[REVIEW] Wanbo X2 Pro: For a price under 100 € surprises with Android and colorful image presentation

Content and quality of packaging

As usual, Wanbo packs all its projectors in a pair of boxes. The outer, classic cardboard box is protective, while the product box is inside.

In addition to the projector itself, it contains only the remote control and the power cable. The Chinese manufacturer does not include batteries for the remote control or an HDMI or audio AV IN cable in the basic package.

However, we rate the quality of the packaging as excellent, as everything is beautifully packed and protected from merciless handling during delivery.

Design and quality of workmanship

Wanbo X2 Pro is a projector with a classic flat design. It has dimensions of 22.5 x 17.7 x 9.4 cm and weighs 2 kg. In terms of size, it is more compact and compared to the recently tested Wanbo X5, it is significantly smaller.

The front part is dominated by the optics of the projector itself, next to which we can only find the brand logo. However, a sensor for automatic focusing is inconspicuously integrated into it. The only control on the projector is the on/off button located on the top and backlit.

In the rear part there are individual ports, namely 2x HDMI, 1x USB, 1x audio input for 3.5mm jack and 1x AV in port. On the sides there are cooling grids and outputs for speakers, and on the bottom we find a slot with a dust filter, rubber feet and a thread for a tripod.

As for the quality of the processing, the projector is of course plastic, but the design is good. Plastics do not bend, creak or feel cheap.

Remote control

The Wanbo brand bundles the same remote control with several of its models. This is not the case either, so here we have a typical white controller, which we have already written about in several reviews of projectors from this brand.

It fits well in the hand, the buttons are rubberized, they respond well to pressing, and overall it is one of the better types of controllers. There are just enough buttons, so it doesn't feel crowded.

In addition to the usual buttons for on / off, volume control or direction buttons with confirmation in the middle, there are also buttons for muting sounds, returning back or to the main menu, recalling settings, focusing or switching to mouse cursor control.

Brightness of 450 ANSI lumens and image quality

Wanbo X2 Pro is the successor of the basic model of the brand, X1. It offers a native resolution of only 720p, i.e. 1280 x 720 px. Added to this is a luminosity of 450 ANSI lumens. The contrast ratio is 2000:1 and the projection can work with an aspect ratio of 4:3 or 16:9.

Considering the low price tag, there is no need to have too high expectations. However, the picture is not bad at all for its category. Of course, 450 ANSI lumens is far from enough for use during the day, but it has a lot to offer in the evening or with better shading.

The colors are colorful and the image is not perfectly sharp, but considering the price it is reasonable.

As for the size of the picture, it can be in the range of 40 to 120″, depending on the distance from the wall or canvas. At a distance of 1 m the image is 40″ and at a distance of 2 m it should be 120″. However, these data are not entirely accurate, as the manufacturer himself states them differently on his website in several places.

Since we also had the Wanbo X5 available at the time of testing, which has a brightness of up to 1100 ANSI lumens, we compared the difference in brightness. As you can see in the photo above, the Wanbo X5 has such a high brightness that the photo is burnt out, since we took photos in the dark. In the dark, a lower brightness is completely sufficient, but the advantage of high brightness becomes apparent during the day.

User environment and operating system

The Wanbo X2 Pro comes with its own user interface, which runs on Android version 9. The home screen of the main menu slightly resembles a standard Android TV in its layout of elements.

In the upper part there is a menu where we can find search, applications, video content, music and settings. The dominant part is a large banner with a preview of multimedia content from various platforms, and below it there are also selected applications in the form of tiles.

The environment is quite fluid and responds well to remote control instructions, but a subtle lag is noticeable.

Applications and their installation options

In the main menu of the home screen we find the applications Netflix, prime video, Disney+, YouTube, HBO Max, plex, YouTube Kids, RedBull TV and ClouDDy. However, apart from YouTube, prime video and Netflix, these are only links to download the mentioned applications. After opening them, we get to the application store, where we can directly install the given application without searching for it.

In the menu with our applications (My apps) we will see only those that are actually installed. Specifically, they are the following: App Store, FileManager, SpeakerModel, Chrome, Miracast, YouTube, Netflix, OfficeSuite, EShareServer, Prime Video, Google Play Store, MX Player and iMirror.

As you may have noticed, we have a couple of stores here to get more apps. There is a kind of AppStore and also the classic Google Play Store. There are many applications unknown to us in the AppStore, but all pre-installed and applications such as VLC, HBO Max, Disney+ and others can be found here.

In the well-known Google Play Store, we can find applications intended for systems with Android TV. There are also streaming platforms and TV operator applications.

Unfortunately, the Wanbo X2 Pro projector, like other projectors from this Chinese brand, does not have official certification for Netflix, which means that you cannot enjoy series and movies in full resolution. However, since the projector only supports 720p resolution, this is not such a problem.

Sound and noise

The sound performance of the Wanbo X2 Pro projector is handled by a pair of 5W speakers, which are located on its sides. They play fairly loud, but the sound quality is not very good. We definitely recommend connecting an external soundbar or other speakers.

As for the noise of the projector itself, you can hear its cooling fan running, similarly to other cheap projectors. At a distance of approximately 1 m from the projector, we measured the noise level at 35 dB.

Performance, connectivity and multimedia content

As we mentioned in the introduction, the Wanbo X2 Pro has a pair of HDMI ports, one USB port, a headphone jack and AV in. We can connect a laptop, TV stick or soundbar to the projector.

WiFi version 6 in both bands, 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz, will please you with wireless connectivity. There is also Bluetooth, this time with version 5.0.

And what hardware is inside? The manufacturer does not provide specific specifications of the processor used, so we only know that the RAM memory has a capacity of 1 GB and the internal storage has 8 GB. The manufacturer refers to the processor in its presentation materials with the adjective "flagship", but this should be taken with a large margin.

We can conveniently share content to the projector via our smartphone thanks to the Miracast application, or by connecting an external device via HDMI or USB.

Settings and automatic focus

The latest projectors from the Wanbo brand are already normally equipped with automatic focus, thanks to which the manual wheel for focusing the image is already lost. It is not different in this case either. The projector can focus by itself, and if you want to focus manually, you simply use the remote control, where there are buttons for this action.

The Wanbo X2 Pro also has the function of automatic correction of all four corners, but it didn't work too well for us, so we adjusted the corners manually in the settings.

The settings are clearly organized into several categories. The most important ones can be found in the projection settings section. Here we can rotate the image, flip it mirror-like, adjust the mentioned four corners, trigger automatic focus, or turn off this functionality.

Customization of colors, sound profiles, screen saver or language setting is also available. Slovak is also available, but as we already mentioned in the Wanbo X5 review, the translation is not the best, so we personally preferred to use English.

Wanbo X2 Pro: Final review

A projector of compact dimensions and traditional design, the Wanbo X2 Pro is the successor of the X1 model and belongs to the basic models of the brand. At the current price of only EUR 129, it offers a 720p resolution, a brightness of 450 ANSI lumens and WiFi 6 support.

Considering the price, this is a good projector for the undemanding user. The brightness is sufficient for comfortable viewing of content in a shaded room or in the dark. Pleasant color presentation and automatic focusing will please.

For a better content viewing experience, we recommend connecting external speakers, as the sound quality is quite poor.