With enhanced ASIC video processing and scaling, a host of advanced picture controls and a 2-way 36W surround sound speaker system, this plasma HDTV brings a cinema-style experience home to your living room. Learn more about a complete Pioneer home theater solution for your home. Learn more about HDTV.
Average Customer Rating:
4.9 out of 5
Rating Breakdown
(16 reviews)
5 stars
(15)
4 stars
(0)
3 stars
(1)
2 stars
(0)
1 star
(0)
15 of 16 (94%) customers would recommend this product to a friend.
Customer Reviews for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Review 1 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
Amazing picture quality!
11/26/2008
By Chris83from Hawaii
Picture Quality
5.05
Sound Quality
3.05
Features
5.05
What's great about it: Picture quality, very customizable. What's not so great: Expensive
"This tv is without a doubt the biggest improvement I have made to my home theater setup. The picture is just phenominal and it has enough settings to tweak that will satisfy even the most critical viewers. The speakers are good for a tv, but I would still recommend a dedicated surround system. The anti glare coating works fairly well as it exhibits far less glare than my old plasma. It has tons of inputs and outputs and switches between sources quickly. I would wholeheartedly recommend this tv to anyone!"
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
Is this product used primarily for business?:
No
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Review 2 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Top 500 Contributor
Customer Rating
5.05
Great picture at a decent price
11/13/2008
By Iamapunimfacefrom Drexel Hill, PA
Picture Quality
5.05
Sound Quality
5.05
Features
5.05
What's great about it: Amazing picture quality What's not so great: still a little pricey for the average Joe
"The Pioneer Elite series notwithstanding...this may be the best picture available...it is still a little expensive for my liking...but that should change in the near future..."
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 3 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Top 100 Contributor
Customer Rating
5.05
absolutely the best
11/12/2008
By quinton88from joplin mo
Picture Quality
4.05
Sound Quality
5.05
Features
4.05
What's great about it: best picture in the world What's not so great: price
"this is going to be the last tv you will ever have to purchase. The picture that it gives off is absolutely AMAZING! But, do get the good picture you will have to have the hd channels or otherwise the screen images are real pixelated, which is no good at all. If you want to dress to impress with what you have in your house, and surpass the jone's get this tv you will never regret it."
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 4 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
3.05
Poor Image with Standard Definition TV
11/08/2008
By SteveThfrom Rosemount, MN
Picture Quality
3.05
Sound Quality
4.05
Features
3.05
What's great about it: HD Images are Excellent What's not so great: Standard Images are not so great
"I purchased this TV, Pioneer PDP-5020FD, and I’m returning it due to poor picture quality. I know that sounds crazy, but read on. I have both the Panasonic TH-50PZ700U and the Pioneer Kuro PDP-5020FD. The Panasonic does a much much better job upconverting standard 480i cable TV compared to the Pioneer. With HD TV or BluRay pictures the difference between the two is slight, but the Pioneer is better. I’ve discussed this with Pioneer tech support, Ultimate Electronics, and Geek-Squad. Everyone is telling me the Pioneer should produce a much better picture all of the time, but I am not seeing that. It’s true, if all you watch is HD TV or BluRay you will notice a slightly better picture, but with standard TV/cable, the Panasonic does a much better job producing a cleaner image with less grain and less artifacts. My kids and my wife noticed this right away. Everyone was expecting the Pioneer to produce a much better image, but sadly it did not. I did some very controlled tests and hooked up both TVs to the exact same equipment using the exact same cables, power sources, lighting, everything. I checked through all of the menus, changed options as recommended by the various on-line forums, but in every case the Panasonic produced a noticeably better image than the Pioneer when viewing standard 480i cable TV. Bottom line, if you spend most of the time watching BluRay or HD TV then consider the Pioneer, but if you watch a variety things I’d highly recommend looking at a TV in the $1000 to $2000 range, such as the Panasonic plasamas. In my opinon spending the extra money on the Pioneer is not worth it and for most regular TV viewing you will experience a poor image on the Pioneer as compared to the Panasonic 700U/800U line of plasmas."
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:No
Is this product used primarily for business?:
No
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Review 5 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
Best TV Available Today...
10/28/2008
By Anonymous Reviewerfrom Stillwater, OK
Picture Quality
5.05
Features
5.05
What's great about it: Superior Image, Awesome Blacks, Great HD Processing, True 24 FPS (72Hz) What's not so great: The price! Lol. :-) This TV proves you do get what you pay for.
"I own the previous model to this TV, the PDP-5010. I knew the new model was coming but the price was right and I took the plunge. First off, yes, this TV is expensive. Second, it is worth every penny.
Now if you are just looking to upgrade to a 'next generation' display device such as an LCD or Plasma and see them at your local Walter World for $500 to $1000 dollars and scoff at anyone who might spend more, I do not mean to alienate you. Those TVs are a major step from your current tube/analog set and you will love the aesthetics and space saving they afford. Simply watching movies in their widescreen glory as well as all the new HD content available in prime time will be wonderful.
But, if you are someone who appreciates a more refined and accurate image on your TV and are willing to spend as much for a TV as a decent used car for Jr., read on.
If you do as much reading as I do then you have seen review after review praising not only the Pioneer Elite Kuro but the standard Kuro as well as being the best TV available on the market. 'Best' being defined by many criteria but let's touch the ones I find important.
Black Level - This TV has a black level like no other. Period. Blacks look black, not some light or washed out gray. This is very important if you want to watch any movie or video content as it was intended. The black level in this TV gives everything depth, realism and allows all other colors to pop off the screen with an accuracy and realism that is hard to compare. I actually have a hard time at the movie theatre now because the black level of their DLP projectors is not as good as the Pioneer.
Color Accuracy - Out of the box this TV presents colors that are accurate and closer-to-real-life better than anything I have ever seen. A friend of mine had his calibrated and it looks better, yes, but out of the box this TV is simply amazing. I am going to save a few bucks and treat myself to a calibration as a birthday present. I do not feel like I am missing anything, but calibration brings out the last 5% this TV can produce in amazing picture quality.
SD Presentation - Let's face it, we still have to watch some standard definition content whether it is DVDs we already own or broadcast TV. I have compared the Pioneer Kuro to many TVs and the processor in the Pioneer does the best job I have seen to rendering SD material on the bigger screen.
True 24 FPS Display - This may or may not be important to you but if you are a person who can see shudder from a typical movie using 3:2 pull down to 60 frames a second then you will appreciate this. The Pioneer Kuro switches to 72 Hz when presented 24 FPS material. This means each frame of the 24 fps material is displayed 3 times, not your typical 2,3,2,3...etc. Smoooooth! Lol. Best way to put it. The picture off of a good Blu Ray (or HD DVD) is fluid and spectacular.
I wait and rent/buy more Blu Ray movies and stay at home much more now. The seat is clean, the view is spectacular and the popcorn is fresh. My girlfriend, friends and family always comment on how much better this TV looks than other TVs (their own included) and even the movie theatre. Yes, people notice. And yes, you do tend to become a picture snob after owning and spending time with one of these TVs.
I wanted another plasma TV for my bedroom and shopping for one was painful. No matter what I looked at, it was a compromise to the Pioneer Kuro sitting in my living room. You say "Just buy another Pioneer my friend!” To this I agree but it was just not in the budget. You have to have money for White Castle burgers too you know! (Anyone want to open one of those up in Stillwater, OK? Give me a shout!) I finally settled on Panasonic 42 inch plasma, a 42PZ85U. I purchased this TV from the same Best Buy where I got my 50 inch Pioneer Kuro. (Props out to Chris and the gang in Edmond, OK at the Quail Springs Mall location) The Panasonic is a great TV in its own right but I always find myself comparing it to the Pioneer. If the Pioneer Kuro was a perfect 10, the Panasonic is an 8.75 and my heart longs for the small but definitely noticeable upgrade.
When finances allow I do believe the Panasonic will find its way to the guest room, the current PDP-5010 will go to the master bedroom and a new 60" Pioneer Kuro will find its home in the living room.
Satisfied? You bet! Would I recommend this to a friend? All the time! I don't regret my purchase. Every time I sit down to a High Definition TV show or pop in the latest Blu Ray I simply smile ear to ear and listen to my girlfriend say "This really does look better than the movie theatre""
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 6 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
No Regrets
10/20/2008
By architect1from Tallahassee FL
Picture Quality
5.05
Sound Quality
4.05
Features
5.05
What's great about it: Superior Viewing What's not so great: no auto volume dampening
"When I bought our last TV, it was a huge tube (fifteen years ago) and the best in it's class. The purchase paid off, as it was current until we replaced it with the Kuro 50". Our Kuro purchase was about a month ago, and no remorse. Great picture and capabilities. I would recomend it as the best around."
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 7 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
THE BEST PLASMA AVAILABLE**
09/20/2008
By Stallion0422from Lansing, MI
Picture Quality
5.05
Sound Quality
5.05
Features
5.05
What's great about it: Picture crisp and sharp. Best blacks available. Best available hookups and Best looking television. What's not so great: NONE
"I was in the market for a Plasma, just because I had donoe lots of research and found that although LCD's are great Plasmas are lighter and provide deeper blacks. I had been a fan of Pioneer's products for a longtime and NEVER been disappointed. I saw this Pioneer on the wall at best buy and compared it to ever tv on the wall. Now keep in mind that even though the televisions look excellent in store doesn't mean that it will at home. I mean Bestbuy does a great job making sure each television on diplay has all the right color setting and screen setup. But When you are shopping if you know anything about Contrast and color ratio you can get a great ideo of what the television is capable of. I purchased this Plasma after reading reviews online and EVERY REVIEW this pioneer or if not this one the 60" model #1. All the reviews read that it had the best deep black (which matter alot) and the best sharpness, but the only con was price. HA. Worth every penny. If you want the BEST Plasma purchase this one. Movies and HD programming never looked better."
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 8 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
Great Buy
09/07/2008
By bby05
Picture Quality
5.05
Sound Quality
4.05
Features
4.05
What's great about it: Awesome Picture What's not so great: Haven't found one
"Really impressed on the picture quality. One of the best purchases I've made."
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 9 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
Worth the Wait
08/04/2008
By snowtigrfrom Southern Calif
What's great about it: Spectacular picture What's not so great: Speakers could be beter
"Spectacular picture, 4 HDMI INPUTS & Home Media Gallery Network Connectivity make the New Pioneer KURO 5020FD and excellent choice for the Home entertainment center.
If your cable box is Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300HD DVR and you notice a delay in switching channels or loss of sound - THE PROBLEM is NOT THE KURO 5020FD -
The problem is the Scientific Atlanta Explorer 8300HD DVR - the solution is to lock the 8300 to 1080i and not use "auto select""
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 10 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Top 1000 Contributor
Customer Rating
5.05
Best TV on the market NO MATTER WHAT
08/02/2008
By HinduPimp23from Springfield, IL
What's great about it: Black color is the blackest, color is phenomonal What's not so great: weak in green on if watch Reg tv - WITH HD CHANNEL GREEN COLOR IS GREAT
"THE BEST TV I HAVE EVER SEEN AND BOUGHT. ITS A MUST. ALOT OF OPITIONS AND HOOK A BLU-RAY TO IT AND WOW. IT WAS 4 HDMI INPUTS AND ALOT OFF CONNECTIONS AND REMOTE CONTROL IS WHITE FOR A BLACK TV WHICH IS ONLY THE BIGGEST CON.
OVERALL THE BEST YOU WILL NOT GO WRONG GTD."
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 11 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
Amazing
07/29/2008
By bondurantfrom Birmingham, Al
What's great about it: Incredible picture What's not so great: None
"Purchased the 5010fd in May and has been worth every penny. Researched for a couple weeks, read reviews, went by local stores and asked the question "What is the best plasma television?" The answer was always quick "Pioneer". Matched with a Sony BluRay player and it only got better. Dan at Bestbuy calibrated (highly recommend) to fine tune an already unbelievable picture. The picture gets better than what you see on the show room floor. This television costs more than the rest, but the quality of materials Pioneer uses to make these tvs becomes obvious. If you are looking for the best, sharpest picture from a television, the easy answer is Pioneer."
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 12 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
Great TV
07/21/2008
By Alexis21
What's great about it: Outstanding Picture Quality
"This is a great tv. I have had it for 8months now and I have no regrets buying it. I have researched alot of HD tv's and I feel that this one was great. The picture quailty is perfect and no matter where you are sitting the tv still looks sharp. I would advise other consumers to buy this tv!"
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
0 of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Review 13 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
Worth the $$
07/20/2008
By sportsdocfrom Ventura County, CA
What's great about it: Picture, clarity, sharp blacks, minimal if any glare What's not so great: slow to switch form HDMI to HDMI...but worth the wait
"Purchased this TV to replace my 52" DLP...I didn't think it would be that different....boy, was I WRONG! This TV is incredible, well worth the $$."
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 14 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
Simply the BEST!
07/13/2008
By Grubrunnerfrom Richmond, Virginia
What's great about it: Too many to list. Read below.... What's not so great: Cons, huh? ..... what cons???
"First and formost, let me say that I waited a whole month following my purchase to write this review, as this has given me decent time to review it properly. Let me also say that I'm no professional when it comes to these types of reviews. I'm just an ordinary Joe like you, so take my review for what it is. This, the 2008 models of the Pioneer® KURO™ Pioneer® ELITE® , are the final generation of plasmas that Pioneer will manufacture themseleves. In 2009 and beyond, Panasonic will manufacture the actual panels.... not Pioneer. So I'm glad I've picked up the last year of plasmas that Pioneer have a hand in as nobody really knows what the future Pioneers will look like under Panasonic's hands. Ok... I reasearched for two whole months before I decided on the Pioneer® KURO™ PDP-5020FD. I had my heart set on the Pioneer® ELITE® KURO™ PRO-111FD, however, just about everone in the "know" I spoke with told me that the $1000.00 price difference was not justifiable. They were correct... I've compared the Pioneer® KURO™ PDP-5020FD, side-by-side, to the top models from Panasonic, Sony, Samsung and Sharp. IMHO, the Pioneer wins hands down in EVERY category. Installation, whether on a floor stand or wall-mount is a breeze. The picture quality, all-round, is simply amazing to put conservatively.... the blacks are mindboggling. With a Blu-ray Disc Player hooked up [I'm using the Panasonic DMP-BD30K] the picture quality is breathtasking! HD channels through Cable/Satelite was very, very good. I, very recently, recently switched to Verizon FIOS and the picture is outstanding..... no comparison to Cable/Satelite whatsoever. But, that's for another review.... Sound quality from the OEM sound bar is EXCELLENT and more than edequate for every day use, if you're not using external speakers. The user manual is loaded with everything you want to know and is layed-out very clearly and easy to read and understand. Remote is very stylish and has very good range and excellent functions. The 4 Independent HDMI® 1.3 Inputs is a huge plus! The Room Light Sensor for Automatic Picture Adjustment is very functional and makes a noticeable difference. The Advanced Picture-In-Picture function with 4 positions is a nice touch for sport lovers. The Home Media Gallery Network Connectivity is great if it's something you'll put to use. Ali-in all, this is a brilliant plasma and I would recommend it to anyone and everyone in a heartbeat! The only downfall of this TV I can put my finger on is the price. It's probably priced about $1000.00 or thereabouts above the [supposed] "top" plasmas but I have no regrets! Thanks for reading if you've managed to get this far."
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 15 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
Pioneer makes the best TV's, go Elite if you can
07/08/2008
By RaNd0mV1ct1Mfrom D.C.
What's great about it: Best black levels, beats any other manufacturers What's not so great: NONE
"If you are in the market for a 50"+ plasma, you cannot go any better than a Pioneer or Pioneer Elite. The Kuro delivers some of the best black levels out there. All Pioneers actually come closer to ISF calibration status right out of the box than any other television. I highly recommend a TV Calibration (Geek Squad offers this) to optimize the TV to your room for day/night regardless of model or size. Just hook up a Pioneer Blu-ray and you are all set to ROCK. Best investment I've ever made, hands down."
Would you recommend this product to a friend?:Yes
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Review 16 for Pioneer KURO 50" Class 1080p Flat-Panel Plasma HDTV
Customer Rating
5.05
Incredible Picture
07/07/2008
By tehellerfrom Miami, FL
What's great about it: Picture (& Sound) Quality; Deep Blacks; Very Attractive and Thin Casing What's not so great: None
"Amazing Picture. I was also considering the Panasonic Plasma, Sony LCD and Samsung LCD. I am very happy with my decision. This blows away the "competition.""
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