If I was a fan of the Sanyo PLV-Z4 then I am an avid devotee of the PLV-Z5 as well. In terms of practical viewing – with a progressive source component – the differences are minimal. Calibration is closer to accurate out of the box – and that is something we’ve been bugging manufacturers about for some time. If you want to grab a projector that can be set up and used without calling a calibrator to tweak it, then this may be your box. Colors absolutely popped off the screen and black levels were very respectable with the lamp and iris modes set correctly.

HDTV: DiscoveryHD Equator
Anyone who reads my reviews knows that I am a sucker for the DiscoveryHD channel. It’s excellent footage and finely detailed source material makes for some very interesting photos. In a show called Equator, I found excellent shots of wildlife that were both colorful and filled with deep black levels and gradients of every kind. If this doesn’t test the merits of a projector I’m not sure what will. The results were stunning – as even my limited digital photos will reveal. Even images in motion maintained a crisp look and jaggies were nowhere to be found, though the source was 1080i and likely preprocessed for a more accurate rendering on HD displays.

HDTV: ER
ER isn’t a show I watch anymore, but it happened to be on in high definition so I grabbed a few photos. This show isn’t particularly crisp or colorful – certainly not like CSI: Miami or the content found on DiscoveryHD, but it does reveal what the projector had to “say” about the common TV show. There were plenty of deep, black areas on the screen – as is the case with most indoor-set shows. Facial features came through well and hair – a place where detail is easily lost – was quite discernable.

HDTV: Shark
CBS’ Shark is a recent favorite of mine, though I’ve been a big fan of James Woods’ acting and voice acting for some time. The show is more colorful than most indoor, fixed-set shows and features a lot of detail and movement. It’s a pleasure to watch on the Sanyo and I was quickly pulled into the show when all I was really trying to do (at the time) was snap off some example photos – hey, what if a great shot came at the end!

Conclusion

The Sanyo PLV-Z5 is a great projector – and so was the PLV-Z4. Improvements are subtle but nice. I would not recommend anyone with last year’s model go out and purchase an upgrade, but if you’ve been holding out, the low cost of entry almost makes it a no-brainer. Typically, I’d recommend scooping up last year’s model if you can find any, but at a street price of $1500 or less (as of the time of this writing) it’s hard to find a significant enough discount on the PLV-Z4. Excellent color out of the box, vivid pictures with incredible detail, and minimized interpixel spacing make this 3LCD projector a leading choice in a sea of possibilities. Is it revolutionary? No, but that just attests to how far ahead of the curve Sanyo was in it’s initial introduction of this platform.

About Sanyo North America
SANYO Group's corporate philosophy is the guiding principle in accomplishing the key management policy of ensuring products and services that are indispensable in creating harmony between people and the environment. SANYO's priorities are: Customer Satisfaction and Harmonizing with the Environment. SANYO's digital technology and core competence (the source of our competitiveness) supply the products and services that generate joy, excitement, and impact.