Anker Launches New Nebula 4K Laser Projector With World First Liquid Cooling System

Forbes

25-04-2025

Anker has launched what it's calling the most high performance projector it's ever made, complete with a ground-breaking liquid cooling system.
Called the Nebula X1, this ground-breaking new projector manages to include such premium specifications as 4K resolution support, 3,500 ANSI Lumens of claimed peak light output, triple laser lighting, advanced HDR support, and the ability to deliver an image as big as 300 inches (diagonally) across. Plus, in another highly unusual move for a projector brand, Nebula has designed a pair of powerful satellite speakers that it will sell as optional extras for the X1.
Anker's Nebula X1 projector is its most high performance model to date – yet it's still designed for ... More portability and convenience.
Making the Nebula X1's premium specifications even more eye-catching is the fact that it is still very specifically designed, as usual with Nebula models, to be a portable, lifestyle model. In fact, Anker goes so far as to describe the Nebula X1 in some of its marketing materials as the 'first cinema-grade outdoor entertainment system' – though it will always deliver its most fully satisfying results in a realtively light-controlled interior set up, of course.
The convenience features of the X1 find a retractable carry handle built into its compact bodywork, while a built-in micro gimbal system allows the lens array to tilt by as much as 25 degrees to make it easier to get pictures in the right place on your wall or screen.
What's more, Nebula's A.I. Spatial Adaptation auto setup procedure means the X1 can even deliver real time auto-focus; automatic keystone adjustment (to ensure the edges of the image remain perpendicular even when projecting from an angle); auto screen-fit image sizing; auto obstacle avoidance; the ability to adapt its pictures to the amount of ambient light in your room; and the facility to adjust images to compensate for different wall colours.
The X1 includes, too, an unusually healthy amount of optical zoom in its relatively short-throw lens by portable projector standards, enabling it to deliver, for instance, a 200-inch image from throw distances as far apart as 13 or 22 feet.
The new Nebula X1 features a micro gimbal lens arrangement to make it easier to get images where you ... More want them to appear.
Looking in more detail at the performance rather than convenience elements of the Nebula X1, the high 3500 ANSI Lumens of claimed maximum brightness and 4K playback (achieved through DLP technology's XPR pixel shifting system) are joined by support for high dynamic range video that even extends to the Dolby Vision HDR system. This is designed to deliver more accurate and dynamic looking images from Dolby Vision-encoded sources.
Anker also claims an unusually high native contrast ratio for the Nebula X1 of 5000:1, which rises to a seriously promising 56,000:1 with the introduction of a f/2.0 to f/4.5, six-blade dynamic iris. Controlled by Anker's NebulaMaster technology, the X1's light control system also tries to compensate for the effect that changing brightness can have on how human eyes perceive colour, so that tones always look accurate and natural no matter what changes the iris makes.
Talking of accuracy, the X1 has received certification from both the independent ISF and TÜV organisations, indicating that it can be calibrated to deliver images that can track closely to established video industry standards.
The RGB laser lighting system used to illuminate its pictures contributes to the brightness and level of colour saturation the Nebula X1 can deliver, too – again under the watchful eye of the NebulaMaster Image Processing Engine.
The Nebula X1 can operate in conjunction with two optional wireless speakers – in which set up its ... More own built-in speakers can be set to run in a subwoofer mode.
Delivering the sort of high brightness levels the Nebula X1 claims from such a compact projector design would usually result in distracting amounts of cooling fan noise. This, though, is where the X1's unique liquid cooling system comes in. While the projector still has to carry a single fan on its rear, the integrated liquid cooling system improves the efficiency of the projector's heat dissipation by a claimed 15 per cent, enables Anker to make the Nebula X1 with a footprint that's claimed to be 30 per cent smaller than that of similarly specified projectors that depend solely on fans, and gets running noise down to a claimed 26dB – the equivalent of a whisper from a 1m listening distance.
The X1 carries a premium 14-element glass lens array, too. This sort of lens grade is highly unusual for any sort of portable projector, and should prevent such issues as yellow discoloration and deformation that can impact plastic lenses over times. In other words, Anker reckons that the X1 should still deliver the same image quality after watching hundreds or even thousands of films and TV shows that it delivers on day one.
Connectivity on the X1 includes two HDMI ports, one with eARC capability for passing audio on to a soundbar or AV receiver, and the built-in Wi-Fi required to provide content for a built-in Google TV smart system. Complete with nativized Netflix integration, the Google TV smarts provide access to a claimed 700,000+ films and TV episodes across more than 10,000 apps.
The Nebula X1 can deliver a full dome of sound, including a height element, when partnered with its ... More optional wireless satellite speakers.
Despite everything else it's got going on, the Nebula X1 manages to squeeze in an unusually potent-sounding built-in audio system comprising four side-firing speakers: two 15W main drivers and two 5W tweeters.
As mentioned earlier, though, that doesn't have to be the end of the X1's audio story, as you can choose to add a pair of wireless external speakers if you wish. These speakers each contain a further four drivers: Two front firers with a 40W amplifier; one 20W side-firing driver; and, surprisingly, one 20W up-firing driver designed to add some height to the much expanded 4.1.2-channel sound stage the speakers can create.
The optional speakers can run on battery power for up to eight hours (recharged via USB-C port), and are rated to IP54 dust and water resistance. The X1's built-in speakers can be switched into a dedicated subwoofer mode to enhance bass when the projector is paired with the external satellite speakers and, finally, karaoke fans will be able to buy a pair of optional microphones for the speakers that will be capable of 40 hours of battery life and deliver your dulcet tones with just 15ms of delay.
The Nebula X1 will be available from May 21 in the U.S. and U.K., with typical pricing of $2,999 and £2,199 respectively. An "ultimate accessory pack' comprising the two wireless satellite speakers, an X1 carry case and two wireless microphones will be available in the U.K. for £499.99, too, with a Nebula X1 bundle comprising the projector and the ultimate accessory pack available in the U.S. for $3,998.
I said 'typical pricing' earlier, though, because Anker is initially offering the Nebula X1 at a special promotion price of £2,099.99 in the U.K. An X1 bundle, meanwhile, comprising the projector and the ultimate accessory pack will also be available in the U.S. and U.K. for an all-in promotion price of $3,298/£2,349.99. The promotion pricing will run between May 21 and June 15 2025, with more details available on the Nebula website.
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