Like most 50in plasma tv's, the Pioneer Kuro PDP5080 high definition tv has a native resolution of 1366x768 pixels. That is not as many as competing (and usually more expensive) 1080p models. However, at the 50 inch screen dimension, the benefits of 1080p are equivocal for most sources. While many plasma tv's do an adequate job of displaying black colors, the Pioneer PDP-5080 is exceptional! This 50in HDTV produces the darkest shade of black we have ever seen or measured from a non-CRT TV, whether plasma tv, LCD, or projection tv. One flaw out of the box is its color accuracy. The TV's accuracy is not the best, especially with greens. To achieve the absolute best picture, a little tweaking is needed and can be easily tuned.

The Design

The Pioneer PDP5080, like most plasma tvs today, is very sleek visually. The structure is a high gloss black with silver along the sides, bottom, and top of the television. From the front, only the black can be seen. The Pioneer PDP-5080 also has a matching stand. It allows the speaker bar below the screen to be completely removed in case you would like to use an external speakers.

Overall

This plasma TV displays an awesome deep shade of black with great shadow detail and a sharp image with very little noise. The Pioneer Kuro hidef tv also has an antireflective screen which reduces the reflection of light. Although it is not 1080p, we don't feel this is a problem for a television this dimension. It was difficult to find a difference between the picture from this television and one of the newer 1080p tvs. Overall, we feel that this is one of the best tvs being sold today...definitely worth purchasing.