A pico projector is created by using a DLP chipset comprised of a DLP160CP DMD, a DLPC3421 controller, and a DLPA200x/DLPA3000 PMIC/LED driver. The DLPC3421 controller performs the digital image processing, the DLPA200x/DLPA3000 provides the needed analog functions for the projector, and the DLP160CP DMD is the display device for producing the projected image.

In addition to the three DLP chips in the chipset, other chips are needed. At a minimum, a flash part is needed to store the DLPC3421 controller software.

The illumination light applied to the DMD is typically from red, green, and blue LEDs. These are often contained in three separate packages, but sometimes more than one color of LED die may be in the same package to reduce the overall size of the pico projector.

The DLPC3421 controller receives image data from the multimedia front end over a 24-bit parallel interface. An I²C interface should be connected from the multimedia front end for sending commands to the DLPC3421 controller for configuring the chipset for different features.