Epson Home Theater Projectors Awarded THX Certification

PowerLite Home Cinema 8500 UB and Pro Cinema 9500 UB Deliver Unforgettable Movie Experiences at Home with THX Certified Picture Quality, Color, and Detail

LONG BEACH, Calif. - Dec. 16, 2009 - Building on its commitment to deliver high-quality home entertainment experiences, Epson America today announced that its award-winning Home Cinema 8500 UB and Pro Cinema 9500 UB projectors have received THX® certification. Designed for custom installers and home entertainment enthusiasts, the native 1080p 3LCD™ home theater projectors deliver accurate and exceptional picture quality with THX Movie Mode, a playback setting that lets consumers experience studio color, black levels and clean signal processing right out-of-the-box.[i]

"We are constantly working to develop high-quality products that deliver the optimal balance of image quality, performance, display flexibility and affordability to enable home theater enthusiasts to create unforgettable wide-screen experiences in their homes," said Marge Ang, senior product manager, Epson America. "Receiving THX certification clearly demonstrates that these latest Home and Pro Cinema projectors offer the best in their respective price and performance classes."

THX sets strict performance standards for black levels, resolution, contrast, color gamut, and signal processing. The THX Certified Home Cinema 8500 UB and Pro Cinema 9500 UB feature THX Movie Mode, a playback setting designed to recreate the cinema experience at home by adjusting the projector's gamma, luminance, color temperature and other settings to match those used by filmmakers in the studio.

"At THX, we strive to identify and collaborate with innovative companies that share our same passion and commitment for recreating cinematic experiences in the home," said Matthew Chrispen, director of certification at THX. "Epson's latest THX Certified projectors are engineered to do just that, reproducing color and black levels that closely mirror the filmmaker's mastering studio, and presenting sports and action movies with smooth motion and detail."

In addition to THX certification, the Home Cinema 8500 UB and Pro Cinema 9500 UB feature the latest D7 chip set with Epson's C2Fine® and UltraBlack™ technology for superb black levels and vivid images. With brightness of 1,600 lumens color and white light output[ii] and a new dual-layered auto iris technology, these projectors deliver an impressive contrast ratio of up to 200,000:1. In addition, new real color reproduction capabilities deliver more natural and precise colors, allowing viewers to experience the true-to-life colors filmmakers intended.

The projectors also feature Epson's new Super-resolution™ technology for enhanced picture quality and improved FineFrame™ technology for smoother frame interpolation, sharper video quality and the elimination of judder. The Pro Cinema 9500 UB also adds anamorphic "stretch" picture mode, along with ISF calibration and color management features for a customized home entertainment experience.

Availability and Support

The Epson Home Cinema 8500 UB and the Pro Cinema 9500 UB are currently available through authorized Epson projector dealers and select retail outlets. Both projectors come with Epson's industry leading service and support. The Home Cinema 8500 UB includes a two-year limited warranty, while the Pro Cinema 9500 UB includes a three-year limited warranty; both come with access to Epson PrivateLine® priority toll-free support, 90-day limited lamp warranty, and free two-business day exchange with Extra CareSM Home Service.

About Epson America Inc.

Epson America Inc. is a leading provider of an extensive range of printers, 3LCD projectors, scanners and point-of-service printers that are renowned for their high quality, functionality, innovation and energy efficiency.

Epson America is a U.S. affiliate of Seiko Epson Corporation, which employs more than 70,000 people in 106 companies around the world. Seiko Epson is committed to its ongoing contributions to the global environment and for the second year in a row has been named to the Dow Jones Sustainability World Index, an indicator for leading companies in economic, environmental and social criteria.