We've looked at the best star projectors and home planetariums that money can buy, with options ranging from the scientific to the... not so scientific. You'll see what we mean.
The models that tend to be more affordable are those that give you an immersive experience, to give the feel of being somewhere other-worldly, and the colors and patterns are loosely 'inspired' by space — nebulas, auroras and galaxies. You've likely seen them at parties, in games rooms, in spas and so on.
Then there are scientific home planetariums that generally project 'real imagery,' so you can study and enjoy projections of real galaxies and nebulas from the comfort of your own home without investing in expensive astronomy equipment. These are much more likened to the more traditional planetariums that teach astronomy and related sciences.
We've scoured the market for the best star projectors and home planetariums, and we've noticed that over time, there's a growing competition of manufacturers bringing out newer versions with additional functionality and better quality and packaging. We'll keep revising this list with new models as we come across and test them. For now, here are the best ones currently available on the market.
If you're looking to purchase a gift for a child, you might want to take a look at the best science kits for kids if a star projector wouldn't quite hit the nail on the head. There are also guides to the best chemistry sets and the best coding toys too.
BEST STAR PROJECTOR OVERALL (AND MOST SCIENTIFICALLY ACCURATE)
1. 12 in 1 Night Light Galaxy Projector Starry Sky 360° Rotate ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
REASONS TO BUY
✔️ Versatile Experience: 12 unique lighting modes for a personalized ambiance.✔️ Immersive Display: 360° rotation envelopes the room in cosmic beauty.
The projector stands out for its remarkable color production – the hues are vibrant and luminous, and once focused, the images showcase incredible sharpness. This galaxy projector for the bedroom comes with 12 display scenarios: Solar System, Earth, Moon, The Milky Way, Galaxy, Andromeda Galaxy, NGC4302-NGC4298, Hubble Deep Field, M60--UCD1, North America Nebula, Mystic Mountain, and Small Magellanic Cloud. The planetarium star projector can fine-tune the focus by rotating the focusing head to achieve clear imaging. With a 360°rotatable angle, the solar system projector can be projected onto the ceiling, walls, and floors.
This star projector galaxy light won’t make any noise while working. Never worry about forgetting to turn off the space projector, as it has a timing shutdown function, you don't have to worry about wasting electricity. Galaxy lamps can create a warm and quiet sleeping environment to help you and your child fall asleep.
You can create a romantic galaxy in the room. The starlight projector will create a wonderful romantic atmosphere for weddings, birthdays, parties, anniversaries, Christmas, bedrooms, kid's rooms, home theatre, etc..
A high high-precision lens brings you a realistic starry sky. Creating a real projection so lifelike, you'll be convinced you're in outer space, relieve all stress, and unlock your inner peace as you gaze at stars. This is an ideal gift that you can experience galaxies and nebulae at home.
Placing this projector at the forefront of our list is a deliberate choice, given its equivalent or even superior functionality compared with all the projectors recently, all while being much more budget-friendly.
2. BlissLights Sky Lite 2.0 ⭐⭐⭐⭐
SPECIFICATIONS
REASONS TO BUY
+Bright & vivid colors and lasers
+Powered by USB
REASONS TO AVOID
-Has been superseded-Cheaper similar alternatives
Bliss Lights SkyLite 2.0, although superseded by the Evolve as mentioned above, is still an excellent star projector that features most of the same functionality, just not Google or Alexa voice control. It looks different because it is 'wheel-shaped' rather than spherical, but it slots nicely onto a bookshelf without taking up much space.
The colors of the lights and lasers are vivid, and the dedicated app still affords you many customization options in terms of color mix, speed, timing modes, brightness and so on. Be mindful that the app is connected over Bluetooth and not Wi-Fi, so you have to be pretty near it to make any changes to the settings — if you're looking to control it remotely from a different room (e.g if it's in a child's bedroom and you don't want to disturb them), you'd probably want to consider something that is connected by Wi-Fi.
The operation of the motor is nearly silent, so it would be a perfect sleeping aid if that is what you're looking for a star projector to help with.
3. Encalife Ambience Galaxy & Star Projector ⭐⭐⭐
SPECIFICATIONS
REASONS TO BUY
+ Faceted dome
+ USB
REASONS TO AVOID
-Dull packaging
-Lacks premium feel
-Remote needed for all functionality
The Encalfe Ambience Galaxy & Star Projector is a combination star-projector meets Bluetooth speaker, perfect for a child's bedroom. Be aware of the lackluster packaging and slightly disappointing build quality, but the device performs surprisingly well.
The Ambience Galaxy & Star Projector resembles a UFO shape and has a faceted dome to help disperse the LED over 180 degrees. After reviewing lots of star projectors, this is a unique design.
The lights are bright and vivid, and there is a fair amount of customization, but you'll need to use the supplied remote to access some of the functions (rather than being able to access them using the buttons on the device). Other star projectors on this list, namely the Bliss Lights models, offer more color combinations, but there's more than enough here to entertain yourself and your children.
There is a USB port for plugging in a flash drive to play music from, although admittedly, these are somewhat outdated now, so this probably won't see much use. That said, we can see why this function would be useful if you were to pre-load an mp3 playlist (e.g. sleep sounds), an audiobook, or similar to a flash drive.
