All you want is to lie in bed all comfy and enjoy your movies, TV shows, and gaming on a big screen right there in your bedroom, without a complex setup laden with numerous hassles. As for projecting onto your ceiling, which is the most logical and convenient way to use a projector in a small-ish bedroom, we have information on how to best get that done. But today we want to compare two popular portable projectors for bedroom placement with ceiling projection. The Anker Nebula Capsule II and our own GV30 are both portable projectors that work well for ceiling projection, but there are differences and we think the GV30 has the edge. Read on to find out more. 

You may think that any projector works for ceiling views. Just point the lens upwards and watch. But it’s not that simple. Most projectors have ports and vents on the back. That means if you just stand the projector on its back you’ll crush cables and ports and more importantly block vents, leading to overheating. Projectors are not meant to be flipped around. The idea is for the projector to remain in its default horizontal posture while having a flexible, rotating lens that can point upwards to the ceiling. The GV30 has that wide rotation angle for its lens as we can see below. 

BenQ GV30

Has a 135-degree rotation angle that makes it easy to project on ceilings without having to flip the projector and risk damage to the product. You can freely adjust lens angle for a truly laid-back experience in bed. Set up is easy, fast, and smooth. 

Anker Nebula Capsule II

Limited to a 15-degree projection angle, or just over a tenth of the rotation angle of the BenQ GV30. Ceiling projection isn’t readily possible without the use of props like a stack of books or some angled object. 

While you may not expect a premium cinematic experience while lounging in bed, good visuals and sound still need to be on hand. It’s not enough to simply throw light onto a ceiling, that light has to be well-formed for everything from movies to games to be properly consumed.

The BenQ GV30 has a native resolution of 720p, or 1280 x 720. The Anker Nebula Capsule II has the same resolution. However, picture quality extends beyond pixel count. The GV30 offers 300 ANSI lumen brightness, compared to 200 ANSI lumens for the Nebula Capsule II. This makes a difference, especially if you want to use the projectors in bedrooms with more ambient illumination.

While the Anker Nebula Capsule II only has two picture modes, the BenQ GV30 features six of them to accommodate different viewing needs and situations. The six modes are Bright, Living Room, Game, Sports, Cinema, and Day Time. As you can tell, our engineers tried to encompass different ambient light conditions as well as different content types, from movies to sports and gaming. This helps the GV30 be a very versatile portable projector, unlike most of its competitors. That’s something PC Mag definitely noticed in their GV30 review. 

The two portable projectors offer Bluetooth support and have integrated speakers, so they can work as standalone sound devices plus of course offer audio for viewed content. But just like resolution, there’s more to it than that. Most notably, the Anker doesn’t have selectable sound modes, so you only get one rendition. The GV30 boasts five sound modes, namely  Cinema Extra Bass, Standard, Game, Sport, and Music.

Cinema Extra Bass mode adds powerful deep notes for an impactful audio experience that will remind you of the rumbling effect you get in movie theaters. Game Mode provides a more dynamic and stronger sound field with particular benefit in action or fighting games, while Music Mode helps you enjoy pop, rock, and jazz tracks, whether audio only or video clips, as if you were at the concert yourself.

In addition, the two models in other ways when it comes to sound. 

BenQ GV30

Uses proprietary BenQ treVolo speaker design to provide a good surround-like effect. The GV30 puts out genuine 2.1-channel audio with dual 4W speakers for the left and right channels, plus a woofer for deep notes and bass. We have another article which explains why BenQ portable projectors have much better built-in speakers. 

Anker Nebula Capsule II

Uses one 8W speaker and two passive bass “radiators”. 

Listen to how BenQ and treVolo Elevated Their Portable Projectors’ Audio

*Suggest putting on your headphones for better audio comparison listening.

Cheeky subheads aside, we recommend considering your purchase carefully. The GV30 offers a 135-degree rotating lens so projecting onto your ceiling is safe, convenient, and accurate. It’s got better colors and much stronger presentation overall due to more brightness. Plus, you get added benefits like better sound and that all-important second HDMI port. We think the choice is obvious, but will naturally hope you make the right decision! 

If you’re interested in our GV30 portable projector but want something smaller in size and budget, then GV11 is right for you. The cuddly GV11 is a member of the same family as GV30, and they share a unique round design that gives them wide angle projection and makes viewing content on any surface easy, including your ceiling. That’s ultimate relaxation right there. Enjoy your laid-back movie time with the BenQ GV series of portable projectors with even more choice.