What Is the Best Optoma Quickcast Alternative?

The Optoma QuickCast Pro-4K is a new wireless display and presentation system that is designed to make it easy to share your screen on a projector or flat panel display. But with more than 40 other competitors on the market, which one is right for your huddle spaces and collaboration rooms?

The QuickCast Pro-4K builds on the trend towards button-based wireless HDMI presentation systems to enable easy screen mirroring in the meeting room. The Optoma unit directly competes with the market-leading BenQ InstaShow and Barco ClickShare platforms at the strategic $999 price point (based on the market data from Futuresource Consulting). So what is the difference between these products and how they stack up on these three questions?

We will evaluate:

• What are the key differences between the products?
• What resolution & split-screen options are there?
• How secure are the products?

According to Futuresource, the BenQ InstaShow is the #2 selling wireless presentation system in Europe under $1000, second only to the Barco ClickShare. It uses a button architecture that enables users to plug in a button and start presenting in seconds. Both BenQ InstaShow models come with two buttons and a tabletop button holder, with the InstaShow S having more advanced features and higher 4K resolution.

According to Futuresource, the BenQ InstaShow is the #2 selling wireless presentation system in Europe under $1000, second only to the Barco ClickShare. It uses a button architecture that enables users to plug in a button and start presenting in seconds. Both BenQ InstaShow models come with two buttons and a tabletop button holder, with the InstaShow S having more advanced features and higher 4K resolution.

The QuickCast Pro-4K will connect to your device using HDMI 1.4 protocol and display up to 4K resolution. According to the data sheet, they can split the screen into two different sources if you purchase an extra transmitter to show side by side images.

While the Optoma unit has an advantage over the entry level InstaShow WDC-10 and WDC-10C, it falls short of the BenQ InstaShow S which also can output 4K resolution and has the ability to display four screens at the same time. Because the InstaShow S also supports AirPlay and Miracast, you can share content from multiple devices without having to purchase a button for every device.

With the same $999 price point as the BenQ InstaShow WDC-10, the Barco ClickShare CS-100 also does not have a 4K resolution or split-screen. The functional equivalent of the QuickCast-Pro 4K is the CS-200+, which costs over twice as much as the Optoma unit to display 4K resolution with the same side by side two-way split-screen technology. This is somewhat offset by the fact that the Barco comes with two transmitter buttons – while the Optoma comes with only one.

While ease of use is important for a wireless HDMI presentation system to keep meetings running efficiently to lower your overall meeting room cost – they can also represent security risks for bad actors who wish to use these systems to get access to presentation content (such as a salary review) that they don’t have permission to view – or use the system to break into the main network. How do these units stack up?

So which system is right for your huddle room or meeting space? As with any technology decision, there are many factors to consider, but the guide below breaks down some of the key features many people are looking for in a wireless collaboration solution for their collaboration areas.

For budget-sensitive buyers looking for a $999 solution, the BenQ InstaShow is one of the top-selling wireless HDMI alternatives because it keeps the simple and intuitive button architecture of the QuickCast Pro-4K and Barco ClickShare uses while eliminating the hassles of downloading applications (like the Barco) or having to keep charging your meeting room batteries (Optoma). It comes with two buttons for instant collaboration – while the Optoma QuickCast Pro and Barco CS-100 only come with a single transmitter. The InstaShow also provides an award-winning button holder to keep your table neat and organized.

For more advanced collaboration rooms, such as those with interactive flat panels, the BenQ InstaShow S is a solid alternative to the QuickCast Pro-4K. With 4K resolution and quad screen support, the system can stream four different presenters at the same time. With its touchback capability, the presenter can annotate and interact with the content on the screen, and capture the information on their Windows notebook.

From total cost of ownership perspective, the InstaShow also has the advantage of free updates, and the InstaShow S can be centrally managed using subscription-free BenQ’s Device Management System (DMS) software.