I remember days when projectors were so expensive that the vast majority of people never thought of getting one. Well, things have changed over time, quite a bit. There are all sorts of projectors available in the market at the moment, including the Yaber T2 Plus, which we’re here to review. The Yaber T2 Plus is a portable, battery-powered projector, and quite frankly, the company hit the home run here.
No, I’m not trying to say that this is the best projector out there, it’s not even close to that. This is a budget projector, and having its price in mind, it is very good. The Yaber T2 Plus costs $349, and it serves a purpose for that cash, and then some. Quite frankly even if the company went a little higher price-wise, this projector wouldn’t be out of the question. So, let’s get started, let’s see what you’re getting here.
Yaber T2 Plus Review: Hardware / Design
Just to be perfectly transparent, this is my first product from Yaber. I never had the chance to use anything the company made. With that in mind, the build quality of this projector is what struck me instantly… in a positive way. It just looks and feels premium. There is heft to it, of course, as this is a projector after all. That only adds to the premium feel in this case, though. It weighs 2.5kg and measures 165 x 140 x 290mm. There is a handle at the top, which you can rotate in order to give the projector a different angle. Needless to say, that is very useful in day-to-day use. It allows you to get just the right angle. The top of the handle has a rubbery feel to it, so it is not slippery at all.
A plastic lens cover is included in the package, and it does the trick. The top part of the projector has a fabric finish to it, the part where the lens is located. The bottom part is plastic, but it doesn’t really take away from the premium feel, not at all. That’s also where the device’s speakers are located, and there are large cooling and sound grids included on both the front and the end of this thing. The charging plug is included on the side, while the rest of the ports are on the back. A USB 2.0 port sits back there, along with an HDMI port and an audio out port (3.5mm). An RJ45 port also sits on the back, by the way.
NFC screencast is a possibility
You’ll notice that the device has an NFC mark at the top. There’s a reason for that, that’s the spot for NFC screencast if you want to take advantage of it. At the bottom of the device, you’ll notice four rubber feet, which do a great job of keeping this thing from sliding around. Design-wise, there’s really not a single thing I can complain about here. The only thing I’m worried about is how will it hold up over time, in other words, will the plastic on the outside get smudged up due to the color choice here? Other than that, there’s really nothing to complain about here.
What’s in the box?
You get everything you need in the retail box. In addition to the projector itself and the user manual, an AC adapter is included. In addition to that, Yaber also includes an HDMI cable, and a remote, with batteries. That’s not all, though. A microfiber cloth for the lens is a part of the package, and so is a Google TV dongle. Yes, you read that right. We’ll talk more about that in the next section, though. You can see everything that is included in the image below.
Let’s talk about that remote a bit more. The buttons are very clicky and responsive. They feel rubberized under the finger, but still quite firm. As you can see, Netflix, Disney+, YouTube, and Prime Video are all highlighted separately on the remote. You have all the options you may want, including the settings button, the Google Assistant button, and so on. The remote is also quite compact, which is always a plus in my eyes. I had zero issues with this remote, Yaber did a great job here. The fact that the batteries are included in the package is a nice perk too.
Yaber T2 Plus Review: Performance
Before we get down to actual performance, let’s talk about the specs first. This projector offers a brightness of 450 ANSI Lumens and can output a fullHD resolution. The max projection size is 120 inches if you want to keep everything sharp, of course. The distance from a wall (or whatever else) you’ll be projecting from is 3.63 feet, while the furthest you can be is 10.89 feet. These are Yaber’s numbers, and they seem to be quite accurate based on what I’ve experienced. This projector can autofocus, set keystone automatically too, and the same goes for screen alignment.
With all that being said, keep in mind that this is a budget projector. Considering its price tag, I was very pleased with the performance. Don’t expect flagship-grade performance, because yes, the picture can be brighter, and sharper, and the colors can also be more vivid. But… for this price tag, you’re getting a really good output. This projector is not supposed to replace your TV, but it’s supposed to give you a projection when you don’t have a TV. It’s ideal for watching football outdoors, which I’ve done with a couple of friends, and those romantic getaways with your significant other. As is the case with basically every projector, though, do keep in mind you’ll need a rather dark setting to properly enjoy the projection.
It does get warm fast, but the same goes for cooling down
The projector does get very warm while it’s working, but it cools down fast too. I was quite surprised with that part. It does emit a certain level of sound, but it’s not obnoxiously loud or anything of the sort. It’s average noise for projectors of this size, I’d say, you do get used to it quite fast. WI-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0 are at your disposal here, along with all the ports mentioned earlier.
Now, in terms of auto keystone, well, it doesn’t always work as well as I’d hoped. I also had to manually move the projector in order to get the picture to look as good as it could look. If you put it at the wrong angle, things can get messy. There is a chance you’ll have to manually adjust some things, but that is something you can do really quickly. Also, I didn’t really notice the difference between different output modes. The more vibrant setting didn’t really have a much different output.
Yaber T2 Plus Review: Battery
I was unable to find the details regarding the battery capacity Yaber used here. However, the company says that this projector can provide 2.5 hours of use before you’ll need to charge it. While that is respectable, it may not be enough for some movies. Movies have become quite long these days, and some of them go over the 2.5-hour mark. It would be nice if we could get over 3.5 hours of use or something like that. With that being said, is the Yaber T2 Plus even capable of providing 2.5 hours of playtime? Well, yes, in my experience.
You get around 2.5 hours of use before you’ll need to charge it
I’ve charged the thing all the way and fired up a director’s cut of Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring. That movie has a runtime of 208 minutes, which is well over 3 hours, almost three and a half. I managed to cross over 2.5 hours before the device died. Do note that I watched the movie at night, though, so the brightness didn’t need to be as high. As I mentioned earlier, this projector is ideal for watching sports events, TV shows, and movies that are not too long… unless you want to keep it plugged in or charge at some point during the movie.
Do note that you can use this thing as a Bluetooth speaker too, in case you need it. Considering how powerful its speakers are, that’s not a bad idea at all. We’ll talk more about them later on. The thing is, if you use this device as a Bluetooth speaker, you can get 18 hours work of playback out of it, which is not bad at all.
Charging
Considering the fact that this is a projector, it does take longer to charge than you may think. If it’s in standby mode, it will take 3.5 hours for you to fully charge it. If it’s powered on, that will take 5.5 hours. You can use it while it’s plugged in and not charged, though, of course, and the proprietary charger is included in the retail box. Do note that these are the company’s numbers, and they do seem to be somewhat accurate, at least based on our testing. We did get slightly different results, but only slightly. It took me a bit over 3.5 hours to get a full charge while it’s in standby mode, for example, but only barely.
Yaber T2 Plus Review: Software
The Yaber T2 Plus, the model that I used, comes with a Google TV dongle in the box. The regular model does that. That being said, without the Google TV dongle, the software is more limited (Yaber OS), in a way. You do get a menu with a number of blocks to choose from, as shown below. That menu includes a file manager, settings for the projector, a screen share option, and so on. Once you plug in the Google TV, that’s when you can expand your horizons.
The included Google TV dongle sure is a nice perk
All you have to do is log into your Google account once you connect the Google TV dongle. Unfortunately, though, you’ll have to log into it twice. The first time that’ll be required is when you initially set up the device, and then when you set up the Google TV dongle. That’s a minor convenience, but you won’t have to do it every time, of course. The Google TV dongle allows you to install various apps on it, including YouTube, Netflix, and anything else for streaming, basically. That way you can truly utilize this projector to its full potential.
Many of you are well aware of what the Google TV’s UI looks like. The good thing is that both Yaber’s default software and Google TV’s UI are designed in a similar fashion, via blocks on the screen. It’ll feel like a seamless transition when you fire up Google TV. The software in general worked really well for me, in all honesty. It wasn’t the snappiest experience, as you’d get on a phone, but it worked really well, as you’d expect it to work on a smart TV, essentially. There’s not much else to say here.
Yaber T2 Plus Review: Audio
Yaber didn’t exactly skimp out in the audio department either. The Yaber T2 Plus has two rather powerful JBL speakers. On top of that, you’re also getting Dolby Audio support here. The device supports various audio formats, including MP3, AAC, LPCM, APE, FLAC, OGG, and AMR. Considering there is a file manager on it, you can technically transfer music on the device too. The better choice is to use Bluetooth in order to stream music from your phone or some other device, though, it’s less of a hassle.
I found that the speakers are more than powerful enough for my use cases. They were really good for watching a football match with my buddies, and the same goes for movies. Just make sure not to expect a full surround sound quality or something like that. Keep in mind that these are two speakers inside a device that also shoots a picture on your wall. There’s only so much they can offer. The point is, they were loud enough, and they were not tinny at all. The audio output was good across the spectrum. If you don’t like the speakers, there’s always a way to connect your headphones to the device.
Yaber T2 Plus: Should you buy it?
So, is the Yaber T2 Plus worth your hard-earned cash? Well, it all depends on what you’re looking for in a projector, but in general, yes, I’d say this device is worth the asking price. Back in the day getting a projector for $350 was not even possible, and today you can get a really nice budget one… with a battery built in. The Yaber T2 Plus is not a high-end projector with an outstanding picture, it’s also not a projector that will shoot the biggest screen you’ve ever seen on your wall. However, it does a good job of providing a sizeable image, which is good enough for the asking price.
On top of that, the sound it provides is not bad at all, while all the ports and options you may want are included. The built quality of the Yaber T2 Plus is also on a high level, some of you may be surprised. This projector is not perfect, but it’s offering a lot for the asking price, that’s for sure. You also do get a Google TV dongle here, and a nice remote. If you need something to take with you or something that will do well for backyard sports or movie-watching parties, the Yaber T2 Plus does a fine job.
You should buy the Yaber T2 Plus if you:
…want a portable projector
…want a projector but don’t want to break the bank
…are not too demanding in terms of projection quality
…plan on using built-in audio speakers
…appreciate a good remote being included in the package
You shouldn’t buy the Yaber T2 Plus if you:
…want the very best projection quality
…need a projector that will hold over 3 hours of runtime on a single charge
