No longer is a home cinema strictly the preserve of the rich. For those who covet that big-screen experience from the comfort of their own sofa, the market is strewn with portable projectors available for around the cost of a takeaway dinner.

At the other end of the spectrum, you could build a pretty decent entry-level system for a couple of grand, your very own mini picture house. But what happens when you covet a true 4K HDR picture, with all the functionality of your smart TV and built-in speakers that won’t give you tinnitus, all without sacrificing the convenience of being able to pack it away in the broom cupboard after every film?

Well, that’s where the LG CineBeam comes in. The HU80KSW will put up a fight against any dedicated projector at its price, but, more than that, it is a full home cinema system cannily distilled into one portable box you can carry like an elongated briefcase. Even the power cable is attached and wound into the base of the unit, so you really don’t have to plug anything into it if you don’t want to.

Design and features

The basic design of the CineBeam proves the power of simplicity. Lift the lens cap and on the underside of it you’ll find a mirror. By simply reflecting the image onto whatever surface you’ve cleared for your film – or shining the projector directly at it, of course – this means you can place the unit pretty much anywhere in the room you like. It should recognise automatically how you’re using it, while the Auto Vertical Keystone will help align the picture if you haven’t the time or patience to do so manually.

Focus and zoom are controlled by dials towards the top of the CineBeam, which allow for projection of an image anywhere between 66 and 150 inches.