XGIMI Horizon 20 Max Review: Brightness to the Max

Design

• Elephant Grey finish
• Swivel stand

The Horizon 20 Max is big and bulky. While it won’t need a dedicated space, it will need some space. It’s not a projector to perch on a windowsill – and at 4.9kg it’s not like Xgimi’s portable MoGo series.

It does feature an integrated stand that can tilt upwards or downwards, and there’s a swivel mechanism to shuffle it left or right. This is principally a projector for the indoors.

It only comes in one finish – Elephant Grey – which seems appropriate given its size and strong leather-like finish. It’s not necessarily a stunner, but it’s sturdy and well-built.

While you can lift and move it about, there’s also the option of a more dedicated installation with mounting screws in the stand.

Connectivity

• Two HDMI inputs
• No Ethernet
• Wi-Fi 6

The Horizon 20 Max features an array of connections. There are two HDMI inputs, and one that supports HDMI eARC if you’re considering adding a sound system.

There’s an audio input and a digital audio output for adding other sound systems/devices, USB 3.0 and USB 2.0, though no Ethernet for a hardwired connection to the Internet.

Instead it’s reliant on a Wi-Fi 6 connection, which hasn’t run into any issues that I’ve encountered so far. There’s also Bluetooth 5.2.

A word on the updates – they can be very large (in excess of 1GB), so one to watch out for if your Wi-Fi connection isn’t the strongest and fastest.

Features

• 300-inch max size
• 5700 ISO lumens
• HDR10+ and Dolby Vision

This is a projector stocked with features – so many that it’s a wonder where to start.

With a throw ratio of 1.2-1.5:1, Xgimi lists the screen size as no smaller than 40 inches and no bigger than 300. Read the very small print, though, and it recommends between 60 and 150 inches for the optimal performance.

The 40-inch size is recommended for brightly lit rooms, while the 300-inch option is intended for viewing in darker rooms. You can perform lens shift (physically moving the lens) and digital zoom.

Brightness is off the charts at 5700 ISO lumens, a big jump over the Horizon S Max’s 3100. It’s capable of 110% of the BT.2020 colour space for 4K video (covering a wide range of colours).

Its light source is an RGB triple laser for purer and brighter colours than a lamp-based alternative, projecting images via DLP (a 0.47-inch DMD).

It supports HDR10, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, Filmmaker Mode, and IMAX Enhanced, though there’s no mention of HLG support. It can play 3D content for anyone with a compatible player, though the Horizon 20 Max doesn’t come with 3D glasses.

Audio is an integrated 24W Harman Kardon system with support for DTS Virtual:X, DTS-HD, Dolby Audio, Dolby Digital, and Dolby Digital+, which implies no Dolby Atmos support (at least not through the speakers themselves).

Xgimi’s ISA technology stands for Intelligent Screen Adaption. It covers the Eye Protection mode that dims the light from the projector whenever someone (or thing) walks past (this has to be enabled first). Auto Focus makes sure the image looks as sharp as it can be.

Auto Keystone Correction reformats the screen so it fits the space on your wall. I’ve seen it work and not work, as the Horizon 20 Max can sometimes create a much smaller image than was previously on the wall a few seconds earlier. Sometimes, to get the biggest image, you have to play with the position of the Xgimi.

Intelligent Obstacle Avoidance and Intelligent Screen Adaptation cover the other areas of Xgimi’s ISA tech. The former avoids obstacles such as a lamp or a stand so the image fits the space. The latter makes sure that the image fits a projector screen if you have one installed.

There’s also a Wall Adaptation feature that changes the colours to suit the wall colour. It does make a difference, though the settings don’t carry over with Dolby Vision content.

Xgimi quotes 28dB in terms of fan noise, but I registered 38.9dB. Boot-up time is about 35 seconds if Fast Boot is enabled. I should warn that the Horizon 20 Max comes with one of the biggest power adaptors I’ve seen. It’s a genuine brick and could act as a doorstop.

Gaming

• Fast input lag
• Several game modes
• VRR

The Horizon 20 Max makes a play for gaming in a way few projectors I’ve tested have done.

There’s ALLM and VRR support. Xgimi claims that response times are as low as 3ms for 60Hz, 2ms for 1080p/120Hz and 1ms for 1080p/240Hz refresh rates.

Plug a game console and it’ll instantly go into its game mode. There’s also a Boost mode, but is there much of a difference between Standard and Boost? If there is, it’s not one I could feel with a PS5 controller.

There are also gaming-specific features, such as a Black Equaliser that enhances detail in black levels, so you’re not surprised by anyone lurking in the shadows. You can also engage virtual crosshairs to keep locked onto your target.

There are several game modes to choose from as well: An Assassin’s Creed mode, RTS, FPS, RPG and Sports mode which add specific customisations depending on the genre you’re playing. Where exactly these game modes are, I’m not sure, as I couldn’t locate them.

The performance is smooth, with inputs that are responsive and a picture quality that genuinely offers contrast. It’s a bright and colourful image – a phrase you’ll be hearing a lot.

User Experience

• Google TV
• No iPlayer
• Battery-powered remote

Xgimi has shifted to Google TV (the Horizon S Max ran on Android TV). All the big apps are present with Prime Video, Apple TV, YouTube (naturally), Netflix, and new to the UK, HBO Max.

BBC iPlayer, just like it was with the Horizon S Max, is not supported but the rest of the UK catch-up apps are. You can bypass that problem by casting directly from the iPlayer app.

I’ve found Google TV to be swift and responsive. You’ve got a huge number of apps, and content curated based on what you watched. Some find it overwhelming but I disagree. I think in terms of information meted out, it provides what you need to know. However, I don’t think Google TV’s curation is the best, as it often recommends titles I’ve already seen.

Accessing the settings is a bugbear for me, though it’s the case with many Google TV projectors.

Enter into the settings, and when you press back, it doesn’t go back to (or open) the main menu but exits completely. It’s annoying if you want to change another setting. To do so, you have to go back into settings again.

Another unintuitive example is with gaming. The console recognises a game signal and switches to Game mode, but its picture mode remains Standard. What follows is a back-and-forth to make sure all settings are aligned. The settings are also not well explained, but this is also an issue with other Google TV projectors such as the Epson EF-72.

Leave the Xgimi running and the Ambient Screensaver comes on with the option to see either your own photos in Google Photos, Art Gallery or Custom AI art. You can also have it set to display the weather, time, etc.

Control is via a remote, and it’s easy enough to use. It has a motion-detected backlight that makes it easier to use in a dark room, which I like. It does require batteries to use rather than charging via USB-C, which I don’t like.

Picture Quality

• Bright for a projector
• Rich colours
• Smooth motion

The Xgimi Horizon 20 Max is incredibly bright for a home cinema projector, and it does hold up well in a bright room. Black tones look good (but are affected by ambient light), colours do change, but detail remains decent.

In its darkened environment, the Horizon 20 Max looks very good. Black levels are strong – black tones actually look black – with a colour performance that’s warm and rich, with highlights that appear stronger than they do on the Epson EF-72 with Thunderbolts* on Disney+.

There’s a vibrancy to colours, especially the explosions in the film, that offer an impressive sense of punch.

However, with white tones, like Valentina Allegra de Fontaine’s suit near the film’s opening, it comes across more creamy yellow-ish. While the colours are attractive, they’re not always the most accurate, even in Dolby Vision.

But in general, the Horizon 20 Max gets colours right. K’s jacket in Blade Runner 2049 is green, not black; the orange tones of the radioactive Las Vegas section are captured with greater subtlety and a wider tonal range than I’ve seen on other projectors.

A stream of Sentimental Value on Mubi in 4K SDR doesn’t feature the deepest blacks, but for the most part, I’ve found black levels to be fine. Titles in HD look good, though both 4K and HD content aren’t the sharpest looking but that’s a minor issue given the scale of the image.

With Superman in Dolby Vision (4K Blu-ray), it’s bright to the point where there seems to be some slight clipping (loss of detail) in the brightest parts of the image. But the Xgimi’s clear strength is its brightness, with highlights that are genuine ‘high-lights’.

Casting the Strike series from the iPlayer app, I found skintones to be warm but colours with high levels of fine detail in clothing and characters’ faces. Black levels can look shallow, and again, it’s not the sharpest image, but it does look lovely for a streamed image.

Comparing how the Xgimi works with both HDR10+ and Dolby Vision with a 4K Blu-ray of Doctor Sleep, and the latter is brighter with colours that look richer and warmer, with genuine contrast and depth for a projector. There’s a slight cool look to the colours in HDR10+, not to mention more black crush (loss of detail in black tones). Based on this, I’d vote for Dolby Vision over HDR10+.

Watching football on Prime Video and it’s debatable if the colours are truly correct, regardless of whether the mode used is Movie or Sports. At times, it looks a little too bright, but in a dark room, the added brightness helps.

With the MEMC processing, I can’t tell if it makes a difference with it off or set to High. The image is already so smooth that it doesn’t feel as if any additional processing has been added. I say this as a positive, not a negative.

Avoid High Power mode, as on the MoGo series, it casts the image in a green tint. It’s such a degraded image that I can’t understand why it’s even there. Vivid mode though, offers more brightness than Movie, and colours still look good rather than artificially amped up.

One piece of advice is to avoid the Adaptive Mode. It’s meant to adjust brightness depending on a room’s ambient light levels, but it produces a distracting, flickering brightness to the image and does so even when the room’s brightness hasn’t changed.

Sound Quality

• Broad soundstage
• Clear dialogue
• Decent bass for a projector

The Xgimi Horizon 20 Max features two 12W speakers from Harman Kardon. Xgimi’s MoGo series have pretty capable audio for their size, the Horizon 20 Max is among the best I’ve heard for a projector.

The soundstage feels big, and I didn’t feel the need to raise it above level 40 as it was loud enough and filled the room with sound. Bass is good with some weight and warmth added to the overall presentation. It’s not the most detailed or defined, but it offers decent levels of dynamism and energy. Dialogue is delivered with clarity and sounds natural, though raising the volume can lead to slightly sharper voices.

With sports, it’s not one congealed blob of sound. The commentary is one part and crowd noise is distinct from it, creating a better sense of size and scale. This is a good effort if you’re not considering adding a sound system.

If you are thinking about connecting a sound system, I’d go down the route of connecting the Horizon 20 Max to a home cinema amplifier.

Should you buy it?