Pioneer ships first 1080p 50-inch plasma

[Pioneer's 50-inch 1080p plasma display]]


I4U News claims that Pioneer has begun shipping its
PRO-FHD1 50 in. Plasma Television, and at least one New Jersey retailer appears to be willing to sell you one for a cool eight grand. Now our prior coverage of this product said that these were only going to Europe; perhaps marketers at Pioneer saw an opportunity to sell more in the US while Europe is on vacation in August.

While we'd be the first to say that competitive differentiation through geeky specifications is a poor marketing strategy, this panel does have a very impressive data sheet. The press release states that the panel's image is made of up the smallest pixels -- only 0.576 millimeters -- ever created on a plasma display. But we have to give credit where credit is due: the press release does try to translate these specs into real life with this quote:

"Some say it makes it easier to tell when the lead actor takes a break and lets the stunt double take over."

I'm not sure it's worth four grand, but it is at least an attempt at differentiation in the user's context. Now all we need is some 1080p content for viewers to look at.

Technorati Tags: Flat Panels, HDTV, Marketing, Panasonic, Pioneer, Plasma, 1080p, TV