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The first consignment of Pioneer’s 1080p plasma monitor, the PDP-5000EX, have arrived in the UK. With a resolution of 1920 X 1080, the groundbreaking screen is the first Full HD plasma to go on sale in Britain, and pre-empts the arrival of 1080p Blu-ray sources and Sony’s BD-compatible PS3 games console. “It is also ideal for 1080i sources,” says Pioneer product manager Jim Catcheside. “This 1080p display is a milestone achievement that represents Pioneer’s relentless pursuit of excellence.”
The screen features an entirely new cell structure, with pixels which are approximately half the size of those on previous XGA panels. “The biggest challenge for us was to maintain brightness,” explains Hiroyuki Shibosawa, General manager of Pioneer’s product engineering division, “because the small cells also affect the discharge time and any misfiring amongst adjacent cells.”
Compared to Pioneer’s current 50 inch PDP-506XDXE, colour fidelity is improved by around eight per cent. The display incorporates updates on all of Pioneer’s trademark screen technology, including its Deep Waffle Rib Structure, for tighter, sharper detail reproduction; PUREBLACK crystal layer for improved contrast and brightness, and PURE drive 2 HD signal processing for artifact-free scaling.
In a side by side comparison with Sharp’s rival 1080p 65 inch LC-65D90U LCD screen, the new Pioneer demonstrated superior clarity with moving objects. Black level was also deeper by a factor of seven and PC text was clearly improved.
Connectivity includes two HDMI inputs, component BNC jacks, DVI (HDCP) and composite inputs. The PDP-5000EX is expected to retail for around six thousand pounds.