Well, the problem in BF3 was a chicken and the egg problem ... no recon would take the SOFLAM unless an engineer had the Javelin, and vice-versa.
With the PLD, there's a better chance a Recon will have it (than they would the SOFLAM) because it's useful for other purposes ... zeroing out their scope, seeing enemies with the night vision view of the PLD. So, the new laser guided launchers might be useful for the Engineer to carry.