Toshiba just likes to top itself. Its new projector, the TDP-EW25U, can project a 60-inch image on a screen while a mere 2.4 feet away.

Toshiba’s “extreme short projection” technology must have really caught on with customers because it has shown up in other projectors announced this fall.

And ESP isn’t the only spec showing up as a regular feature in the new fall line of projectors. This projector can be connected to the building’s computer network via Wi-Fi or Ethernet. Plus there’s a USB port to plug in a thumb drive with a presentation. No need to drag along a laptop (this is heavy enough at 9.2 pounds).

New with this model: wide-screen image and compatible with Windows Vista Ultimate’s “Meeting Space,” which lets users share files remotely.

Price: $1,899 and available on Toshiba’s site.

The Toshiba TDP-EW25U projector specifications:

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Toshiba might as well market its new projector as a 300-inch HDTV that you can pack in your briefcase.

The new ultra-portable TDP-PX10U, out today, is just 2.9 pounds and offers native resolution of 1,024 by 768 (that’s high-definition quality). This tiny machine can project a 300-inch image though it looks like it needs to be nearly 40 feet away from the screen or a wall (unless this number is a typo — Toshiba is getting back to me on this Nope, no typo, says Toshiba).

According to my calculations, it’s slightly larger than a DVD case. But it’s not as small as the 1.1-pounder that Toshiba introduced last year (pictured on right).

Here’s what else you get with the TDP-PX10U:

• Built-in USB port so you can plug in a USB key with a PowerPoint instead of dragging a laptop.
• Includes a 2.0 watt speaker
• 2,200 ANSI Lumens

What it’s missing:

• HDMI port

Not bad, eh? Price: $999. More details at toshibadirect.com.

Toshiba Digital Products in Irvine updated its “Extreme Short Projection” projector today with the TDP-EX20U. Like its ET20U predecessor, the new one needs just three feet of space to project a 60-inch image on the wall or screen.

It’s very different from the model I tested earlier this year. The rounded ET20 projector was a multimedia machine with built-in DVD player and space-age looking ports. Also, its claim was that it needed 3.9 feet to project 100 inches (which was TRUE in my test).

The new one seems more like a business machine.

Notable feature: Built-in Wi-Fi so users can connect their laptop’s PowerPoint presentation with the projector and not worry about whether there is a spare S-Video cable (there is an S-Video port).

It also is Windows Vista compatible. It’s quiet — “only 28 decibels (dB), or quieter than a soft conversation.” There’s password protection so not just anyone can crash the wireless signal. Digital zoom. And there’s a USB port to plug in a thumb drive that has a PowerPoint. Read up on the new EX20U HERE.

And in the trend to go eco, Toshiba offers its green statement: Toshiba has set an environmental goal to double its ecological efficiency by 2010, while currently manufacturing its products to meet the Restriction on Hazardous Substance standard (RoHS). All Toshiba projectors are RoHS-compatible, reducing harmful environmental effects by restricting the use of lead, mercury and certain other hazardous substances.

Price: $1,599.

More pics and features:

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All of a sudden, I’m getting a flood of new projector releases. Ahh… that’s right. It’s CEDIA time again — The Custom Electronic Design & Installation Association annual expo.

Lots of representation from OC, starting with Mitsubishi Digital Electronics America in Irvine. The company’s key words this year: affordable 1080p. You be the judge.

Mitsubishi’s HC6000 is as high-definition as it gets, at 1080p so it works with the best DVD players out there, that is Blu-ray or HD DVD. Price: Under $4,000. Features include a 13,000:1 contrast ratio, two HDMI connectors and something called HQV, short for Hollywood Quality Video. Essentially, HQV is a high-performance video chip. Available through authorized dealers in October.

Irvine neighbor Toshiba Digital Products, meanwhile, offered its own version of affordable. The TLP-WX2200U portable projector (pictured above) is not quite as high a resolution as Mitsubishi’s. But it’s only $999. Resolution is 1280 x 800. Other features: 600:1 contrast ratio, wide screen and lightweight at 6.2 pounds.

Something unusual: A built-in theft deterrent. It has a removable palm-sized control panel with a self-assigned password. When the panel is removed, the projector is inoperable unless you know the password or replace the panel.

Then we’ve got Epson America of Long Beach. It offers an update to the MovieMate, which I reviewed last year and loved. Two projectors: The MovieMate 50, which is an upgrade from last year; and the MovieMate 72, a high-definition version.

These projectors are built for consumers and include an integrated DVD player and speakers. The MM50 is $799 and is 63 percent slimmer than the prior version (one little gripe I had about last year’s chunkier version). Plus it has a handle. The MM72 (above) doesn’t have the highest resolution, but it offers 720p. I would balk but the price is $1,199, which is much more affordable than the higher-resolution $4,000 projector mentioned above from Mitsubishi.

I’m definitely out of the loop when it comes to tools teachers use. So teachers, you’ll have to tell me how cool the new Toshiba TLP-XC2500AU really is — or isn’t.

This projector, which comes from Toshiba�s Digital Products Division in Irvine, has a built-in “document camera,” housed in an arm with five joints. The point? Plug a computer into the projector for the usual screen presentation. But if you want to show something else — like a live frog dissection or microbes swimming around a petri dish or yourself — twist the arm to a good spot to show students on the big screen.

Toshiba integrated the document camera to make it easier to transport. A button switches between computer presentation and the camera.

Some specs: the camera is 3 megapixels and 16x digital zoom, which should be good enough to view the fine print of a prescription drug disclaimer. Price: $1,439.