At the tail end of last year we took a look at Sanyo's PLV-Z700, which was then one of the cheapest Full HD projectors on the market. Just a few months on and the PLV-Z3000 has made its way onto our test bench, and with a nice fat price tag of just under £2,000 it's aimed squarely at the enthusiast market.

If it weren't for the dark-grey chassis, it would be almost impossible to tell the PLV-Z3000 apart from the PLV-Z700; quick-access controls are found on the top and the same automatic sliding lens cover adds a touch of class. Vertical and horizontal lens-shift wheels are found on the side, allowing you to sit the PLV-Z3000 at a slight angle to the wall you're projecting on without being burdened by image distortion.

Many of the other specs are the same as the PLV-Z700, including a brightness rating of 1,200 ANSI lumens and a Full HD native resolution of 1920 x 1080. The projector ships with an identical remote control, which comes complete with backlit keys, and you also get the same array of inputs: S-Video, composite, VGA, two component and two HDMI (HDCP-compatible, naturally).

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The lens has a throw distance ratio of 1.36:1 or, if you use it at the full extent of the 2x zoom lens, 2.76:1, giving a maximum quoted projection size of 300 inches. Use the Cinema modes and you'll need to make sure the room is reasonably dark, but the Living mode is more than capable of producing a perfectly viewable projection even with the lights on.

Given the similarities between this projector and cheaper PLV-Z700, you're probably wondering exactly how Sanyo can justify the price hike. Well, for starters, the contrast ratio has been given a massive boost to 65,000:1 (the PLV-Z700 had to make do with 10,000:1), which means blacks appear darker and bright scenes less washed out. It won't make much of a difference when watching sport, for example, but the benefit of this high contrast ratio is instantly noticeable when watching movies.

The PLV-Z3000 also debuts Sanyo's Dynamic Predictive Frame Interpolation Technology, basically an attempt to produce smoother looking projections. By inspecting two adjacent frames, it musters up some new frames and slots them in-between, the idea being that motion blur is reduced.

You can specify how aggressive you want this interpolation to be (off, low, medium or high), but whether you actually like the effect it has is a matter of personal taste. We enjoyed having it set to high when watching a football match and other live TV broadcasts, but felt it had an adverse effect on movies, almost making them look like they were shot on a home camcorder. That said, when watching movies we preferred having it set to low as opposed to off.

Finally, if you've highly-tuned ears, you may be able to detect that the PLV-Z3000 is quieter than the PLV-Z700, though at 19dB as opposed to 21dB it's not a huge difference.

There's no doubt that the PLV-Z3000 is a serious piece of kit. Whether you're watching the big match or settling down to a high definition Blu-ray movie, it'll knock your socks off with a bright, clear and highly-detailed projection. However, its price tag places it firmly in the enthusiast segment of the market. If you're looking to make your first foray into projectors, Sanyo's impressive PLV-Z700, which is now available for under £1,000, might be a better option.