Most projectors on sale at the moment don't offer a high enough resolution to be able to support forthcoming high-definition TV (HDTV) broadcasts.

Nor can they support the new generation of DVD players that upscale images to HDTV levels. More worryingly for computer users, they can't support decent PC screen resolutions either.

Sony comes to the aid of those who want to watch the big picture in high definition with the VPL-HS50 LCD projector.

Although it doesn't carry the HD-Ready badge that indicates full compatibility with all the HDTV standards, it still ticks all the right boxes.

The resolution is 1,280 x 720, which equates to the widescreen 720p resolution and, although it will accept the higher 1,080i resolution signals, it has to scale these down to fit the screen.

The picture is smooth and clear, with good levels of detail and contrast – the projector boasts a very impressive 6000:1 contrast ratio, which is much higher than what's found in most of its competitors.

The VPL-HS50 uses Sony's Real Color Processing (RCP) technology which allows the user to individually adjust red, green and blue settings. This works well, but it does mean a fair amount of work is involved to get the picture looking its best.

It also suffers from a lack of brightness, which means that while the picture is fine in the dark it's not so impressive in daylight conditions to the point of being almost invisible.

However, it is exceptionally quiet for a projector. The remote control is easy to use and the buttons can be lit for use in the dark.

It also comes with HDMI (with HD content protection or HDCP), component and VGA sockets, but there's no DVI.

Although the bulb should last a long time (a life of 3,000 hours is quoted), replacements are not cheap – they currently sell upwards of £250.

Other than that, the VPL-HS50 is good value for money for an HDTV projector.