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| Brand: Pioneer
Category: CE
Buy New: Too low to display
New (8)
Avg. Customer Rating:  28 reviews
Color: Gloss Black
Media: Electronics
Batteries Included: Yes
Display Size: 50
Shipping Weight (lbs): 74.5
Dimensions (in): 3.7 x 48.5 x 28.5
MPN: PDP-5020FD
Model: PDP-5020FD
UPC: 012562887098
EAN: 0012562887098
Release Date: June 12, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Customer Reviews:
 Buyer Beware! August 9, 2008
8 out of 45 found this review helpful
I've been through 5 defective pioneer sets in the last 4 weeks. The first two, 5010fd's buzzed so loud I could hear it from the other room! I then decided to go with the newer 5020fd and when my tv arrived from amazon, it wouldn't even turn on! When I got my replacement set it had dead pixels right out of the box, but I wanted to at least keep it until another replacement came. When my third 5020fd came it wouldn't even turn on either so I decided I would still keep the set with a few dead pixels until I got a proper replacement. So they put that tv back on my stand, plugged it in and it wouldn't turn on now! The power outlets were working, so that's a pretty big quality control issue Pioneer has. I really wanted this tv because of all the great things I've heard, but now I'm in disbelief. We only took the tv off the stand, then put it back on and it wouldn't turn on anymore! Now if I could get a replacement that was perfect out of the box I would say no, because if I ever move the tv I would run the risk of being stuck with a $4000 piece of junk. REFUND!!!!!!!
 Pioneer....The Undisputed King of Plasma HDTV!!! July 22, 2008
7 out of 8 found this review helpful
Here is the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.....according to my observations and general tests. I ordered this Pioneer plasma tv from Amazon on July 16th and promplty received it via CEVA trucking on July 18th. As soon as the delivery guys opened up the packaging and, to my immediate delight, I noticed that this plasma set comes with the stand pre-installed. At this time, I do not have any intentions of putting this plasma set on the wall; for those of you who want to install it on the wall please keep this in mind as you will now have to take the plasma stand off - screws and all. The manual states that all PDP-5020 sets have the stand pre-installed.
*This plasma set is replacing a Samsung 56 inch DLP**
Let the fun times begin: After turning on this set, it was apparent that this Pioneer PDP-5020 is the real deal. The black level is so deep and dark that I was left speechless for quite a few minutes. I tuned in to Cinemax HD and watched The Heartbreak Kid for 10 minutes.....WOW,WOW,WOW! The colors (popped) and the deep contrast made for a spectacular viewing of this movie. Ben Stiller's black shirt was really pitch black and the views of the ocean looked so realistic I was beside myself. I switched between other HD satellite stations and was very pleased with the results.
Next, I hooked up the PDP-5020 to my trusty Panasonic blu-ray BDMP-30 to check out some of my blu-ray movies. Since I was so impressed with the Satellite HD broadcasts, you can now imagine my excitement as I turned my attention to Blu-ray. I wanted to test out a few of the worst looking blu-rays I had: Tomb Raider (read the Amazon reviews), Stargate (the dark scenes), Black Hawk Down ( alot of film grain ), and Big Fish ( alot of film grain).
Believe it or not, the Tomb Raider Blu ray looked fantastic on this plasma. There was hardly any film grain visible on this plasma set at all, as I only sit 8 feet away. I could not believe how good it looked - a solid 8 out of 10 for the blu-ray. The dark scenes in the movie Stargate were also excellent and it was easy to make out small details that were not present before (on my 56 DLP) - again hardly any film grain. My final tests were done on the Black Hawk Down BD, Big Fish BD and the dark, night scene on Rambo BD (2008).....
Would you believe me if I told you that all 3 discs looked fantastic? Black Hawk and Big Fish showed no signs of film grain and the night scene in Rambo was so visible I could not believe my eyes. This is a true testament of how great Pioneer plasma screens are. I now have a hard time believing any negative blu ray reviews from the pros since most of them are not using Pioneer plasmas for their reviews.
Xbox 360 and PS3 games all looked great on this screen. The deep colors and the deep black really make the games a pleasure to look at.
In case you are wondering, I didn't do any type of calibration to this set. I truly believe that no adjustments need to be made to it. It looks that great out of the box. Again, the deep black contrast is the major selling point. The color of grass looks the way it does in your back yard, not the fluorescent green you see on other plasma tv's.
Should you buy a Pioneer plasma set? Absolutely!!! I can guarantee that you will be 100% satisfied with its performance and aesthetic appearance.
Don't be fooled by all the other competitor's displays at the brick and mortar stores.....this plasma set is well worth every penny you spend on it. You will thank me for it!
**UPDATE 7/23/08** I contacted Pioneer Electronics today to ask about a future calibration and was informed that these non-Elite models are already calibrated by Pioneer techs prior to shipment from their facilities. So, there is no need to spend an additional $300+ on calibration services.
Believe The Kuro Hype! The 5020 Is Amazing! July 25, 2008
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
I just recently purchased the Pioneer Kuro PDP-5020 from Amazon and I couldn't have been happier. I ordered the TV on a Monday evening and I had the TV in my house on the Thursday of the same week. It was less than 72 hours from clicking the mouse to clicking the remote on the TV, which I find amazing. The TV was delivered by Eagle/CEVA and the delivery guys were very helpful in getting the TV into my 2nd floor bedroom.
I chose the 5020 Kuro after an exhaustive search of what TV would be the best for my room. I read many websites and AV forums and found the only thing people could agree on is that the Pioneer Kuro's have the best black levels out there period. Sure the Kuro is a little more expensive than sets from Panasonic or Samsung but over the life span of the TV the difference in price is minimal. So I say go with the best and don't look back.
Great choice for videophiles that aren't video-nuts! November 1, 2008
7 out of 7 found this review helpful
I looked for around 6 months for a new HDTV to replace a Sony XBR1 40" I've had for several years. After spending way to much time reading CNETs reviews, I settled upon this TV.
The performance is excellent. It certainly has better image quality than my Sony LCD, both when watching movies (due to the excellent contrast), and when watching fast moving basketball, in which my sony LCD would occasionally have motion artifacts. I think much of the LCD motion artifact thing has gone away with high end LCDs these days.
If you are a video nut that wants to change every aspect of the settings, you need to get the elite model, which is basically the same TV, but with all the settings opened up. You only get basic settings with this model. However, it has a mode that I personally like called "Optimum", where the TVs sensors detect what type of picture is being displayed along with the ambient room conditions and adjust accordingly. So far I've left it on that and it has been great. I have also played with "Movie" mode, in which you get about 50% of the controls on the picture that a typical high end TV might have.
Aesthetically, this TV looks perfect. The plain back bezel that is very small for this size of TV is exactly what I was looking for. Some of the Sony's for the past 4 years and most of the LGs and Samsungs have just got too much going on. I want a perfect picture and a minimal "TV". In addition, this TV is very thin for a 50" plasma, it is only 3.7" thick. My 40" LCD was 5.5" and the new sony XBR8 LED backlit LCD is almost 6" I believe.
In a store I compared this TV to the Samsung A950 series (LED backlit LCD) and the Sony XBR6, both 46" models. The Pioneer was cheaper and just looked better hands down. I went back on 3 occasions to confirm this was the case.
Some people will discuss buzzing with this particular unit. From what I have found out, all plasmas buzz. On this unit, if you put your head behind the tv, you can hear some electronic buzz. If you put your head in front of the TV, you can not hear anything, even with the TV muted. If you move your head about 5' back from the TV and have the TV muted, a slight buzzing becomes audible. If you turn on any volume whatsoever, you can not detect the buzzing. Actually, the fans and hard disk in my DirecTV HR21 DVR are louder than the buzzing!
I have been using power save mode 2 (the highest power save mode), which makes it meet the energy star requirements of the future, and it has plenty of brightness! We'll see how this holds up as we move through the break in period.
The big question many of you are probably asking is should I order from amazon and save almost $1000 over best buy or other big box store? My first HDTV I purchased from a locally owned specialty retailer. It gave me the confidence I needed since I knew little about HDTVs at that time. They offered a 15 day no questions asked return policy. For this Pioneer purchase, I went with amazon.com and saved $1000. Shipping was free. Amazon will contract this to CEVA, who will contract the delivery to your home by another local delivery agent. My TV arrived within 3 business days. It went from Ohio to Chicago in the first day I ordered it, and then was in Milwaukee to be delivered the next day and an appointment was set up. However, when the delivery guys showed up, I asked them to remove it from the packaging so I could plug it in and make sure it worked before I accepted delivery. The bezel was cracked and the screen damaged before we even got it out of the box. So I easily refused shipment and the delivery guys took it back. I contacted amazon and once you get beyond the india help desk and to a real agent who specializes in electronics returns I was all set. A new unit was sent 3 days later (with a total of about 1 week delay) for no charge. I think in the future I would order online from amazon.com again for the cost savings they provide. Although it was a hassle to be at home twice to have the TV delivered twice it was worth the savings for me. I believe you can also return to amazon within 30 days as well if you change your mind, but shipping cost is yours to pay.
Spectacular! July 11, 2008
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
This review is coming from somebody who has owned every top-of-the line plasma/lcd HD TV in the past 6 years, including the LED backlit $14,000 Sony Qualia 005. I have owned the PDP-5020fd for exactly 1 week now, and I am in video heaven. I haven't done any major calibrations yet (want to wait at least 100hrs before doing that), but the out-of-the-box video quality is unbelievable. The black levels undoubtedly set a new bench mark, without sacrificing on overall picture quality in terms of contrast, brightness and color fidelity which are all outstanding. I thought my Qualia 005 was amazing, but this Pioneer is something else. I also compared the Pioneer against the latest Panasonic offerings, but there is just no competition. Worth every extra penny if you are a videophile - especially if you like watching movies in a pitch dark environment. You have to strain your eyes to see the black bars on the top and bottom of the screen - something that has always, always bugged my eyes all these years. The blu-ray playback via my PS3 is spectacular. I purchased my unit through beyondplasma.com for a shipped price of $3075
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