Consumer Reviews

Honestly? I’ve been researching Plasma’s and LCD’s for about a solid year now. 1: LCD’s are about 5 years behind Plasma TV’s so if your local salesman tries telling you otherwise just compare pictures. The fact you notice Plasma’s are VISIBLY deeper in color and crisper should give you a real good clue. Where as Plasma TV’s are about a year from reaching true black levels, LCD’s are easily 3 to 5 years away still. So I’ve fully decided on a Plasma. Not to mention overall, prices are now much more competitive with Plasma’s.

Secondly, In comparing Plasma TV’s two brands consistently rate among the top 2. The Pioneer Kuro and the Panasonic Viera. The lates Kuro Elite 50 inch (Soon to put out a 46 and 42 inch model which is more preferrable to me.) is rated as having almost near black level. The JUST receently released Panny alledgedly is even SLIGHTLY better by all color testing measures. I think it was released like last week and isn’t even on the U.S Market yet. So anyway, I read this as I was about to buy the Panny 46 inch 800u NOT 80u. The Panny 800u is extremely highly rated and at a much more reasonable price than the entirely over priced Pioneer which caters to the upper income bracket. Silly if you ask me. Same technowledgy just high priced by a mile. So that narrowed my search to a Panny.

3: So I’m about to buy it when I read a just released report on next years models. It appears to be rumored both Panny and Pioneer intend to or have reached ACTUAL TRUE black levels. So that stopped me in my tracks. Why pay over 2 grand when next years Models will be far superior. The argument is they will always be better but from my research, with Digital the new standard in Feb and many needing new TV’s, there will be an even bigger push to get out the most improved model possible next year to attract the new consumer. (Which is sorta bogus cause all you need is a cable box and wallah digital) but many will be completely duped into thinking they need a new TV. So with that new push for the latest tech, recent rumors and money conerns, I personally recommend waiting a year.

BUT, if you buy a TV? I myself recommend the 46 to 50 inch Panny Viera 800u. It’s been consistently rated higher than the newer 850u and visually, I myself see no real difference to the Pioneer which is at least 1200 more.

Finally took the plunge and got rid of the gigantic 50″ rear projection Mitsubishi – which was a wonderful non-HD television, frankly – and moved to thin and plasma. Wow, what a savings of space! In a small house there is a huge difference between an “old style” television and a newer, thin appliance. And oh what a difference high definition makes! It is like moving from an old VGA monitor to a modern computer display.

All of the wow about Pioneer’s ability to show black is simply true, and that is perhaps the primary reason for buying this television. In the store, when looking at twenty or more LCD and plasma models on a wall, this one clearly stood head and shoulders above the rest. I had an experience similar to many other reviewers: my unsuspecting wife walked up to me in the store and before she could speak I asked her to quickly look at all the units on the wall (which displayed the same image, of course) and she immediately picked the Pioneer. Since we both wanted the best image we could get for under three grand it wasn’t hard to convince her that this was the model for us.

My only complaint, and it is minor, is that I will need to buy a wireless LAN adapter and probably velcro it to the back of the television and run a power cord to the floor in order to use the file sharing capability provided. I really want to use it as a home media display unit so this is an inconvenience and a little extra cost and work.

The plasma puts out a fair amount of heat – which, in our small house in colder months of the year is just fine. Have not noticed any buzzing and I am highly sensitive to electronic noise.

This is a great plasma and I would highly suggest you get one before they are gone for good. I’m sure you know the details by now, incredible black levels that provide a popping image with unrivaled clarity. I won’t repeat all of that but just know that if you can find this TV I would recommend you get it.

The menus could not be easier to use and the so called ‘buzz’ that people hear is very minor an is a property of plasmas. If you don’t go looking for it, you will never hear it! Movie mode is your best bet for the most natural picture and I find game mode to be a close 2nd, if you desire a slightly cooler picture. Out of the box, movie mode is around 6200k which is too warm (yellowish) for most people. Game is around (7500k) which is a little too cool, but some like that and it may be the setting for your. Otherwise, after performing the proper break-in and once you get to about 300+ total hours on the set I would recommend getting ControlCAL and modifying the RGB highs/lows to bring the movie grayscale up to 6500k. Once this is done, use movie mode for everything with Pure Cinema standard or off for the most natural picture. Use game mode with Pure Cinema set to advance for anything you want ‘whiter.’ This works because PC:Advance does not hold the adjusted grayscale. Better yet, if you can afford it, get a calibration from an ISF calibrator to bring out the potential this set has to offer.

Blu-rays are great, HD cable is great (for the few shows that provide a good PQ), SD is decent but honestly, why get a Kuro if you’re going to watch SD? Gaming is perfect on the 5020, my experience being with the PS3. Also, if you don’t have a home theater system the sound from the Kuro is the highest quality audio you can get from a flat screen. As with most plasmas, you can sit almost 90 deg to the screen and still make out the image. Try that with an LCD, the viewing area is great making this a must if you have furniture to the sides. The anti-glare coating is also extremely effective. The only downside, extremely minor at that, is that switching between photos and videos with the Home Media Gallery can be kind of slow. Not a big deal but just a bit of an annoyance if you were to frequently use that feature. If you’re like me, you don’t even use it though and use the PS3 instead. :)

I could write a book on every detail of this set but just know it is a great one. I am yet to find anything to dissapoint me. The PQ is only surpassed by that of the Kuro Elite, but not by much. Feel free to ask me any question about this great TV.

A side note on the shipping. It left Amazon on a Thursday and was scheduled to arrive the next Thursday. On Monday I got a call saying it would be delivered on Tuesday, 2 days early. It was shipped via Pilot, which went flawless, to a local delivery company that arrived right on time. The white glove delivery really is a great deal as most online retailers will charge $250+ for that. They inspect the set to make sure there is no damage, which is very nice when you are spending this much $.

If you’re like me, you’ve been vacillating back and forth over what flat screen TV to buy for months. You’ve read every consumer website and TV/AV/blog trying to make an informed decision. You may have worn out your car tires and patience by visiting all the electronic stores and dept. store tv aisles while trying to artfully dodge those commission-hungry sales drones. Were you able to make an informed, intelligent decision while looking at side-by-side demo’s of poorly set-up flatscreens with less-than-stellar demo video feeds all while trying to tune out the salesperson’s inane technobabble?

Let me make it easy for you: If you want the best picture quality available, than your list begins and ends with a Pioneer PDP! Period.

Samsung and Panasonic make very nice plasma’s. Their top-rated models are superior to anything else on the market, save one Manufacturer’s sets (guess who’s? LOL!). Just so you don’t think I’m biased, I personally own a new TH-42PX80 Panasonic that does Master BR duty just fine, but it’s no Pioneer. In the very recent past, there was a considerable price difference between the Panasonic and the Pioneer, which swayed many budget-conscious buyers away from the Pioneer. Now that the price on the 50″ PDP-5020 has nose-dived to within $100-$200 of the highly-rated Panasonic TH-50PZ800, it’s a no-brainer. The Pio is clearly superior. Don’t believe me? You DID do your research (as above), right?

Worried about the 2/12/09 corporate press release announcement that Pioneer’s getting out of the PDP business? Pioneer is NOT going under, it’s just re-aligning itself with the harsh realities of the depressed global economy. Your warrantee will be honored and US Consumer Law ensures parts will be available for sometime to come. On top of that, Pioneer’s (along with Pansonic) have the top consumer reliabilty rating (see Consumer Reports Mag for more info).

Now…if you need a bigger set, the waters become muddied. Right now, the pricing on 60″ Pioneer PDP’s (PDP-6020 and Elite PRO-151) have not YET dropped like the 50″ models. While I’d still recommend the 60″ Pio over the 58″ Panny, the Panny is available for a $1k or more off of the Pio price. That makes the Pioneer hardly a bargain, but you do get what you pay for. You could wait it out and hope the prices will drop. It all depends on supply and demand.

Still with me? OK, stop reading this drivel and click on the “add to cart” button, LOL! Seriously, Amazon’s customer service, along with the “enhanced” (formerly “white glove”) delivery via CEVA is excellent. I just got my Pio this past weekend from them (as well as my Panny just a month ago) and I can’t say enough about them.

What are you waiting for? Get yours while they’re still available! At this price level, supplies won’t last long….and when they’re gone, they’re gone!

P.S., Add the Pioneer BDP-51FD BonusView Blu-ray Player for a reference-level video system at bargain pricing. I liked ‘em so much, I bought two: one for the Kuro, one for the Panny.

Enjoy!