NEC PXT-32XD3 Plasma TV

The feature set is fairly standard and the connection options are somewhat limited.  Combined with the poor sound and image quality, this is a television best avoided considering there is so much better out there for only slightly more cost.

From a design standpoint, the 32XD3 has a lot going for it.  With rounded edges and a piano black finish, it is certainly an attractive unit. However, the connections in the rear are a little difficult to use and extremely limited.  There is only one HDMI, one Component and one Composite connection as well as a D-Sub port for PC.  Far from “future proof”, this is below the standard. The integrated HD tuner (in a standard definition television) is one of the unit’s strong points and works well.

While the panel has a native 480p (NTSC) resolution, we performed tests at the standard 576i/p (PAL) which involved viewing various DVDs. The result was not promising.  While the unit has excellent black levels, the colours required some tweaking to reach acceptable levels and even then they weren’t great.  There was also contrast stepping and pixelation on text and curved edges.  The image was fraught with noise and texture discolouration as well.  While the motion was handled quite well, the multitude of problems was far beyond the issues usually associated with DVD playback.

High definition resolutions of 720p and 1080i/p are supported but don’t do much other than highlight the shortcomings of the unit.  The problems are amplified with high definition content, particularly the interpolation from 1080 line resolutions. Using the Playstation 3 main screen as an example, the text was fuzzy and hard to read. Reducing the sharpness level to fix the apparent over-sharpening only resulted in the text looking even more out of focus.  In-game graphics were also noticeably pixelated.

Connecting a PC to the unit, we found another weakness.  At the maximum supported resolution of 1024x768, text is difficult to read and most elements a little distorted.  There is also a marked flyscreen effect which is rather distracting.

As if the unit didn’t have enough problems to deal with, the sound is also poor. There is a major loss of definition in the audio, particularly with the balance of score, effects and voice when watching movies.  Using the sound options we weren’t able correct the problems which ranged from muddy bass to tinny treble and major distortions at higher volumes.

It seems as though we are being rather harsh on this unit considering it appears to be intended as a budget model but in the current market, the place for standard definition televisions has diminished. With sub $1,000 LCD televisions becoming more common, we feel obligated to question its legitimacy as a contender.