Buyers

On the night it shipped, Chen Qingsong checked the tracking information the next morning and was stunned. In just one night, the projector he'd bought for five thousand yuan had been air-shipped to his city, and it was already out for delivery.

Now that was fast!

Chen Qingsong was thrilled to be getting the projector he'd spent so long researching the day before, and he'd made all the necessary preparations. He'd downloaded an 8K movie and some 8K-compatible games, not to mention the games he played regularly.

When he went to work, Chen Qingsong packed his ITX computer into a backpack and brought it to the office. Once the package arrived, he could test the projector right away. If he wasn't satisfied with it, he'd return it that day, just to be safe.

At nine in the morning, not long after he'd arrived at the office, Chen Qingsong got a call from an SF Express courier. His package was waiting outside the company.

Under the bemused gazes of his coworkers, Chen Qingsong hurried out of the office.

The SF Express courier was already waiting outside. Chen Qingsong hurried over and said, "Hi, I'm here to pick up a package."

The courier smiled. "Could you give me the recipient's name and phone number?"

"I just spoke to you. The recipient's name is Ultraman Fights Little Monsters, and the phone number is 157xxx."

"All right, here's your package. Please sign here." After confirming the recipient's information, the courier handed it to Chen Qingsong.

Taking the pen the courier offered, Chen Qingsong signed for the package. Once the courier had scanned it, he hurried back inside, carrying his parcel.

Back at his desk, Chen Qingsong had no interest in working. The company had just finished a big project, and there weren't any new assignments yet. Everyone was playing games or watching movies, and their open-minded boss didn't mind.

Time to open it up and inspect it!

Chen Qingsong set the package on his desk, pulled out his keys, and slit open the wrapping.

"What did you buy? You look like you can barely wait to open it." A coworker at the next desk leaned over to ask.

Without turning around, Chen Qingsong replied, "A projector." There was no point in keeping it a secret. When he tested it, the picture would be projected onto the white wall beside them, where everyone could see it.

Xie Yunwei, who'd wandered over to watch him unbox it, rolled his eyes. "So it's a projector. The way you were acting, I thought you had a girl in there."

As he came over to Chen Qingsong's desk, Xie Yunwei continued, "I've bought a projector too, but it was only really good for messing around with. In practice, there's a good chance it'll just gather dust at home."

"The picture's awful during the day. Unless you spend a certain amount, you can even get a really grainy image. They're not much use."

"I've got one at home that cost me over two thousand yuan. I used it for less than a month before it ended up gathering dust. If you'd told me you were buying a projector, I would've just given you mine."

Xie Yunwei asked curiously, "By the way, how much did this one cost?"

"Five thousand!" Chen Qingsong replied absentmindedly as he unwrapped the package, which was packed tightly.

"Five thousand? That should be a pretty decent one. It'll be fine for watching movies, but you'd better not get your hopes too high."

Chen Qingsong smiled. "Then you're wrong. I have very high hopes for this projector. The picture has to be clear, even in direct sunlight, and it can't look any worse than a TV. Otherwise, I'm returning it!"

Xie Yunwei put a hand to his forehead. "Your standards are way too high. Don't even bother opening it—just return it. There's no projector that can work in direct sunlight and look as good as a TV."

Chen Qingsong sliced through another layer of bubble wrap. "Maybe there is!"

"How could there be? If one existed, it'd cost a fortune. And this isn't even some big-name brand like Sony. I've never heard of this Shenma Technology Company."

Xie Yunwei looked concerned. "Don't let them scam you. They might refuse to take it back."

"I have the chat records. I can get customer service involved. They won't scam me."

As they talked, Chen Qingsong finally freed the projector from its layers of tightly packed wrapping.

He'd already looked at the accessories and exterior online many times the day before, so he just gave the projector a quick inspection to make sure it wasn't damaged.

He connected the projector's DP port to the ITX computer he'd brought with him, aimed the lens at the white wall beside his desk, plugged it in, and turned it on.

The computer and projector sprang to life together.

You could tell a lot from the first impression. The projector felt solid in his hands, its construction was sturdy, and the fan was remarkably quiet. Chen Qingsong's confidence in it grew.

Soon, the computer had finished booting. In the lower-right corner of the projected screen, a startup message appeared: boot time, six seconds; faster than 90 percent of computers nationwide!

The projector displayed Chen Qingsong's familiar desktop in crisp detail.

Xie Yunwei, who'd been eagerly watching from beside him, looked surprised. "Huh, this is actually pretty good!"

The office windows were open, and the lights were on, yet the picture showed no sign of distortion. It looked as if a bright display had been mounted right on the wall!

"This isn't even the best it can do!" Chen Qingsong smiled, moved the mouse through the properties and settings, raised the resolution to 8K, and hit confirm.

The picture went black. When it came back, what Chen Qingsong and Xie Yunwei saw was something else entirely.

The image looked even more refined. On the screen, a Flame Chariot wreathed in fire looked lifelike. Even the marks on its tires were clear, and the heat-distorted air around the flames seemed completely real.

Xie Yunwei, who was usually into electronics, blurted out, "Holy crap, this thing's amazing! The picture's incredible! I never would've imagined a projector could look like this!"

"The best part's still to come. Just sit back and watch." Chen Qingsong looked calm on the surface, but he was just as surprised inside. He'd had a hunch, but seeing it with his own eyes still caught him off guard.

Chen Qingsong had prepared carefully for this test. His ultra-high-definition 8K movie took up a full 60 gigabytes, and it could stutter during playback on a computer that wasn't powerful enough.

Fortunately, Chen Qingsong had bought his computer last year, before computer components went up in price. Its graphics card, CPU, and other parts were all excellent, and it had cost him nearly ten thousand yuan. With the current mining craze, he could probably even make a profit if he sold it now!

He clicked play on Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2.

The movie had come out years ago, and there were plenty of 8K versions online. Chen Qingsong had watched it before, too.

But once the picture appeared, the spaceships and battles felt so vivid and immersive that they were nothing like what you got with 1080p or 2K!

Seeing the movie on the wall, Chen Qingsong said excitedly, "Just like the reviewers said—the picture quality is amazing!"

Xie Yunwei nodded in agreement. "The projector's built-in speakers are great, too. This is a real treat!"

He turned around and asked suspiciously, "This is too good. Are you sure you got this projector for five thousand yuan? Maybe you missed a zero—or even two. Did you actually pay fifty thousand or five hundred thousand?"

Chen Qingsong replied confidently, "You're just not used to seeing something this good. It really was five thousand!" He picked up his phone and checked his JD.com order to make sure.

Turning back to the wall and the picture, whose clarity was clearly different from a regular monitor's, Chen Qingsong couldn't help wondering: Did the store set the price wrong?

As the movie went on, one spectacular scene after another filled the screen. Xie Yunwei, watching alongside him, was completely dumbfounded. He couldn't believe a five-thousand-yuan projector could do this.

The two of them kept watching openly instead of working, until they finally caught the boss's attention.

The boss came over from his office and, putting on a stern face, asked, "What are you two doing?"

"It's still work hours. There may not be much to do right now, but you can't just sit here watching a movie!"

The boss's arrival caught the attention of several other employees who'd been absorbed in games, movies, or TV shows.

"Watching a movie, are you? What kind? Something naughty, perhaps?"

"Wow, your monitors weren't enough for you anymore?"

"You've even got a projector now? Nice!"

"That projector looks pretty good!"

Chen Qingsong had planned to run his tests, but the spectacular 8K movie had left him so impressed that he hadn't stopped it right away. Now several other employees, including the boss, had gathered around to watch.

"Huh, what kind of projector is that? The picture really is good!" Even the well-informed boss had noticed something unusual. The company had a projector, too—the one in the office had cost over twenty thousand yuan—but its picture was only so-so. It was good enough to see what was being projected.

But look at this. In broad daylight, with plenty of light in the office, it was projecting a crisp image about forty inches wide onto the wall beside them. And the picture quality was incredible!

"That's really clear!" The boss even reached out and touched the wall to make sure they hadn't installed a screen on it.

"Did it cost a lot?" the boss asked curiously after confirming it wasn't a screen.

Xie Yunwei answered before Chen Qingsong could. "Not much. Only five thousand yuan!"

The boss couldn't believe a projector that good could be that cheap. "Five thousand? Are you kidding me? Be honest!"

Chen Qingsong pulled out his phone and said helplessly, "It really was five thousand. Why would I lie? I've got the order right here. I ordered it just last night. I saw a video online reviewing the projector. The reviewer raved about it, so I finally worked up the nerve to buy one and try it out. I didn't expect it to be this good!"

The boss took the phone, looked at it, then glanced up. "Why don't you test it a few more times and see if there are any problems? If it checks out, I'll buy one too!"

He looked around at the people who'd gathered and continued, "By the way, this isn't the best place for it. Let's go to the conference room!"

"Uh, sure." Chen Qingsong was a little speechless. He turned off the projector and packed up his computer.

None of his coworkers around his desk showed any sign of leaving. They were all clearly eager to see more.

"Fine, let's all go take a look. We don't have much to do these next couple of days anyway." The boss shook his head helplessly.

At the boss's permission, everyone cheered.

"Yeah!"

"Best boss ever!"

"Boss of the year!"

"Movie time, hahaha!"

A group of more than ten people streamed into the conference room next door.

They turned on the projector, connected the computer, and adjusted the angle. This time, the image wasn't projected onto a wall, but onto the hundred-inch screen there. The picture looked different again—much sharper!

"This is as clear as watching a movie in a theater!"

"Turn off the lights! Let's put a movie on!"

"Close the curtains!"

A few coworkers drew the curtains and turned off the lights.

The projector adjusted its brightness, lowering it without compromising the picture so that the image wouldn't be too glaring.

The movie began. The coworkers adjusted their chairs and settled in to watch.

As they watched, everyone chatted about how it looked.

"This is really good. Is it just me, or is it even clearer than a movie theater?"

"Must be your imagination, but it's definitely just as good as a theater."

"I watched this movie on my computer before, but seeing it on this high-definition projector feels like watching it for the first time. It's so much clearer!"

"I've ordered one! I've ordered one!"

"What do you think it'd be like to watch something naughty on this projector? Heh heh."

"Wow, I've discovered a whole new world. I've got to get one!"

"You people with your minds in the gutter, give it a rest. Most naughty videos have terrible picture quality. They won't look like this."

"How would you know? Tell us, have you done some research?"

"Well, there's a forty-inch HD computer monitor at my place!"

"Shh! Can you just watch the movie quietly?"

"This would be even better with popcorn and cola!"

"I'm heartbroken. I spent over twenty thousand yuan on a projector last year. Now I want to smash it!"

"This is so freaking good!"

"According to what I read online, 8K has a wider color gamut and greater color depth than 4K. In other words, it can display a broader range and more colors, which makes transitions between colors smoother. The difference is especially noticeable in glowing areas, where the colors around a light source blend more naturally."

"8K resolution is 7680 by 4320. The contrast between light and dark, and the overall picture quality, are much better when you're watching a movie, so the image looks clearer and more realistic!"

Everyone watched the movie and chatted. The office was filled with laughter and excitement.

Before long, the movie ended. Now it was time to put the projector through its paces!

Once he'd confirmed that the picture was clear and the projector really could deliver the advertised 8K resolution, Chen Qingsong stopped holding back.

Everyone spent the whole morning putting the projector through a series of rigorous tests.

Playing League of Legends in 8K at a refresh rate of 144 hertz made it feel like their skills had improved. Chen Qingsong controlled Demacia's Might, cutting through everyone in his path!

The sight caught the attention of several coworkers who enjoyed gaming. Their eyes lit up, and they all wanted to test more games.

Next came Naraka: Bladepoint, Grand Theft Auto V, The Elder Scrolls, and several other games.

The only disappointment was that most games didn't support 8K. Perhaps there simply weren't many machines powerful enough to run games at that resolution. Maybe that would change in a couple of years.

"This is incredible! You can use it as a monitor!"

"I never would've thought of this. I'm buying one, I'm buying one!"

"This thing's a hidden gem! And it only costs five thousand yuan!"

"A movie ticket costs fifty yuan. After a hundred movies, it's paid for itself. I could buy one of these, subscribe to a streaming service, and watch at home by myself. Or bring a girl over to watch with me—it'd be way better than a theater. Heh heh!"

"How much does a full set of equipment at a movie theater cost?"

"I heard the cheapest sets cost a few million!"

After the entire round of testing, everyone at the company ordered a projector, even the two women!

The boss went all out and bought five. He planned to put two at home, one in the living room and one in the bedroom, and replace the projector at the office—the one that had cost over twenty thousand yuan—with a third. He'd send the last two to his parents. Money really did let you do whatever you wanted!

Chen Qingsong wasn't surprised that everyone had decided to buy the Phantom Projector. The product was simply too good. It was only natural to sell a few more.

That day, the remaining reviewers who'd been sent the projector to test one by one posted their review videos online, letting more people see this projector with its incredible performance.

Meanwhile, buyers who'd ordered a projector the day before gradually received theirs. After testing them, they became fans and started recommending the product to people around them.

In just one day, Ning Yifan had sold more than sixty projectors!

If things kept going like this, the first batch might be completely sold out by tomorrow!

That was how profitable high-value, high-tech products could be!