3D, Year Two: A Clash of Technologies

http://blogs.pcmag.com/miller/2011/01/3d_year_2_a_clash_of_technolog.php

 

Thursday January 13, 2011

 

Last year's big CES story was the emergence of 3D TVs. While they didn't sell as many as some thought, most of the sets we saw last year had one thing in common: they required active glasses in which a shutter would open and close over each eye very quickly. This year, that technology was still out in full-force, but models that used passive glasses and those that work without special glasses at all were widespread as well. The result is a broader range of technologies that may help make 3D more palatable for a larger audience.

 

To me, the passive-glasses models were the most interesting. A lot of these were made possible by a new panel LG Display introduced last month using what it calls film-type patterned retarder (FPR) technology. This uses circular polarized glasses--essentially the kind most 3D presentations in North America use. There were a few polarized displays last year, but they were mostly based on a glass substrate instead of a film and aimed at the professional market.

 

LG Electronics, of course, displayed its new passive glasses technology, which it calls "Cinema 3D" in its Infinia series of LCD TVs, in sizes ranging from 47 inches to 65 inches, as well as in a prototype 84 inch LCD set.

 

Vizio called its entry "Theater 3D," introducing sets from 22 to 71 inches. In most cases, prices are yet to be set, but a 65-inch model just went on sale with a suggested price of about $3,700, which is quite competitive with other LCD models at the same size. Vizio also showed an 84-inch 4K display.

 

Makers of passive glasses solutions point to a number of advantages of the technology, including the fact that the glasses are lighter, much less expensive, don't need charging, and are "flicker free." I have to say they looked pretty good.

 

On the other hand, makers of active glasses solutions, such as Samsung, point out that with passive glasses, because of the polarization, each eye is only getting half the resolution of the screen, while with active glasses both eyes gets full 1080p resolution. And they say active-glasses solutions have a broader viewing angle and that higher resolution reduces flicker and eye strain. My guess is different people will have different experiences, but in the show environment (which is admittedly far from perfect), the passive glasses versions looked better to me.

 

But I can definitely say that the active glasses models look better this year than last. Samsung in particular has reduced the size and weight of the glasses, and lots of vendors are now showing custom glasses for people who are harder to fit. Indeed, Samsung had a huge number of big 3D TVs, all with active glasses including a 75-inch demo model of an LED backlit unit.

 

Other companies continued to push the active-glasses market, including Sharp and Sony with their LCD lines; Panasonic with its Plasma line; and Mitsubishi with its DLP projection line, including an impressive new 92-inch model.

 

Glasses-Free 3D

Of course, many people object to wearing any glasses at all, whether passive or active, and there were a number of demos of "glasses-free" or "autostereoscopic" displays. Most of the larger models use "parallax barrier" technology (in which there is a barrier blocking certain pixels so each eye gets a slightly different view), although some use "lenticular" technology (like the "3D postcards" you sometimes see).

 

This works pretty well on small screens--it's already shipping on Fujifilm's 3D camera and some Japanese phones; Sony showed it on a variety of 3D camcorders; and of course Nintendo is set to use it on the upcoming 3DS. But on larger screens, it's more difficult because you need to be standing in the right place in the room to get the correct impact.

 

Toshiba probably made the biggest splash with this showing its 65-inch set, which was set so you could see the 3D effect from 3 specific locations. Toshiba said this would ship by the end of its next fiscal year (meaning by Spring 2012).

 

Toshiba also showed a different 3D technology on a laptop, using eye-tracking technology.

 

Lots of other companies had demos of glasses-free TVs as well.

 

LG as well had a large display with three good viewing angles.

 

Sony showed a 56-inch model based on a 4K LCD panel; a 46-inch model with a 2K LCD panel ; and a 24.5 inch 2K OLED panel.

 

The idea here is great: no one wants to put on special glasses to watch 3D. But in practice, the technology still has a ways to go. In some cases at the show, it looked ok if you stood in the exact right place, but looked fuzzy if you moved your head. That's ok on a mobile device--you can move the camera, phone, or portable gaming console to where you want, and they are designed to be viewed by a single person at a time. But in the TV market, I have difficulty imagining people happy with technology that forces them to sit in designated places and not move around.

 

So for the year ahead, my guess is that glasses-free 3D will be mostly aimed at smaller displays. On the other hand, I expect we'll see both active-glasses and passive-glasses models in large numbers, as the vendors try to push their technologies, looking for differences in the market. Just as with LCD, plasma, and projection, there will probably be room for a variety of choices.

 

I'm not sure how mainstream 3DTV is going to be, but I still think it has potential to be much larger than it is--as a feature on high-end sets, not as a separate kind of TV. But the biggest issue to me is still the paucity of compelling content. There are some great 3D movies, but many of them are locked up in exclusive deals between the studios and a specific TV vendor. And there are some live shows, but there needs to be much more--specifically really popular sports. (We won't get the SuperBowl in 3D this year, but maybe in 2012....?) All of this will happen over time, but the pace needs to improve if 3D is going to turn out to really matter this year.