Customer Reviews
Great TV 
2008-03-03
Picture is fantastic, was going to buy a Sony LCD TV but starting seeing picture distortion on fast moving clips on the 52 inch LCD's so went for the Plasma and no regrets. Another bonus is the incredible speaker on this TV.
Best picture I've ever seen - HD or not. 2008-01-23
Fabulous product. Only drawback is (as I understand it) that it accepts one-way CableCard only - this rules out PPV or "on demand" services, at least without a phone call to the cable company. But the TV is a real gem - and the amazon.com price was right!
Top 10 in Yahoo Best Gadgets of 2007 2008-01-07
I did a lot of onlinbe research before buying this TV and also looked at it in Best Buy besides its competitors. I didn't find any TV (in the same price range) with better picture than this. Even against the 1080p's, this TV seems to have nicer colors and image quality. Blacks are awesome!
I am very pleased with my purchase and now I feel even better with my decision when I saw an article in Yahoo with this TV making the top 10 for Best Gadgets in 2007 (is the only TV in the list... right there with the iPhone).
I made the Leap 2008-01-04
After doing he same type of research that just about everybody reading (and posting) here I finally made the leap of faith an bought the 50" Pioneer. It's a leap of faith because despite going to the big box stores and some smaller retailers looking at every plasma and LCDs displayed on the walls, I knew I could only bring one set home. I could not do a direct comparison in my own home.
After viewing the Pioneer many times I thought it had the best overall picture., but i was concerned that it was a bit more expensive. I brought my wife and son with me for to get their opinions and without my prompting picked the Pioneer as the best. By buying it through Amazon we didn't have to pay a delivery charge or risk damaging it by trying to transport it ourselves! And no sales tax. Which made the overall price competitive with the Panasonics, Samsungs and others.
The delivery folks brought up to the second floor in my house, took it out of the box and checked to make sure it powered -up. Not bad!
The picture quality is jaw-dropping beautiful! I am truly amazed. As a regular moviegoer I think the picture quality might actually exceed the original.
As for 720P vs 1080P: it not an issue for me.
Take it from me, its the best set out there and you will not be disappointed.
Outstanding Quality -- Pioneer Does It Again 2008-01-03
After reviewing the posts on Amazon for a variety of HDTVs, it confirmed the overwhelming number of choices to make (LCD v. Plasma, 720 v. 1080, etc.). Ultimately, I relied in part on the overwhelmingly positive reviews here of the Pioneer 5080HD. In addition, I read the Consumer Reports ratings, which gave this product very high marks. The remaining issue was where to buy -- Amazon or a big box retailer in my vicinity? Again, I was impressed with the positive comments about Amazon's white glove service and decided to give it a chance. Amazon's price was excellent and I could not be happier with this set, which arrived several days ahead of schedule. The delivery was as promised (unpacked, checked for operation, and packing materials removed). I am using an inside HDTV antenna (RCA) and I get incredible local reception without cable or satellite. Also, I bought a Pioneer 400V-K DVD player, hooked it up using an HD cable, and wow!! Regardless of whether other sets are comparable or in any way superior, this set is simply an outstanding picture for a solid value...I cannot imagine needing 1080p or spending more money for anything else. I have seen numerous reviews of this product by experts that all consistently rate this product as outstanding. In addition, those reviews all confirm that this picture is superior to pretty much everything out there even in 1080p. Bottom line: Pioneer simply has an incredible picture and great features, so don't get too hung up on specs.
Outstanding Picture! Better than our Panasonic Plasma!! 
2008-05-05
What has been written about this TV here and on other sites is absolutely true! The picture quality is amazing! What really makes it is the contrast and color are far superior to other brands. We compared to 1080P sets and couldn't see a difference in sharpness at all but the Pioneer shined against all others in tonality and contrast.
We happen to own a 42" Panasonic Plasma and we set them up on the same channels and then with Blue Ray DVDs and it wasn't even close. Everyone just said "WOW!" when they looked at the Panasonic and then looked at the Pioneer. The speakers are also significantly better as well on the Pioneer.
So why only 4 star and not 5? Well the picture merits 5 stars for sure, especially with Blue Ray and HD TV. Normal analog TV still has a ways to go. But the remote is not as user-friendly as the Panasonic remote. It also feels cheap. It is clear that the components used to make the TV are top notch but they skimped when it came to the remote. Don't get me wrong, it won't keep me from strongly recommending the TV. It is just not a complete execution, like forgetting to dot your "i" and crossing your "t"s on a well written resume.
Unbelievably fabulous -- the best. 2008-04-04
My son bought this TV months ago right before the upgraded 1080 hit BestBuy stores. He paid $3,400 for it. I just bought it at BestBuy this week for $2,199. I have never gone crazy over any electronic gadget until my son got this TV. I already have a Samsung DLP 42" TV I paid $3K for in 2004. I really liked my TV until my son got this Pioneer Plasma. Now I am so spoiled and I cannot get his TV out of my mind. It's mind blowing. Watching everything/anything is enjoyable on it -- the grandkids playing games; movies that are boring as heck (Pirates of the Caribean 3) but visually mesmerizing on this TV. So, wait until you see Planet Earth on this TV in your own home. You'll never be the same. Again, I'm grandparent age. I don't go crazy over electronic devices --until this! Mine is on its way.
after a year 2008-04-03
I am not going to describe the technical aspects, you can find it almost anywhere and have been often repeated. I have owned this model for over a year now, and there is not another television that produces a better picture. Simply, No Comparison!
Satisfied Customer 2008-03-29
I read all the other Amazon and CNet reviews on HDTV's and chose the Pioneer 5080 primarily because of the wealth of positive feedback it received as well as the fact that I had some co-workers who attested to it's quality. Frankly, I was more concerned about the delivery and the status of the item once it was received. The delivery man couldn't have been more helpful. I would have liked to have been able to turn it on before he left to make sure it would actually work, but he recommended that I wait 5-6 hours before it was turned on - due to the fact that it had been stored in an unheated warehouse and truck before it settled in my basement. A sudden change in temperature could've cracked the glass, so the wait gave it time to adjust to the room temperature. Once I did turn it on, feeding it the Dicovery HD channel, I was amazed at the picture quality. Even though I had seen the TV at retailer's displays, it certainly looked better in my dim basement environment. My wife says that the picture looks better than real life and I agree. At this point I have not fed any higher resolution than 1080i into the set. Eventually, I would like to purchase a Blu-Ray DVD player to see if the 1080p input is even better, but I can't imagine the picture getting much better. Setup was easy - I have two HDMI inputs - HD cable and the HD-DVD and my son's Wii is connected through the side component inputs. The audio outs are fed into my standard stereo receiver (some day, I will add an HDMI-switching 5.1 surround sound home theater system), but the internal speakers and "virtual" surround sound is very good. I met a gentleman a few days back who is a general manager at one of the major electronic retailers and we discussed the best available HDTV's on the market today. When I told him what I purchased and the price, he agreed that this was the best choice. Unless you can afford Pioneer's elite series, this is the way to go.
Brilliant 2008-03-13
Best tubeavision ever. This thing rocks byeond all belief. It also made my girlfriend happy and that is a first. Awesome
