Editors' note: This review is based on the PDP-4350HD plasma TV which is the U.S. equivalent of the PDP-435HD in Australia. In addition to the differences in the onboard TV tuners (NTSC versus PAL), the PDP-435HDG comes with only one HDMI input (instead of two on the PDP-4350HD) and does not include digital audio out and iLink, which can be found on the PDP-4350HD. In Australia, it comes bundled with speakers and stand, free installation, an in-home demonstration and a 5 year manufacturer's warranty.
Design
The design of the PDP-435HD is simplistic yet elegant. A high-gloss black finish surrounds the screen, and the supplied swivel stand is silver. Other than the Pioneer logo, and the green power light on the left side of the screen, there is nothing much else to see on the front of the panel.
Pioneer includes a pair of matching black speakers with the 435HD that can be mounted vertically on the sides of the panel or left detached. The unit also comes with an outboard A/V controller, which is finished in silver with a mirrored faceplate. The controller houses all of the 435HD's connectivity and connects to the panel itself via a single 10-foot umbilical.
The remote is very well designed and laid out. It is long and slender and -- lo and behold -- completely backlit for use in darkened home theatres. There are direct access keys for all inputs, which makes switching sources a snap. The internal menu system is also simple and intuitive to navigate.
Features
The PDP-435HD's native resolution is 1,024x768, so it can display high-def and just about anything else you throw at it, including computer sources up to 1,280x768; it just converts the incoming signal to match its native resolution.
It has a fully loaded feature package. For your convenience, dual-tuner PIP (picture-in-picture) with split-screen is on tap along with independent input memories. Several different preset picture modes are also available, and selectable colour temperatures include High, Mid-High, Mid, Mid-Low, Low and Manual.
The 435HD has a number of other picture-enhancing features worth mentioning. It is one of the few plasmas with a 72-hertz refresh rate or 3:3 pull-down, which is designed to eliminate the jerky motion (film jutter) normally preserved in the 2:3 pull-down process. Other advanced picture adjustments include video noise reduction, CTI (a mode said to provide clearer colour contours) and DRE (an autocontrast circuit).
At first glance, connectivity appeared to be awesome, but we quickly realised that there are really only four A/V input slots available (in addition to dedicated slots for PC [VGA] and antenna). In other words, regardless of the number of physical jacks, you can select from only four different inputs (AV1 to AV4) in the menu system. This should be enough for most folks, especially those who use an A/V receiver for switching, but will limit some systems.
The input labeled AV1 offers a choice of component, S-Video or composite video. AV2 offers S-Video or composite video. AV3 offers HDMI, component, S-Video or composite video. AV4 covers the front-panel input, which offers a choice of S-Video or composite video. Also out front is a VGA-style analog RBG input with a minijack audio input for computers.
Performance
Overall, we were happy with the PDP-435HD's performance. An inability to produce deep blacks, along with the presence of visible low-level noise, are the Pioneer's biggest weaknesses.
Colour, on the other hand, is this plasma's strongest suit. Nearly perfect colour decoding, combined with good greyscale tracking, gives the panel extremely accurate colour reproduction if set up properly. Even without any professional calibration, the colour performance of the PDP-435HD straight out of the box is quite good compared to most other plasmas we've reviewed. The greyscale in the Low colour temperature setting was actually somewhat minus blue rather than way too blue, which is the norm from most plasma panels.
Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of this panel's performance is its inability to produce dark-enough blacks. Black areas of the picture appeared dark grey rather than inky black, robbing the image of much impact, especially when viewed in a darkened home theatre.
The panel's video processing is good, but the aforementioned Advanced setting under Pure Cinema in the Pro Adjust menu (the so-called 3:3 pull-down setting, said to reduce jutter) actually introduced more artifacts than did the Standard setting (which engages standard 2:3 pull-down). We compared the two settings during the difficult opening of Star Trek: Insurrection and saw more jagged lines and image instability with Advanced engaged; we definitely prefer the look of standard 2:3 pull-down. We also preferred to leave the other picture settings, including noise reduction, DRE, and CTI, turned off for critical viewing.
After an ISF-style calibration, we spun up some of our favourite DVD movie titles. The opening scenes of Alien revealed muddy grey-looking blacks, along with a significant amount of visible low-level noise (it looked like roiling motes in the black areas). The opening scenes of Pirates of the Caribbean looked quite good, with awesome colour saturation, but even in these relatively bright scenes, there was some visible noise. Skin tones looked really natural, a benefit of accurate colour decoding and linear greyscale tracking.
Turning to high-def, Behind Enemy Lines from our JVC deck looked mostly excellent. Again colour saturation and skin tone rendition were exceptional. There was some visible noise though, even in brighter scenes with the HD content.
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