They say "modern" PDPs don't need to be broken in, but, to be on the safe side, I Googled then DL'd a "break-in" video (sorry, can't remember the details) and burned to DVD. The idea is to "lock" the phosphors from burn-in from day-to-day use (if you watch TV with excessive still elements, e.g. CNN with the constant lower-third crawl banner, you will still get burn-in, or play games; I've even seen it on LCDs, although, unlike PDPs, they're "curable".)
As to calibration, there are a fair number of BD/DVDs out there - although simplified, the Disney WOW! gets good marks. If you want a quick setup that may be quite accurate, you can "cheat" and use this -
http://reviews.*******************.com/panasonic-plasma-tv/panasonic-u50-picturesettings
Just be aware, that as the PDP (or any monitor, for that matter) ages and approaches half-life, it should be re-calibrated either by professional or using a BD/DVD kit (for accurate color balance, it MUST come with the blue filter.)
How's the TV so far? Our 50" 720p DLP is developing dead pixels on a weekly basis, so am in need of a "cheap" replacement (just dumped a few $$$ on the sound system!) I do not need Network capabilities, as my BDP (and AVR) handles that fine, thank you very much. I *am* a fan of 3D, but I'll save that for when I get my projector and screen combo (some great bargains out there compared to flat panel displays.) The Panny looked good at Sam's and actually had a better picture/less noticeable pixels than the Samsung (for $100 more) next to it.
Here's hoping ALL the pixels "die" - hard to talk XYL into the expense when she doesn't notice them!
