Hands-on: The Xgimi Horizon Max is ‘the one to watch’

Xgimi has been one to keep an eye on for a while. The Xgimi Horizon Ultra was one of our favorite releases of last year, and we’re hoping the Horizon Max can live up to it. On first impressions, it promises a great picture with an exceptional amount of flexibility wherever it sits.

The Xgimi Horizon Max was announced at CES 2024 in Las Vegas. The new long-throw projector comes with a few improvements over the mid-ranged Horizon Ultra, which retailed for $1,699 – a fantastic value at its price point. The Horizon Max boasts an IMAX Enhanced image on top of a 4K image powered by a Dual Light 2.0 laser system. The new tech combines phosphorous light with a tri-chroma laser system to bring a fuller image.

The Horizon Max was on display at Xgimi’s booth at CES, where the company displayed several units strewn across the space. The projector itself takes on a very similar design language to the Horizon Ultra – modern but classically retro. the front houses the projection lens itself alongside a couple of sensors. Below that, a speaker system hides behind a good-looking wooden panel. It looks fantastic, both in images and in person.

The projector chassis itself sits on a motorized axis. This allows the unit to adjust its throw angle up and down at the command of the user. Under what looks like the base of the Max is a platter that’s equipped with another motor, allowing the unit to spin 360 degrees right or left. The combination of the two brings multi-axis control. It can’t rotate to adjust to an angled surface, but software will allow for image correction.

Software is another interesting thing. According to Xgimi, the choice between Android TV and Google TV hasn’t been finalized. The units we were able to play around with were running Android TV, which allows further integration of motorized control and positioning. The coolest part about that is the Max’s ability to recognize certain walls and apply pre-set settings. this essentially gives you the option to use multiple walls in one room, from one central projection point without skipping a beat.

In another room separated by blackout curtains, Xgimi showed off the picture itself, which was stretched to an impressive 180 inches. The acceptable projection limit is 200 inches, though you could go beyond that with diminishing results. At 180 inches, the picture looked good. It was difficult to get a feel for picture quality with a bustling event, but the Xgimi Horizon Max performed seemingly well under difficult conditions. The colors looked accurate, though the picture might have been lacking in some details at that range. Unfortunately, we won’t get a good feel for quality until the Horizon Max is in our hands and in a real-world environment.

Another key takeaway is that Xgimi is utilizing the same remote design it’s employed in the Aura and Horizon Ultra, which is a good thing. Xgimi’s proprietary remote has always been one of our favorites, and it’s good to see it making another appearance.

Xgimi is putting an estimated price tag of around $3,000 on the Horizon Max, with an expected release of sometime in late 2024. If the Horizon Max is an upgrade proportional to the price of the Horizon Ultra, Xgimi could have another winner on its hands in 2024.

Note: Xgimi sponsored travel and accommodations for 9to5Google at CES 2024, but had no input on editorial content.