AWOL LTV-3500 Pro Review - A Screen of Immense Depth, Wonder Poorly Packaged

I love projectors. I'm not sure if we're at the point where projectors are taking over conventional televisions just yet, given a wide variety of issues and concerns surrounding them, most notably of all being sunlight. Projectors tend to necessitate an extremely dark environment, one with little to no outside lighting so the screen can be displayed with ample quality. That setback, however, is soon to dissipate with new entries like AWOL's brand-new LTV-3500 Pro, which as the name suggests sports 3500 lumens for impeccable brightness and quality even in high-lit environments.

Now, obviously, there's very little to gain in leveraging a projector in such scenarios. While AWOL's LTV-3500 Pro is certainly a beast against sunlight and other assorted lighting, this isn't the biggest draw. For the most part, projectors are tucked away in typically windowless, movie-theater-esque spare rooms and the like, as their primary focus is on wider screen real estate in tandem with improved image quality.

All of this, as one might expect, proves to shine just as bright via the 3500 Pro from AWOL, but on the whole, the entire package is marred by several diminishing factors. The most notable constraint holding the LTV-3500 back is the fact that it doesn't have a front-facing full-on OS. It leverages Android 9.0, which allows users to plug in a USB stick or other content engine with movies and shows for simple navigation. The product comes equipped with an Amazon Fire TV Stick for a broader range of entertainment and applications.

This is a major problem, as I prefer simplicity and consolidation. I'd rather have all of my content set on the TV's OS leveraged simply with one remote control. Sure, the included Fire Stick is a pro in this regard, but that's a whole new remote I must contend with on top of whatever other controllers I have lying about, ie Xbox, PS5, Nintendo Switch, soundbar, etc. Plus, the Fire Stick requires an account with Amazon (not paid), which may not be what everyone wants.

The LTV-3500 Pro does boast 3D viewing potential, a somewhat gimmicky inclusion that I fell in love with over time. The major problem with 3D is the inaccessibility of the content type, given that it's hard to find good movies that leverage 3D that work well on the projector. I fiddled around with a ton of YouTube videos, which included several various scenes from major blockbusters, like Lord of the Rings, Avengers: Endgame, and Avatar.

I'd much rather watch the full versions in 3D, though, but little to no streaming services actually offer it anymore, making 3D on the device null and void, to a degree. 3D video is supported on Fire Stick, from what I've read, but I just couldn't find any actual movies or shows, there's a laughable amount of resources on the content type across the web. It seems to me that 3D has faded into obscurity, but I do hope additional services and applications can streamline it for those who want to try it out.

The initial setup wasn't so bad, but given that it is intended to be used with a USB stick or Fire Stick, the HDMI 1 input is located in a rather annoying position inside an open slot with a removable panel at the rear. This makes it a bit of a pain for those leveraging other devices as their content hubs, such as a PS5, Nintendo Switch, or even a PC. On top of that, there isn't as far as I could tell any CEC protocol, allowing users to turn on the projector with their PS5 or other console (but there is for the Fire Stick).

Additionally, if you don't have enough wall space, at least at around the 79" mark, you'll have to deal with overextended lines on the side. I don't have the largest area of use and, while I'm sure I'm very much in the minority when it comes to utilizing a projector in such a tight space, you should be able to accurately fine-tune the projector's image to greater personal necessity. This isn't a major problem, given that you can quite simply pull the device away from the wall for better viewing (at the cost of subtle blurring), but is something worth mentioning.

On startup, the LTV-3500 Pro blares this really loud and incredibly bright white intro screen, which I will say is pretty cool at first but gets annoyingly repetitive over time. Again, it's not necessarily a make-or-break facet to the product, but it is worth noting, especially if you're one to watch TV while someone else is asleep in the other room. It's not even muteable, as I tried using a soundbar with the LTV-3500 Pro, but for some reason, the intro bypasses this and always plays out of the onboard speakers.

Speaking of the speakers, they just don't cut it. The sound is really warbly and not punchy or smooth in any way. It sounds too distant and, simply put, just not good. Thus, you'll have to get a relatively good soundbar to go with the LTV-3500 Pro for optimal viewing, which is a third remote - again, not a major problem for most people, but definitely an inconvenience.

As mentioned, I used my PS5 as my main content hub as opposed to the Fire Stick, and I found that HDR just didn't work with the console for some reason. I had to forgo it, due to the colors just looking too muddled, but despite this overall picture quality was superb. As with most projectors, the video content that takes up most of the screen real estate proves to look the best, at least in my opinion, including the likes of anime, IMAX-enhanced movies, and video games.

At 4K/60fps, games look incredibly crisp and wonderful to experience. The LTV-3500 Pro is geared towards its 4K resolution at 60Hz but does have the potential for 1080p 120Hz, which is pretty remarkable if you decide to do some light PC gaming. I found I had the most fun when gaming on this device, due in large part to its spectacular color gamut of over one billion, 8ms turbo game mode, and 2500:1 enhanced contrast ratio.

One notable issue I did have, though, was that when I didn't have the PS5 HDMI input set to open on start, meaning the projector would turn on in its main menu page instead of a particular input, I would have to click the input, back out, and return before the PS5 image settled. It sounds confusing, but all I had to do was make the PS5 input the primary startup page so that the projector booted up on the console's input and wouldn't trip up.

This goes in line with the user experience of it all. The LTV-3500 Pro is certainly a beast of a projector, one worthy of being in any at-home entertainment room, but it is itself home to a myriad of setbacks that make me wish for more. Navigating menus can be quite a chore, no AirPlay is also a drag, and being locked into Amazon Fire Stick isn't great, all added on top of random oddities like PS5 HDR support not working, or eARC issues where the sound just didn't want to come out of the soundbar despite being properly setup.

I want to once more stress that the overall quality of the picture, brightness, and contrast all are wonders on the LTV-3500 Pro, but that isn't the sole reason for buying this product. Maybe my complaints just aren't something that concerns you, but for a projector priced at $6,000, you would expect a bit more in terms of across-the-board functionality.

I would like to add, though, that the LTV-3500 Pro, true to its name, is one of the best projectors for high-lit environments. Pictures will stay clean and relatively unblemished in natural sunlight, making this a prime candidate for those who don't want to be sequestered into a cave for their everyday entertainment. Plus, you can get an additional LTV screen or rising projector screen (currently free right now amid an active promotion) to mitigate additional sunlight woes.

With the LTV-3500 Pro, you're getting some awesome features like 3D viewing, 3500 lumens of active brightness, enhanced gaming, and arguably one of the best-looking projection screens on the market. However, several inconsistencies and oddities make for a subpar user experience, leaving this projector at an incredibly high price point for little major gain. Due to these setbacks, I must give the LTV-3500 Pro from AWOL an eight out of ten on the Tech Times grading scale.