Soundcore Nebula X1 Pro

Pros

• One-plug party
• Movies, music and karaoke
• Extremely well-thought-out design

Cons

• Very expensive
• Not ideal for permanent placement
• The same money can get you better, but not portable, performance

I have to give Anker credit: The company has once again come out with a product I'm not even sure how to categorize. The X1 Pro, which is under the Nebula sub-sub-brand of its Soundcore sub-brand, is ostensibly a projector -- but it's also a 4.1 wireless speaker system, and comes with mics for karaoke. It even has wheels and a handle, like a piece of luggage. It's more than a home theater in a box; it's a portable party in a box.

There are lots of clever touches on the X1 Pro, including automatically connecting speakers with extendable feet, internal storage for the two microphones and remote, a 6-foot retractable power cable, backlit buttons and LED-lit cubbies. The projector portion, essentially the $3,000 X1 I reviewed last year, is bright and colorful. It's easily the best sounding projector I've ever reviewed -- but that's not a high bar -- and given the size and price of this thing, you'd certainly hope so.

That size and $5,000 price tag are definitely the main drawbacks of the X1 Pro. As excellent as the product's overall performance is, you could spend far less money to get the same video performance, and even better (separate) sound. The size is also significant, it's closer to a minifridge than a projector, so if you're thinking about only using its portable nature occasionally, it's going to be a cumbersome eyesore in most rooms.

Specs and such

• Resolution: 4K 
• Image tech: DLP
• Lumens spec: 3,500
• Zoom: Electronic (0.9:1 to 1.5:1)
• Lens shift: 25 degrees upwards tilt
• Light source type: Three-laser

The X1 Pro looks like a cross between a small refrigerator and a large suitcase. It weighs 72.4 pounds, so even with the extendable handle and wheels, it's not something you'd want a kid trying to move around. At just under 3-feet tall, it's practically the size of a small child, too. It comes without a screen, but the company does have an inflatable screen and X1 Pro bundle available.

Anker claims the projector is capable of 3,500 ANSI lumens of brightness. I measured approximately 2,197 lumens in the most accurate NebulaMaster mode. In its brighter, but slightly less accurate modes, it measured around 2,900 lumens. In the least accurate -- but brightest -- Conference mode, I measured 3,367 lumens, which, given the variability of measurement techniques and equipment, I'd say is spot on with the claimed spec. This is a very bright projector. It's not quite as bright as the X1 or Xgimi Horizon 20 Max, but close enough that you likely wouldn't notice a difference unless they were side-by-side in controlled conditions.

The lens doesn't have a traditional lens shift and instead just tilts upwards. This causes the image to become increasingly trapezoidal as it goes up, basically requiring some kind of keystone correction. Not ideal, especially for something that costs $5,000. Then again, I don't imagine most party-goers are going to notice or care about an image that's not perfectly rectangular. There is an electronic zoom, which gets you even more flexibility in placement. 

As I've mentioned in previous reviews of three-laser projectors, such as the Valerion VisionMaster Pro2, there is a potential issue for some people. If you wear glasses, especially high-index lenses, you may notice separation of the laser light. This effect is most noticeable away from the center of your lenses. So if the screen fills up a significant portion of your field of view (as it likely will), you may see red and cyan "echoes," or chromatic aberrations, around bright objects, especially white ones. It can be distracting, but again it's only an issue if you have certain types of glasses.

Connections

• HDMI inputs: 1
• USB port: 2 USB-C, 1 USB-A
• Audio output: Four removable multi-driver wireless speakers, built-in subwoofer (280 watts total)
• Internet: 2.4GHz/5GHz
• Streaming interface: Google TV
• Remote: Partially backlit

A single HDMI input is probably sufficient given the intended use for something like this. The USB-C connections are likely going to charge phones as often as the included mics, and Anker even includes some short cables for either purpose. Like most projectors these days, the X1 Pro runs Google TV. So you have access to every major streaming service and lots of others. 

Anker claims the audio portion of the X1 Pro has either 280 or 400 watts of power, depending where you look on the site. Regardless of the claimed rating, this thing plays loud. It's definitely the loudest and best sounding "projector" I've ever reviewed. It sounds better than some home-theater-in-a-box systems I've reviewed. Inside the main unit are two 5.25-inch subwoofer drivers powered by a 160-watt (RMS) amplifier, which generates some deep bass. They claim 87 dB at 38Hz, which is decent for that size and power.

The wireless speakers cleverly mount to and inside the body of the X1 Pro. The main speakers face left and right, but at the push of a button they swing outward 90 degrees, like a dog's ears going from concerned to inquisitive. From here you can remove them with the push of another button. In the back are the surround speakers, which click into place and can be secured with a simple lever. Once extracted, these stand vertically, and like the horizontally-oriented front speakers, have little legs to get them off the surface.

Anker describes this as a 7.1.4 speaker system, which isn't entirely wrong. Each driver in each speaker does, apparently, act as a different channel. One driver in each of the two front speakers acts as a center channel, for instance, while upwards-firing drivers on all four act as height speakers for Dolby Atmos. You can leave the main speakers attached if you want simple stereo or, if you don't need surround sound, remove them and leave the surrounds inside the main unit. You can move the sweet spot around your listening area with a simple on-screen interface that's easier to use than found on many receivers.

The karaoke mics sit in a compartment underneath the control buttons on the top of the X1 Pro. This compartment has its own LED light and a baggie for the USB cables. Unlike the speakers, the mics don't automatically recharge when you place them in their cradles, which would have been a nice touch. Instead, they charge via USB-C, which is at least nearby. Tangentially related, my adventures in karaoke may have been witnessed by several colleagues but somehow haven't been shared on the interwebs. Small mercies, that.

Despite the higher price and more extensive features, the remote is the same partially backlit, input-button-lacking model that comes with the company's other projectors. However, it can be stored inside the unit between the microphones, which is a nice touch.

Performance

Normally this is where I'd compare the X1 Pro's performance against similarly-priced projectors... But what could I possibly compare this against? Other $5,000 projectors vastly outperform the X1 Pro from a visual standpoint, though most aren't as bright. The X1 Pro's audio performance easily bests other projectors, that's not even a competition. No other projector and external speaker combo is as easily portable as the X1 Pro. So here's how it performs in general, with some added perspective of a few "competitor's" performance.

As you'd hope given the price, the X1 Pro creates a fantastic image. It's bright, detailed and colorful. Overall light output, as I mentioned earlier, is just shy of the brightest projectors I've tested, but it's close enough. The Nebula can easily create a bright, 150-inch image. I measured a contrast ratio average of around 1,494:1. This is well above average and is again similar to other high-power projectors such as the related X1, Horizon 20 Max and Valerion VisionMaster Pro2. It's not quite as punchy as the short-throw BenQ X500i, but few DLP projectors are. It also doesn't come close to the big Sony VPL-VW325ES, which has an as-measured native contrast ratio of 8,327:1. That projector is definitely only for dedicated home theaters and can only output a fraction of the X1 Pro's brightness, but the Sony creates an amazing image and was only 10% more expensive when I reviewed it.

Color, as I've regularly found with laser projectors, is rich and vibrant. There is a gorgeous depth not just to reds, greens and blues, but also cyans and yellows. That said, it's not quite as accurate as some projectors I've tested, including the X1. Skin tones, especially and other colors are very good but not quite as spot-on as some others such as the BenQ W4100i and X500i. So while the colors pop, they're not quite as realistic as some projectors. Again, they're close enough that during normal viewing, and without any reference to compare it with, the colors are very pleasing.

There is some speckle -- an artifact that looks like a layer of glitter on bright, usually solid-colored objects on the screen. This is an inherent issue with three-laser projectors. At a normal viewing distance it's not super noticeable, and it's less noticeable here than with some laser projectors I've tested.

When you remove the speakers, they auto connect. Each speaker has extendable, rubber-tipped feet. The internal batteries last a few days of regular use, and the whole system is loud. Voices are clear. The treble, which could have easily been piercing to get more apparent volume, is precise and airy. There's definitely an audible gap between the lowest frequency the speakers can produce and the highest one the sub can, but that's true of most systems with small satellite speakers and a sub. 

The sub itself can go plenty deep, but it's a bit boomy. As in, certain bass frequencies are far louder than others, but there's significantly more rumble than you'd get without a dedicated sub. Since you don't get much choice in placement for it, hopefully the location where you place the X1 Pro isn't the worst place in your room for a subwoofer. Then again, I don't think the finer aspects of room acoustics are high on the list of concerns for potential X1 Pro customers.

Perhaps just as impressive as how it sounds is, perhaps unexpectedly, how quiet it is. Even running at full brightness there's very little fan noise and only a gentle warm wafting of air out the back.

Bulky box blasts big

When I reviewed the X1 last year I thought it was bonkers. It was its own thing, its own bizarre category of a high-end, high-performing, portable projector. Then the X1 Pro rolls in all "hold my beer" with wireless speakers, microphones and huge wheels. It's ridiculous -- and I love ridiculous.  

What's also ridiculous is the price. For $5,000 you could get a fantastic home system and something to use outside for the occasional movie night. Honestly, you could do that for even less money than the X1 Pro without sacrificing much, if any, performance. It's like buying a $100,000 pickup truck with the idea that maybe someday you'll throw a 2x4 in the back. 

Then again, plenty of people do that. It's just a lot of money for something I feel most people would only use occasionally. I suppose you could also use it as the main display in your living room or wherever you watch TV, but it is not subtle. You'd need to arrange your room around this thing -- and the top can only manage, maybe, one beverage. An end table this is not, which is good because at that angle you'd have to use keystone correction. However, for an ultimate party-in-a-box, indoors or out, you can't beat the X1 Pro because I can't think of anything that even compares to it.

Just do me a favor: If you do get an X1 Pro, add a pair of these eyes to it.