3D my TV

This upcoming technology has sparked lots of interest with our
customer's. We all know what it does...it displays a 3D image vs. our
traditional 2D image.

Note: Since the technology is not out yet, some things might change from
what I am going to say below. This information is accurate as of
current.

I want to look at 2 important things of 3D TV, though. One being the
technology and important things to know about it and second is to know
the drawbacks of 3D TV's.

I will start with this statement: 3D TV's aren't going to be as "cool"
as we think....at least not til probably 7-10 years from now (we'll
discuss this more below).

3D Technology

Theres a TON of info surrounding this upcoming technology, what I want
to do here is just lay out the "important things to know".

The upcoming 3D TV's use what is called "Stereoscopic" technology...or
"seeing in stereo". This gives the ILLUSION of 3D but is not actual,
true 3D. True 3D is what we know as "holographic". You cannot get a true
3D image from a display that is 2D, hence why its an illusion of 3D.

The way a 3D TV is going to work currently is it overlay's two same
images slightly off center (where it looks doubled). Previously you
would wear some cheap glasses that have a red and blue lens (anaglyph).
That old technology doesn't allow for a full color range, nor does it
allow for 1080P high resolutions for the image. Current technology will
use powered glasses called "Liquid Crystal Shutter Glasses". These are
battery powered and have to be connected to the system for 3D to work.
The glasses will connect either infrared or through Bluetooth to the
system. The reason for this is the glasses have a 120hz refresh rate
(60hz for each eye). The glasses literally blink each lens 60 times a
second alternating each eye....this forces the brain to see
"stereoscopic". There is a technology called "Autostereoscopic" that
does 3D without glasses. It is expected to be out in 5-6 years. The
problems with Autostereoscopic is that it has no viewing angle
currently....that is, if you aren't sitting head on, it doesn't work.

Cons of 3D TV's

Most people get excited when they hear "3D TV" but what they don't
realize, is there are still a lot of hindrances/cons to this currently.

1. About 10% of people cannot see "Stereoscopic" 3D. Their brains
will literally not interpret the images.
2. Your eyes are meant to work congruently (together, at the same
time). Forcing it to see in a different manner puts the brain into
"overdrive mode" (remember, you aren't seeing 3D, youre brain is
interpreting two 2D images as 3D). This overdrive mode causes the brain
to work harder than it is meant to. This is why most things you go see
in 3D aren't entirely in 3D but are only partially in 3D....because your
brain needs a break. Individuals tolerance on this varies, which is why
people get headaches and eye fatigue/strain from watching 3D. This is
minimized by short bursts of 3D not usually exceeding 20 minutes. This
is why Avatar, most popular 3D movie to date, isn't completely in 3D.
Most people don't realize that you wont be watching 100% of anything in
3D due to this fact.
3. Everyone wanting to watch in 3D will need glasses which are
going to run about $100 a pair. So if you have 5 people in your
household, that's $500. That does not count for the fact most people
would want extra pairs for when friends and family come over to watch
3D.
4. Each manufacturer displays 3D slightly differently. Since there
is no complete standard, you cannot use your Panasonic 3D Glasses to
watch 3D on an LG.
5. Your current equipment will not work. Your bluray player,
receiver, TV...even your cables will not work. All these devices will
have to be upgraded to 3D capable versions. Sony has said the PS3 is "3D
upgradeable" but it's the ONLY device that has the potential to be
upgradeable. Most people aren't going to be rushing out to upgrade their
entire system.
6. Content is very limited. Discovery Channel and ESPN have
announced 3D channels. The few movies that will be 3D are expected to
come with a normal 2D version of the movie. DirecTV has said they will
offer 3D content, but there is talk it might only be 720p and not
1080i/p.
7. For 3D to work properly, seating distance is vital. And, with 3D
its shortened. A 50" 3D TV has a 6 foot seating distance for viewing. So
for our normal customers who sit 12+ feet away from their current set, a
MASSIVE TV/Screen would be needed to achieve 3D properly. The reason for
this, is if you sit too far back, your eyes will not be able to notice
the difference between the 2 slightly offset images that make 3D work.
8. The sets will not be able to display 2D and 3D at the same time.
9. 3D does not work well for fast action. The reason being is the 2
offset images moving at a fast rate are hard for the eyes to track and
the brain to interpret. Some people get disoriented and get motion
sickness from watching 3D.
10. Autostereoscopic is expected in 5-6 years. This technology will
be completely different than current 3D technology and will require
another complete system upgrade and different versions of the films as
well. The reason this is, is because to get a viewing angle out of the
display without glasses, the display has to give a different set of
pictures for each viewing angle. Currently they can get 64 seating
positions out of autostereoscopic, but when you realize that most TV's
today have a 170 degree viewing angle, well....64 isnt a lot. To do
this, the TV has to display 64 different images at once...which means
the source has to have 64 different images worth of information.

While 3D is cool and awesome sounding, it doesn't seem that most people
are going to make the jump for it. Those that would, are probably going
to wait 3-4 years...unfortunately by then, we'll almost be switching
from 3D with glasses to 3D without glasses.

To keep this all in perspective. Only in about the last 6 months would
most of us consider bluray to be the "current, everyday technology" but
it started its development in 2000 and the first disc's were sold in
2006. That's 10 years of development and 5 years of sales JUST to get to
where we are today. There is also no doubt that "3D TV" has many years
to go before its "everyday technology" as well.

If you would like to read more, heres some links: http://bit.ly/aqVaI8
and http://bit.ly/5PShzJ

As always, any questions, I would be glad to be of help.