Don’t get sucked into the resolution game. It makes little to no difference going from 720 to 1080. Where you need to be looking /comparing is true contrast ratio, color accuracy, blacks, projector noise (they are not all the same), mounting limitations, bulb replacement costs, ease of use, lumen output, lens shift limitations, cost and whatever else is important to you.
Most of these things are incredibly overrated (as advertised). After calibration is when a projector should be measured for competitive shopping perposes. Also, look for unbiased professional reviews. The best I’ve seen can be found at projector reviews.
http://www.projectorreviews.com/ Art does a great job at reviewing these things and reporting what the general, non obsessive tweaker will want/need to hear.
The current crop of 1080P projectors all pretty much outperform the 720’s on a whole with the above considerations. Don’t knock them off your list just because someone living in denial thinks his/her 720 unit is the Holy Grail. They are coming down in price almost daily right now. You can get both the Panasonic and Epson for under 3K, right now today. In three months there will be more. In six months, more yet.
One of the biggest bitches I’ve seen over and over again regarding the 1080P units is their lumen output. I’ve got the dimmest one of the group and in my particular set up (throw distance / screen size / room); I am looking at filters right now. It’s too bright for me on its lowest setting. So don’t let that scare you.
