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Pioneer PDP4270XD Review

by Colin Tang
16 March 2007
Pioneer PDP4270XD Side profile

With the recent marketing push by some LCD consumer electronic giants, plasma HDTV has been in danger of being sidelined in the flat panel race. As LCD technology improved, they began to encroach on the traditional large screen market segment held by plasma panels with cheaper screens, larger sizes and higher resolutions. Fearing the worst, household plasma companies Pioneer, Panasonic and Hitachi jumped in the same boat and launched a damage limitation campaign prior to the run up to last year's end of season holidays, hoping to recapture some of the market share lost to LCD TVs.

Despite the adverse publicity and negative trend against plasma screens, the display technology still enjoys the reputation of being the best flat screen for movies and fast action material. Pioneer, class leaders in plasma displays, has spearheaded the challenge and has staked its display division future on this technology.

We are going to take an indepth look at the consumer-priced PDP4270XD in today's review. While it is only HD-ready with a resolution of 1024x768, the advanced video processing of Pioneer PDP4270XD more than makes up for its lack in screen resolution, as you shall see.

Note: This model is no longer available on the market. The latest Pioneer plasma is the Kuro PDP-LX5090.


 

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Questions/Comments

David says: 03/24/2007 - 14:14
Great site guys.

Sorry to ask a dumb question but what are your views on running in a plasma and how would you rec going about it on this set?

Also - other forums suggest the dirty screen goes over time - therefore any ideas what this might actually be?

thanks
Kerim says: 03/26/2007 - 15:04
"Dirty screen" is a big problem, especially it is very annoying on football. Do you think this defect is valid for all 427(0)'s, but some people see it and some don't.
What about fading over time, is it possible?
Colin Tang says: 03/30/2007 - 06:53
@ David
Nothing wrong with this question. Vincent recently finished an article on screen burn and ways of preventing it, so you'll get your answer there.

I don't know really. Heard rumours that `dirty screen' was caused by poor bonding of glass with screen filter. I am not aware that Panasonic has issued a formal explanation on this. Does it go away with time? or do users just become tolerant to it? Is there a way to measure this improvement? I'd be wary about internet explanations that can't be reproduced or tested scientifically.
Colin Tang says: 03/30/2007 - 07:02
Yes Kerim. It is very likely that some people actually can't see the problem but to be honest, the visual `handicap' may not be a bad thing. (I bet some companies are hedging their bets on this to avoid a PR disaster)

I can't comment about the extent of the problem but you and I know there are a few people out there with this problem. Rather than speculate about the causes and solution, I feel we should concentrate on bringing this up with Pioneer.
Paul says: 03/30/2007 - 09:37
Hi,

Have you got any reivews for the Pioneer PDP-427XD, I have heard that this is one of the best Plasma's ever made by Pioneer?

Thanks
David says: 04/01/2007 - 11:15
Hi
I am very close to buying a 427XD but am concerned about your comments regarding the quality of the black on the 4270. This is the only review where I have seen it mentioned. Do you know if the problem also occurs on the 427XD?

Thanks
Colin Tang says: 04/04/2007 - 05:43
@ David...

We report as we see it, subjectively and objectively. Dark lab measurements are impossible with our current setting but the black level measured on the Pioneer is consistently poorer than the commercial Panny and the new TH42PX70 (and even the Sony and Sharp LCDs).

It's not a problem...just a fact. For that money the blacks and to a lesser extent the greyscale is what you sacrifice for accurate colours and superb video processing.