You enjoy watching movies and want to recreate a theater experience. So, you are thinking about buying a projector for your home. Both Anker’s Nebula Capsule II and Nebula Capsule Max are at the top of the portable projector market, but there are a few differences between the two devices. 

The main differences between the Nebula Capsule II and the Max include hardware and software features. These include battery life, internal memory, and RAM. While Nebula Capsule II runs Android TV, the Max runs a different version of Android. Overall, the Max is generally seen as more powerful.

Below, we’ll do a deep dive to help you find which of these two portable projectors suits your needs. Keep reading to find out whether the Nebula Capsule II or Nebula Capsule Max is the best choice for you.

Anker Nebula Capsule II vs the Max

Projectors are an easy way to set up a screen up to 100” wide, any time, anywhere. This gives you all the benefits of a full cinematic experience. Anker’s Nebula Capsule II and Capsule Max offer just that. But, you may be wondering whether the Anker Nebula Capsule II or Nebula Capsule Max will best suit your needs.

The main differences between the Nebula Capsule II and Capsule Max are their computing power and operating systems. Let’s look at the similarities and differences regarding the hardware and software for these two products.

Hardware Similarities and Differences

Both devices offer a very similar and robust build. They are almost identical on the outside, with a size of 150 x 80 x 80mm (height x depth x width) and a weight of approximately 700g. They both have an HD 720p resolution at a maximum projection size of 100”. In addition to this, the Capsule II and Max offer several similar hardware specifications:

  • Wi-Fi supportTwo USB portsOne HDMI port200 ANSI lumens8W Bluetooth speakerAutofocus and automatic vertical keystone correction

Some people believe that these similarities produce the exact same viewing experience. However, there are a few hardware-related differences. 

The main differences between the Nebula Capsule II and Nebula Capsule Max come when we look at their capabilities and battery life. Let’s compare these side by side:

With these improvements on the Capsule Max hardware, the user experience tends to be a bit smoother. This becomes evident when navigating through the menu and working with more demanding apps. 

Software Similarities and Differences

The Capsule II and Capsule Max’s differences don’t end with hardware. The real deal comes when we start comparing the software. The Capsule II comes with Android TV 9, whereas Capsule Max uses Android 8 with Anker’s modified UI. 

Android TV is better optimized for your viewing experience and comes with many streaming platforms. These include Hulu, Disney+, fuboTV, YouTubeTV, and even Prime Video. 

While you can download these from the Play Store on the Nebula Capsule Max, it usually leads to lower video quality, slower performance, and sometimes frequent crashes. However, this typically is not an issue if you connect a Roku, laptop, or even a console through the HDMI port on your projector. 

You can also store your movies on a flash drive and connect the drive through the USB port. Whenever you connect an external device, you will only use the device’s projection capabilities — not the built-in software.

It is worth noting that neither the Capsule II nor Max comes with Netflix integrated, nor can you directly download it from the Play Store. However, there is a workaround on the Capsule II that solves this issue. 

On Anker’s app, you can follow the instructions to add Netflix access and stream it to the portable projector. The video quality might not be the same, but again, using an external device connected through the HDMI port tends to solve the problem.

Conclusion

Both Anker’s Nebula Capsule II and Capsule Max are at the top of the portable projector market. The video and audio quality are the same, and both come with the same number of HDMI and USB ports. However, the Max stands out for its longer battery life and better RAM, internal memory, and processor.

The main differences between the devices come when you look at the software. Even though the Capsule Max is more powerful, the Android 8 software does not offer the same speed and quality as the Android TV 9 technology used in the Capsule II. With this information, you should be able to decide which of these two products will best cover your needs.