Sony’s $1,700 Touchscreen Projector Is A Good Idea, But Underwhelming

Sony just announced that its Xperia Touch projector is now available for purchase via Amazon. At $1,699.99, the device is not exactly cheap. Then again, it is a projector that can turn any surface into a touchscreen, which is a science fiction concept that engineers have been trying to bring to reality for decades. As might be expected, however, the features don’t exactly live up to the standards of reviewers.

Aside from Amazon, the projector will be available in select stores owned by T-Mobile, The Verge reports. Interested customers can check out shops in Chicago, Los Angeles, and Miami over the coming weeks to see if they have stock. Of course, the New York City Sony Square will also have the projector.

Regarding the potential uses of this kind of device, Sony intends for the projector to be used by the whole family for various purposes like leaving notes, setting up schedules, or just checking on the weather. The project also comes with a 13MP camera, so it can be used for video chats or recording clips.

With an Android Nougat OS, the device is capable of many of the things that users can expect from any standard tablet or smartphone. Unfortunately, several publications like Ars Technica are not impressed with the picture quality of the projector.

At nearly $1,700, Sony is asking a lot of money from consumers to use a product the offers neither the clarity or smoothness of an actual touchscreen of a smartphone or tablet. Then again, this hasn’t seemed to have stopped avid technophiles who already ordered their own unit of the Touch.

As of writing, the product’s Amazon page says that it is already out of stock. Sony is promising that more units of the projector is on the way, so anyone interested in buying one will need to keep their eyes open.