A portable mini projector merges the ease of streaming videos on a phone or tablet with the intrigue of a TV’s large screen. While these small, portable projectors may not match the performance of a good TV or traditional home theater projector, they offer the advantage of portability, allowing you to carry them effortlessly and use them both indoors and outdoors.
Among all the models we examined, the Nebula Mars 3 Air stands out for its exceptional picture quality, user-friendly interface, and convenience.
Our recommendation
This compact 1080p projector provides excellent image brightness and contrast, above-average sound, easy setup, and a built-in battery. However, setting it up on a tripod may be challenging.
The Nebula Mars 3 Air embodies all the desirable features in a portable mini projector. This full-HD LED projector delivers impressive picture and sound quality, incorporates built-in streaming apps, and operates on an internal battery for true mobility. It is relatively compact and comes with a convenient carrying handle.
Notably, this is one of the initial portable projectors to utilize the Google TV streaming platform, our preferred choice. With Google TV supporting virtually all major streaming services, such as Netflix, there is no need for external connections, though the projector offers HDMI and USB-A video inputs if necessary.
The Mars 3 Air boasts commendable image brightness, contrast, and color accuracy for its category. In our evaluations, the built-in battery lasted up to 3.5 hours, and the internal speaker produced rich and loud sound, although you can also connect an external speaker via cable or Bluetooth. The addition of a backlit remote enhances the user experience.
Its main drawbacks include the absence of a USB-C port and the awkward design of the underside, limiting the types of tripods and mounts that can be attached.
Budget option
This 720p projector offers superior performance and features compared to similarly priced competitors, though it has some performance limitations and lacks a built-in battery.
If you’re open to compromising on performance to save money, Xgimi’s MoGo 2 proves to be a surprisingly strong choice often retailing for under $300.
In our assessments, this LED projector exhibited the same measured contrast as our top pick, similar color reproduction, and approximately 15% more brightness. However, its lower 720p resolution resulted in a softer image with more visible pixelation, particularly struggling with dark movie scenes compared to the Mars 3 Air, especially in high dynamic range (HDR) content. Nevertheless, for casual TV viewing, this model is a dependable option.
The built-in Android TV platform offers most of the same streaming apps as Google TV, but it requires sideloading Netflix, and the content recommendations are not as extensive. The MoGo 2 has a slightly smaller form factor than our top pick but lacks a built-in battery. Nonetheless, with a USB-C power port, you can power it using a 65-watt portable power bank.
