When it comes to squeezing a true cinematic experience into ever-shrinking living spaces, few technologies have made as rapid a splash as ultra-short-throw (UST) projectors. Earlier this year at CES 2025, LG stunned attendees with the world debut of its new CineBeam S Mini (model PU615U), a pint-sized powerhouse capable of beaming 4K images up to 100 inches wide from just a few centimeters away from the wall. Now, with global pre-orders rolling out in markets including Canada, Australia and the UK, LG is positioning the CineBeam S Mini as the go-anywhere, fit-anywhere solution for movie buffs, gamers and multitasking households alike.

At its CES, LG paired the CineBeam S Mini with the multifunctional PF600U to underline a broader push into “lifestyle projectors”—devices that don’t just live in home theaters but integrate seamlessly into living rooms, bedrooms and even home offices. Weighing in at under a kilogram and measuring just 160 × 160 × 110 mm (roughly 6.3 × 6.3 × 4.3 inches), the PU615U is LG’s smallest 4K UST model to date, yet houses a 3-channel RGB laser engine capable of 500 ANSI lumens and 154 percent coverage of the DCI-P3 color gamut. During demos, its auto-screen alignment and wall-color correction tools caught many by surprise—adjustments that once required manual keystrokes now happen in seconds, even on textured or off-white walls.

Most mini-projectors lean heavily on LED light sources, sacrificing brightness for size. LG sidesteps this trade-off by using a true laser light engine. The CineBeam S Mini’s 500 ANSI lumens may not rival a 5,000-lumen cinema rig, but in low-ambient-light settings it delivers crisp, vibrant 4K UHD (3,840 × 2,160) images with a dynamic contrast ratio of 450,000 : 1. That ultra-short-throw (0.25 : 1) lens means you can park it mere inches from your projection surface—an approach that not only frees up real estate but also cuts down on distracting shadows.

Under the hood, the CineBeam S Mini runs LG’s latest webOS 24 platform, giving you out-of-the-box access to Netflix, Disney+, Apple TV and more. Native support for HDR10 and Filmmaker Mode ensures directors’ color and frame-rate intentions come through, while wireless mirroring over AirPlay 2 and MiraCast lets family and friends toss photos, playlists or video calls onto the big—or rather, bigger—screen. Connectivity is equally flexible: two USB-C ports, an HDMI eARC input for soundbars, plus Bluetooth audio out so that you can wirelessly route audio to your favorite speakers.

Don’t let the CineBeam S Mini’s size fool you into thinking you’ll need external speakers. Inside its sleek metallic shell sit stereo drivers tuned for Dolby Atmos. During our listening tests, the projector delivered surprisingly rich sound with clear dialogue and punchy mid-bass—enough to fill a small to mid-sized room without extra hardware. If you do opt for a dedicated audio setup, the HDMI eARC port makes it painless to integrate with soundbars or AV receivers.

In Australia, LG has opened pre-orders at A$2,499 (shipping mid-August), while in the UK the CineBeam S Mini is listed for £1,099 at Richer Sounds, with stock due in September. Canadian pricing is live on LG’s website, but U.S. availability and pricing remain unconfirmed—worth watching, given that LG’s prior UST models have typically landed in the US at around US $999–$1,499. It’s also unclear which European markets will follow suit after these initial rollouts.

A handful of competitors—including Samsung’s The Freestyle and Xgimi’s Elfin—have flirted with compact, laser-powered projection, but few bring true 4K resolution or the ease-of-use we saw in LG’s demo. By collapsing the distance between lens and wall, UST projectors redefine how we think about home cinema: no darkened closets for long-throw setups, no awkward ceiling mounts. For urban dwellers, apartment renters or anyone craving a decluttered space, LG’s CineBeam S Mini could be the missing puzzle piece.

Whether you’re replaying a weekend game, streaming the latest blockbuster or simply enlarging your video-call companions to life-size, LG’s new CineBeam S Mini Ultra Short Throw 4K Projector aims to deliver premium performance without demanding premium real estate. As pre-orders begin shipping over the coming weeks, early adopters will be the first to tell us how this tiny titan fares under day-to-day use—so stay tuned.