top of the line, unbelievable., October 29, 2008
I purchased this TV 2 months ago (9/2008) from a local store. This TV is hands down the best TV on the market! 5 stars. I haven't found a single thing that I don't like about it.
It is hard to put into words how much better this TV was compared to every other TV in the store. The picture is bright and crisp. Hands down had the...read full review
I purchased this TV 2 months ago (9/2008) from a local store. This TV is hands down the best TV on the market! 5 stars. I haven't found a single thing that I don't like about it.
It is hard to put into words how much better this TV was compared to every other TV in the store. The picture is bright and crisp. Hands down had the best picture in the store... Why? Bright Colors and a million shades of black.
There are so many more shades of grey and black that you'll see on this TV that you won't see on another TV until they are side by side and you see what you're missing. One of my all time favorite movies is Apocalypse Now. When you watch a movie like Apocalypse Now that has a lot of night scenes, you'll notice so much more detail because it doesn't come up as just black. You'll see the water move, you'll see the detail in the dirt... There are all these details that you never saw on a regular TV (or older plasma for that matter).
If you look at my other reviews, you'll see that I have a Samsung LCD TV that I reviewed a year ago. That is a great TV that hangs in front of the treadmill. The samsung is great where it is and is just fine for watch the evening news or for watching 30 Rock. But if you want to see the details in movies, you need to get a KURO. The KURO blows that TV out of the water for picture quality and for sound. There is a big price difference, but you'll see the difference in the picture!
*** Additional comments on the picture*** I watched the final table on ESPN the other night on my Samsung LCD. On that TV the Phillips fan in white t-shirts were all blued out because of the black lights and you can't make out the people at all. I just flipped the channels and see that on the KURO, they aren't blued out and you can see all them and make them out. Truly amazing. I don't know how much of this is because of Time Warner HD or the TV set, but there is a remarkable difference.
Another thing that I've really noticed is that text is so much cleaner and the lines of the text are perfect. There is so much difference it's hard to put it into words.
This is an expensive TV, but you wouldn't be reading this if you weren't interested in buying it. So, if you have the money, this is the TV that you'll want to buy. The picture will blow you away.
I keep editing and adding to this review because I keep finding more and more things that I really like. I've talked about the picture, but the sound is truly amazing for a TV. You can watch any action movie and use the TV speakers and you won't be disappointed. I have mine hooked up to a Denon 4308 amp and 6 Klipsch speakers and the sound system is great. BUT HONESTELY, YOU COULD ENJOY ANY ACTION MOVIE WITHOUT THIS SETUP. The dialog is crisp and has more bass than not expected. You could very easily get a silimar effect by getting a small subwoofer and connecting directly to the back of the TV. Overall, the sound on this set is very good for a TV.
Options- This TV is loaded with customization and options. If you're like me and want to have the adjustments to get things just right, you're going to appreciate the many ways you can adjust the picture and sound.
To wrap it up-
~The best picture possible
~Great sound right from the included speakers
~Lots of options and the ability to customize all aspects of the picture and sound minimize
Hands down the best TV out there right now! , December 13, 2008
The Pro-111FD Kuro ('black') certainly lives up to its name. It produces jaw-dropping, deep blacks that make its true-to-life colors look all the more beautiful and stunning. The wide range of user-selectable as well as automatic features that protect it from 'burn-in', largely eliminated this as a concern for me about buying a plasma TV. The...read full review
The Pro-111FD Kuro ('black') certainly lives up to its name. It produces jaw-dropping, deep blacks that make its true-to-life colors look all the more beautiful and stunning. The wide range of user-selectable as well as automatic features that protect it from 'burn-in', largely eliminated this as a concern for me about buying a plasma TV. The Energy Save feature of this TV also reduces the long-standing concern over the cost of operating a plasma TV.
The picture is as bright as it is beautiful, putting it on a par with some LCDs for brightness. The user-selectable automatic light sensor and automatic color sensor work well to automatically adjust the picture brightness/color for different room lighting conditions.
Sound output from the (optionally) side-mounted speakers is excellent, with automatic as well as user-cusomizable settings to adjust the sound for a wide variety of tastes and environments.
There are 4 HDMI input terminals and other outputs, as well as a USB port, Ehternet cable port, and PC input terminal that provided me with a wide range of interconnection possibilities for my home theater set up - with lots of expandability left over.
The seven AV settings (picture presets), except for Optimized, can be customized. There are two 'hidden' modes, ISF-Day and ISF-Night, that will appear if this TV is calibrated through the service menus, and can be locked so the settings can't be changed without accessing the service menu again. Although the Standard AV setting is the only one that can be customized for EACH input (cable, satellite, DVD, BluRay), the other customizable settings that are shared between inputs provide enough versatility to support most tastes - or needs.
Buttons on the remote are somewhat small and some are not backlit, making selection in a dark environment less friendly than it could be. On the plus side, the remote is comfortable in the hand and can be programmed to operate a variety of devices using codes (provided in the User's Guide) or via a learning mode.
This Pioneer Elite is truly a class act. Even the User's Manual, with it's glossy, deep black cover, smacks of class! The absolutely stunning picture on this TV vastly outweighs any minor shortcomings this plasma TV may have. In short, if you love home theater, movies, and watching high def TV, give this Kuro very, VERY serious consideration. It is, without a doubt, worth the price. I have absolutely no regrets about purchasing this fantastic TV and would recommend it to anyone - in a heartbeat!
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All HDTVS will be measured to this mighty Pioneer KURO!, March 20, 2009
I purchased the Pioneer Pro 111-FD a little over a week ago and I absolutely love it. I am pretty familiar with HDTVs since I purchased my first 1080p TV in October of 2006. I am upgrading from a SONY 46 inch XBR3 LCD which I also loved. The colors on that TV would just pop out and the sound was great as well. There were a few things about that TV ...read full review
I purchased the Pioneer Pro 111-FD a little over a week ago and I absolutely love it. I am pretty familiar with HDTVs since I purchased my first 1080p TV in October of 2006. I am upgrading from a SONY 46 inch XBR3 LCD which I also loved. The colors on that TV would just pop out and the sound was great as well. There were a few things about that TV (and many others on the market today) that I could just not get past and that was the black level. My old SONY LCD was top of the line and had better blacks than most TVs even on the market today, but once I saw the Pioneer TV at a magnolia Best Buy I was blown away at how black the blacks were. I mean the blacks on the TV are like no other, and no plasma, LCD, or even LCD with LED lighting can compare to this Pioneers amazing black level especially when viewing from any angle. The colors look more realistic and no so cartoonish and fake. I have been accused of being a huge SONY fan boy and some people even accused me of working for SONY because of the TV review I did for my old TV here on amazon in late 2006. I have always loved Sony products, but lately I have been disappointed with the direction (greed) Sony is going in. I never thought I would purchase a TV other than SONY, but seeing is believing and this PIONEER Kuro pro 111-fd is the best looking and most highly rated HDTV on the market today and I researched this for months. I also loved the fact that unlike my LCD the colors don't get washed out of foggy like when you're watching it from an angle or not directly front and center. Even though I am familer with HDTV I am new to the whole plasma scene and was concerned about plasmas not performing good in high elevation and the risk of burn in. I can assure you I have NO problem with this TV working here in Colorado or image burn in. I did do a 150 hour break in process to evenly wear out the TV pixels. They say the first 100-200 hours are the most vulnerable for plasmas that's why the recommend the break in process and watching only material that feels the entire screen to break in the plasma properly. After the break in process you are good to watch whatever you want. I love the 24fps that my previous TV never had. I also love the 4 position Split Screen picture in picture which lets you watch 2 things at the same time such as a blu-ray movie, and a TV show. You can also change the picture in picture to a little window instead and position it in any of the 4 corners of the screen. One other thing that stands out for me is the sound this TV gives out which is amazing and the best I have ever heard on a TV. I highly encourage anyone who has or plans to get this tv to Google "Pioneer Pro 111fd break in process" to get more info on how to properly break in this TV. I highly recommend this amazing HDTV. Sadly this will be the last generation of Kuro TVS that Pioneer will ever produce, but they are going out on top and with a bang. All future HDTVs will be measured against this TV.
Below is more detailed info directly from Pioneers site regarding the Pioneer pro 111-FD.
Plasma Technology
High-Definition Resolution 1920 x 1080p
50" Class (49.85" Diagonal)
16:9 Aspect Ratio
Deep Encased Cell Structure/Crystal Emissive Layer
Improved Color Filter For Enhanced Contrast
Improved ASIC Video Processing and Scaling
Detachable Side Speakers
Plasma Features
New & Improved Optimum Video Mode
Smooth Film Mode
4 Independent HDMI® 1.3 Inputs
Room Light Sensor for Automatic Picture Adjustment
HD Wide Mode Mode 1 / Mode 2
Standard 3:2 (60Hz) Pulldown
Advanced PureCinema with 3:3 (72Hz) Pulldown
Fully Integrated ATSC & NTSC Tuner with Clear QAM
Home Media Gallery
ISF(tm)ccc Calibration Ready
Independant Gamma Control (R/G/B) For Heightened Color Calibration
Sound Control (Synchronized Sound) Off / On
V-Chip Parental Control
Remote Control New Design - Aluminum Plated - Illuminated / Preset / Learning
On-Screen Display Eng / Fre / Spa
New & Improved Graphical User Interface (GUI)
New Energy Save Mode Standard / Save 1 / Save 2 / Picture Off
Energy Star Compliant
Picture Settings
A/V Selection Memory Optimum / Performance / Movie / Sports / PURE / Game / Standard / ISF-Day / ISF-Night / ISF Auto (PC input:only Standard, User & ISF)
Aspect Ratio Control 9 Positions: Auto* / Full / Dot by Dot / Zoom* / Cinema* / 4:3 / Wide* (Only for SD) Wide 1* (Only for HD) Wide* 2 (Only for HD) *Except PC Signal
Advanced Picture-In-Picture 4 Positions
Picture-Side-Picture 3 Positions
Still Picture Capability
Seamless Orbiter Off / Mode 1 / Mode 2
Auto Size Off / Natural / Wide-Zoom
Side Mask Detection 2 Modes (Black / Black and Illustrated)
Side Mask Brightness Fixed / Auto
Video Pattern White Bar
Game Control Preference Off / On
Intelligent Mode Off / Mode 1 / Mode 2
Room Light Sensor & New External Color Sensor Off / Mode 1 / Mode 2
Home Media Gallery
IP Network Compatibility Designed to DLNA(tm) Guidelines DLNA Version 1.5
Microsoft PlaysForSure® Protected Content Version 2.20
Supported Video Formats WMV9, MPEG1, MPEG2-PS, MPEG2-TS, MPEG4 (SP/ASP), MPEG4 (H.264/AVC)
Supported Audio Formats WMA9, MP3, Linear PCM (WAV), HE-AAC, MPEG-4 AAC
Supported Photo Formats JPG, PNG, GIF, TIFF, BMP
Zoom
Slide Show Effect 8 Patterns
Video Processing Technology
DRE Picture Off / High / Mid / Low
Black Level Off / On
ACL Off / On
Enhance Mode 1 / 2 / 3
Gamma 1 / 2 / 3
Color Temperature Adjustment 5 Settings (Off / Mid-High / Mid / Mid-Low / Low)
CTI - Color Transient Improver Yes
Color Temperature Manual Adjustment
Color Management
Color Space 1 / 2
3D Digital Noise Reduction 4 Settings (Off / High / Mid / Low)
Field Noise Reduction 4 Settings (Off / High / Mid / Low)
Block Noise Reduction Off / On
Mosquito Noise Reduction Off / On
Tuner Noise Reduction Off / On (for each channel)
3 DYC 4 Settings (Off / High / Mid / Low)
I-P Mode 1 / 2 / 3
Manual Video Adjustment (Before & After Comparison)
Video & Audio Inputs
Independent HDMI 1.3 4 (with Deep Color Support)
HDMI Inputs - Ability To Accept 480i / 480p / 720p / 1080i / 1080p (24/60 Hz) Signals
Component 1
Composite 3
S-Video 1
USB (Mass Storage Class)
PC
LAN (10/100 Base-T Ethernet)
Video & Audio Outputs
Optical Digital Audio (Dolby® Digital/PCM)
Audio LR
Subwoofer
SR
IR Repeater
Headphone
Speaker Out
Audio Technology
New 18-Watt Stereo Digital Amplifier w/TruBass 2-Way Stereo Speakers
Sound Effect
SRS Off / Low / Mid / High
SRS Focus Off / Low / Mid / High
SRS TruBass Off / Low / Mid / High
SRS Definition Off / Low / Mid / High
Auto Volume Control Off / On
Synchronized with Optimum Mode
Surround Effect with Headphone Out
Sound Setting Memory (Per A/V Mode, Per Input)
New Audio LSI
Audio Output 18W+18W
Dimensions
Carton Dimensions 52-7/8" x 38-3/8" x 20" (W x H x D)
Carton Weight 115 lbs. 1 oz.
Panel without Speaker 48-17/32" x 28-15/32" x 3-21/32" (W x H x D)
Panel (w/detachable side speakers) 56-7/8" x 28-15/32" x 3-21/32" (W x H x D)
Panel Weight 74 lbs. 5 oz.
Panel Weight (w/detachable side speakers & stand) 88 lbs.
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Awesome TV, April 22, 2009
Have had this TV for a few weeks now. I researched the entire Samsung LCD and Plasma line, looked at the XBRs from Sony and some of the higher end Panasonic plasmas.
I used 12 criteria to evaluate each of the 16 TVs I looked at.
Kuro Elite was best in class in every category except for vibrancy and SD picture blur...read full review
Have had this TV for a few weeks now. I researched the entire Samsung LCD and Plasma line, looked at the XBRs from Sony and some of the higher end Panasonic plasmas.
I used 12 criteria to evaluate each of the 16 TVs I looked at.
Kuro Elite was best in class in every category except for vibrancy and SD picture blur reduction. LCDs are clearly more vibrant. If you are looking for a picture that immediately jumps out at you and demands your attention, you're unlikely to find it in this TV. I much prefer realistic looking scenes (I'm also a photographer), so it's very important to me to have an image that is a reproduction of the original with the least amount of alteration. That is indeed exactly what the Elite delivers. The Samsungs have some post-processing that allow you to reduce the blur/hard-edges on a SD (standard defn.) source. Since I watch mainly Bluray, do HD gaming and cable, this isn't important to me.
The Elite won out in all the other 10 criteria (I did not evaluate native sound, since I use external surround sound).
So if you want completely realistic video/images with incredible crispness and black levels that you don't even notice after a while, because they are so darn good, this is the perfect TV for you! minimize
By far, the best television you can buy, with excellent lifelike color and clarity., December 26, 2008
It is easy to find detailed reviews of the Pioneer Elite PRO-111FD on the internet. However, nothing beats a careful comparison in an high-quality electronics store of this set with ostensibly comparable models from other manufacturers. In particular, go to an electronics store where you can spend time watching some of the programs that you...read full review
It is easy to find detailed reviews of the Pioneer Elite PRO-111FD on the internet. However, nothing beats a careful comparison in an high-quality electronics store of this set with ostensibly comparable models from other manufacturers. In particular, go to an electronics store where you can spend time watching some of the programs that you normally watch. If you like sports, watch some golf, baseball or something shot outdoors to see how realistic the color of the grass is on the 111FD compared to a highly rated Samsung or Sony, which make grass look like artificial turf. Then, or if it's all you can do, compare the skin tones as rendered on the 111FD to those on competing televisions. I had a highly rated Samsung (which by technical measures was on par with this Pioneer), and despite every conceivable adjustment, the skin tones were horrible, while a minimal amount of adjustment of the 111FD has given me a picture that is virtually perfect. This set is a pleasure to watch every time you turn it on. minimize
