Compare Projectors - PT-AE3000 vs. PLV-Z3000 - 5

Posted on November 13, 2013 by Art Feierman

Creative Frame Interpolation

Both The Sanyo PLV-Z3000 and the Panasonic PT-AE3000 offer CFI - creative frame interpolation. Both do it admirably well, but that's where the similarities stop.

Panasonic simply offers more. Sanyo's CFI is limited to adding one creative frame in betwen each pair of 1080p 60fps frames. The PT-AE3000 does the same thing, and both do it pretty well. You'll probably like this for sports viewing on HDTV, I do.

Where they differ, though, is that Sanyo doesn't mess with 24fps source material - which is usually movies on Blu-ray disc. Panasonic does! They add three creative frames between each pair of 24fps frames, to get you to 96fps and less motion blur.

No CFI solution is artifact free, but the Panasonic does a reasonably good job with movies, with a minimum of artifacts. Sanyo simply doesn't mess. This should count as a small advantage for the PT-AE3000. Small, because I hardly think of CFI as a key benefit, although some appreciate it more than most of us. I should note that for dealing with one type of motion blur, simply a faster frame rate suffices. For this reason the Sanyo with movies at 24fps simply repeats each frame five times - 5:5 cadence. Many projectors take 24fps to 48fps, and others to 96fps. The PLV-Z3000 is one of the very few out there that goes to 120.

Sanyo PLV-Z3000 vs. PT-AE3000 Bottom Line

Let me start by saying, I really like the PLV-Z3000. I was looking forward to it picking up an award, especially as the least expensive of the ultra high contrast (great black level performance) projectors. I also liked the extra brightness the Sanyo provides in brightest mode. The combination, however, of the black levels being the least great of the UHC projectors, combined with that slight yellow-green shift we never quite got rid of, was enough to take it out of the running.

The Panasonic PT-AE3000, on the other hand is simply an excellent, affordable high performance projector without any real flaws, and those extra features - notably its more versatile CFI, and its anamorphic lens emulation. Given, the first of those features isn't a significant thing for the vast majority of potential owners, and only a percent or two of us will use the anamorphic lens emulation.

Click to enlarge. So close. As usual, you will have to weigh the differences against your specific tastes and requirements, but all considered, despite the bargain price of the PLV-Z3000, I have to say that the Panasonic is worth the extra price. Let's say they provide roughly the same value proposition, but, with the Panasonic, you get a slightly better projector for not that much more money.