The worst thing we can say about the Pioneer Elite KURO PRO-110FD is that it may have set the bar with which to judge all other plasma HDTVs too high. To put it simply, this is among the best models on the market today. Of course, this requires that you can stomach the suggested price tag. While other companies, such as Panasonic and Samsung, deliver quality 1,080p sets for under $3,000, Pioneer plasmas still carry a premium. So the question remains, is the PRO-110FD worth the extra money?

If you're looking for unmatched performance and the deepest black levels in a plasma HDTV, the answer is, absolutely. Kuro means "black" in Japanese, but that doesn't begin to do it justice. The PRO-110FD produces blacks so deep, we're tempted to dub it the black hole of pictures--no light escapes! The extreme blacks make colors appear especially vibrant and true-to-life. Pioneer's latest generation of plasma displays utilize a new cell structure along with a crystal emissive layer, and when coupled with an anti-reflective screen, the design ensures a bright picture that doesn't wash out in any ambient light. You can even turn off the LED power-indicator light, so that in a darkened room, you see the picture and nothing else.

The PRO-110FD is packed with advanced features. There are plenty of options to just get watching, including nine modes for viewing preferences including optimum, dynamic, standard, PURE, movie and game, as well as modes for day and night PC use. In addition, the PRO-110FD features six aspect ratio settings and four picture-in-picture options. Each of the four HDMI inputs has independent adjustments as well.

As you would expect, the PRO-110FD displays 1,080p and 1,080i high-definition content flawlessly. 720p and 480p content is scaled accordingly, and most impressive is how well this 1,920x1,080-resolution model handles standard-definition content. Pioneer's ASIC video processing does an excellent job removing digital noise and artifacts, regardless of the programming source. Film content is adapted to the screen with 3:2 pulldown and Pioneer's Advanced 3:3 PureCinema technology. These features help reduce motion judder that occasionally occurs from film playback.

The PRO-110FD does an excellent job with today's technology. However, to future-proof the set, Pioneer includes x.v.Color support, the next wave of color processing. Components supporting this format are rare right now, but they will no doubt become more common in the next year or two. This is a good feature to have, especially for such an expensive HDTV.

This set is packed with connectivity options, including a USB port for viewing digital photos. The PRO-110FD also features an Ethernet port for displaying and/or playing a variety of video and audio formats delivered via your home network, including WMV9, MPEG1, MP3, WMA and AAC files, as well as digital photos in the JPG, TIFF, PNG, BMP and GIF formats.

Other connectivity options include the four HDMI 1.3 inputs, as well as two component video inputs, an S-video input, three composite video inputs and a PC input. The outputs include a stereo analog monitor output and an optical digital audio output, which proves useful if you have multiple HDMI sources. The PRO-110FD also sports a subwoofer pre-amp output, so you can add a bit of a punch if you're using the set's own speakers. Finally, this plasma HDTV has the overlooked headphone output, which is often missing from larger sets.

The PRO-110FD is Microsoft PlaysForSure Protected Content-compatible, but whether you'd want to use a top-of-the-shelf plasma HDTV as a stereo is another matter. This unit has removable speakers, and it looks much more streamlined and sleek without them attached. However, the speakers are great for basic TV viewing, lthough they can't compare to a full surround sound system with 17 watts of total power. Audio options include SRS WOW, FOCUS and TruBass Surround Sound.

Pioneer seriously addresses the issue of image retention, and the entire KURO line features an “orbiter” that shifts the onscreen image just enough to reduce burn-in. In addition, the PRO-110FD has a White Bar vidoe pattern that helps to reduce any after-imaging. If you're a news junkie who watches lots of content with static images like news tickers, or if you play video games with stationary status bars, these are essential features.

This top-end plasma HDTV doesn't come cheap, but if you take your TV viewing seriously, this is the set for you. Aside from the price, it is hard to find a flaw with the Pioneer Elite KURO PRO-110FD.


Pros: Best black levels in a plasma HDTV this year, very good job with standard-definition content, four HDMI inputs, full 1,080p display, oodles of features
Cons: Expensive