Anker Nebula Capsule, we analyze the benchmark portable projector

Despite being on the market for several years now, Anker's Nebula Capsule portable projector remains one of the benchmarks in portable projectors. With Android 7.1, AirPlay, integrated battery and a more than decent image quality, is the perfect solution to enjoy multimedia content wherever you are.

Design and Specifications

With a cylindrical design and a size similar to that of a soda can, this small portable projector is ideal to take anywhere. Its weight of 420 grams is not excessive to carry it with the rest of our luggage or place it at home in any room, in return it offers us up to four hours of playback thanks to its integrated battery. The build quality is very high and the metal gives it a feeling of robustness that gives a lot of peace of mind when it comes to transporting it.

The lower two thirds are occupied by a grille that makes way for its 360º speaker with 5W of power. Forget about those ridiculous speakers of other portable projectors, you will be able to listen to your movie without problems and without needing more than your Nebula Capsule projector, with good volume and surprising sound quality. Anker relies on this speaker so much that you can even use this Capsule as a portable bluetooth speaker, forgetting about the projector function.

At the top we have the projector itself. This Capsule offers us a resolution of 854 × 480 (16: 9) and a screen size that can go from 40 to 100 inches, depending on the distance at which you place the device (about 3 meters maximum). It has a wheel to control the focus, and controls on the top that include the volume, the Bluetooth speaker function and the device's power. The projector also features automatic screen correction to prevent image distortion. It has a brightness of 100 ANSI lumens.

At the bottom of the projector we find the only two physical connections it has: microUSB for recharging its battery and the connection of storage accessories, and an HDMI 1.4 (1080p) input. If we add to this that it has AirPlay to send content from our iPhone, iPad or Mac, and that it also has its own installable applications on the device to stream through the WiFi connection available, the end result is that we have practically all the connection options that may interest us.

Software

It is one of the strengths of this Nebula Capsule, although with certain limitations. It has Android 7.1 as the operating system, but it does not bring Google Play but instead there is a parallel application store: Aptoide TV. From this app store we can download apps like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Plex, Youtube, etc, but there are also some shortcomings, like Disney +. Navigation through the different menus is done through the remote control included in the box, but personally I prefer to use the Nebula Connect app (link) that allows you to control it from your iPhone (or Android). With this app writing your access credentials to streaming services is much easier, as well as navigating through the menus.

Using the projector is quite simple and anyone with minimal experience with smartphones will be able to use it without complications. The reproduction of the contents through the streaming services is very fluid, and the WiFi connectivity is very stable. During my tests I have not had problems with connection cuts or skips in playback. Using AirPlay is really comfortable to be able to view any content that you have stored on your Apple device without any cable.

Sound and Vision

We reached the key point of the analysis, and here we can say that the Nebula Capsule behaves quite decently if we take into account its limitations due to the type of projector it is. The image quality is quite decent if we use intermediate screen sizes, only at 100 inches in size we can say that those 480 pixels of resolution are noticeable. It is best to stay in an area between 40 and 100 inches and thus we will enjoy a good image quality. Brightness is a limiting factor on this projector. Its 100 ANSI lumens allow you to enjoy a good image in a dark room, even better if you use a projector screen but any white wall can do it too. Things change outdoors or if the room is bright, there the brightness does not give more of itself and the experience is not so good.

Where it is really surprising is in the sound quality, you really won't need any other device to listen to the audio of your movies and series well. Do not expect the power or the quality of your Home Cinema, but it behaves quite well, with quite high volume and acceptable bass. Until now I had had the opportunity to try other portable projectors and the sound was always very disappointing, to the point that it was one of the reasons I had never considered these devices as an option.

Editor's opinion

If you are looking for a portable projector with good autonomy and versatility, this Nebula Capsule will not disappoint you. With an application store that allows you to enjoy the main streaming apps, AirPlay compatibility, and microUSB and HDMI inputs, you will not have problems when choosing how you want to pass content to it. All this comes at a price, and that is that the resolution is not the best it could be and the brightness limits its use indoors in low light, but if you don't need a screen larger than 80-90 ″ and you plan to use it indoors, it will not be a major problem for you. You have it available on Amazon (link) for € 399.