When a knowledgeable person states that these rods aren't forged, less knowledgeable people read this, and assume they must be cast, and hence, they're POS's, etc. Then when these less knowledgeable folks go spreading the gospel that the Toyota UZ family is a POS because they “heard” it has cast rods as stock, it gives the engine and the PF technology a bad name.
Especially when they start comparing the UZ to, for example, the mighty 2JZ-GTE which everybody "knows" has an indestructible bottom end with forged crank and forged rods. But, in reality the 2JZ-GTE’s rods are also powder forged, although Toyota refers to them as "hot forged", which, I suppose, may sound more impressive to some than “powder forged”. I wonder how many 600+ HP Supra owners realise that their stock connecting rods are made of powdered metal?
Personally, I have no issue with the technology nor the metallurgy of powdered metal forging, and believe it will eventually replace conventional forging. I think it’s great engineering when a manufacturer can mix up a cocktail of different metal powders and produce a new alloy with completely predictable and repeatable characteristics. Many very high performance engines today are using PF rods and other components in preference over conventional forging.
In regards to the UZ rod's lack of elasticity, that's simply a characteristic of the powdered metal cocktail that was used. If Toyota had wanted more elasticity in the rod, it should have been a simple matter to produce it. For their own reasons, Toyota must believe a rigid rod is a good thing (well shoot, don't we all?, hehehe)
p.s. It’s a little known fact that Niki Lauda won the 1984 Formula 1 World Championship with a Tag (Porsche) engine that used PF rods. That year, between Lauda and his teammate Prost (who placed 2nd) that Tag engine won 12 of the 16 races. That was 24 years ago, and the technology has only gotten better since then.