future Capsule models, Anker will consider going back to dual USB ports, so flash drives can be used while the projector is being powered and/or charged. Especially if someone is taking the projector off the grid where streaming isn't available, being able to use a flash drive instead of the small amount of internal memory included in most portable projectors while powering the projector using external batteries can be useful.

Also, while it's really neat the Nebula is helping bring laser into the mainstream, laser light in a portable form factor is in its fledgling stages. Reviews here and on Amazon suggest the Capsule Laser 3 has issues with screen door effect, where individual pixels have a visible border on projection screens. There is some indication this can be minimized by adjusting image settings and using certain screen backgrounds, but it seems like Anker just wanted to be the first ones to put the technology in portable projectors and didn't take the time to flesh out some shortcomings that seem more obvious to some than others. At the least, if Anker didn't want to wait for their laser technology to be better developed before commercialization, the Capsule 3 could have been configured to have less of the screen door effect straight out of the box. This seems like another example where Anker is rushing to put out new products, whereas it seems like XGIMI takes more time to better develop theirs and set their projectors up to be more optimally configured out of the box. Both brands seem to share a higher amount of issues due to the novelty of the technology they are developing, on Amazon I see a lot of negative reviews about software being buggy or difficult to use, premature hardware failure, etc., despite both companies trying to emphasize good functionality and build quality. But this should go away if all-in-one smart projectors become increasingly popular, there will be more end users for determining common issues to be addressed and resolved so that companies deal with fewer customer complaints and costly product repairs, more time for companies to refine their technologies, and there will be more competition to encourage better quality and functionality.

One the whole, it seems like XGIMI is more so taking the lead when it comes to development of home entertainment systems that can be bound within a nutshell yet be counted as kings of infinite space. I think they see how this sort of consumer technology could really take off; just like flat panels caused bulky rear projection televisions to be phased out of production, it seems plausible that these tiny but powerful home entertainment systems will increasingly eat away at the popularity of both traditional projectors and flat-screen televisions. XGIMI, Anker, and a few other companies seem to be taking the lead on the home entertainment system in a nutshell concept, while there are some off-brands fighting to get a footing (Wimius Weemax, and many apparent plagiarists), and some leading manufacturers of more traditional projectors (e.g. BenQ) are beginning to use their highly developed projector technology and high quality manufacturing, and are starting to catch up with their development of smart projector and small form factor speaker technology to be able to compete. It seems very similar to the EV market, where Tesla led (and in many ways still leads) the way, while startups like Rivian and Nikola are looking to capture a share of the market while there's still some open territory, companies like Li are starting to explode, and the traditional auto companies have been relying on their accumulated technology in automobile design and manufacturing while playing catch-up with regards to the electric portion, in some cases outright adopting technology from leaders such as Tesla.

[emmachitty]

Best review ever, just got to the information fast with examples. so good!

[martymeunier]

I have the original nebula capsule and it's amazing I can't wait to get the 3. I've played xbox on mine, we take it when traveling along with our fire stick so we can watch all the ufc fights..

[Babyy]

What is the eye protection thing that xgimi has over nebula? Pretty sure i didnt skip any part of your video

[midala]

You had me convinced to get the xgimi for more than one reason.
One of the reasons was the passive 3D technology, but im sorry to say that it does not support passive technology.
Did you test the 3D functionality yourself?

[silentblackhole]

For something that I will use in my bedroom or living room with no need for a battery, the XGIMI MOGO 2 Pro wins with the better colour. The Nebula Capsule 3 seems like a good travelling option though.

[patrickcadette]

Awesome chigz... it is definitely a toss up but the nebula would be my choice overall..😁😁😁👍👍👍♥️....

[tjwilliams]

How does this compare to the halo+ projector? Which is better in your opinion?

[kt_]

Mo go 2 pro or halo + ? Which one is better in terms of picture quality(colour, lag, brightness etc)

[SquashDonkey]

You say it's passive 3d glasses but is it not active shutter ?

[paulhill]

Great video Nebula would be my choice because of the built in battery.

[Protoverman]

Wouldn't a comparison to the Xgimi Halo+ have made more sense?