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Tuesday, February 17, 2009
Tech
The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas last month was overrun with companies demonstrating 3D television systems for the home. But despite the impressive viewing experiences on offer, the spectre of a lengthy battle between competing formats hangs over the latest shiny offerings.
TV studios and hardware companies alike are now building on the public's rediscovered love of 3D movies. Satellite broadcaster Sky recently treated press to examples of soccer games and boxing matches filmed in 3D by strapping two regular cameras side by side, and Panasonic last week started to make 3D Blu-ray video discs at its Hollywood factory.
However, anyone interested in a 3D system for the home must pick between three or more very different and incompatible technologies. At present, material designed for one system usually cannot be played on another.
Polarised views
One approach – already well established for virtual environments used by engineers and surgeons – involves a home theatre projector running at high frequency to deliver left and right images in rapid succession.
The viewer wears LCD spectacles that alternately block the left and right eye view to ensure that each eye only sees the correct viewpoint – timing is synchronised via a wireless link with the projector.
Panasonic's 3D offering uses a plasma screen to flash the alternate left and right images, and should be on sale in the near future.
South Korean firm Hyundai uses an LCD screen to display left and right images simultaneously, using a filter over the screen to polarise the two images differently. The viewer wears polarising spectacles to see 3D image.
This system is already on sale in Japan, where limited 3D TV broadcasts started last year, and has also been adopted by Sky.
'Confusing' situation
Experts say that the sudden appearance on the market of incompatible rival technologies could hold the 3D home movie back.
"With several competing technologies – and none of them adopted as industry standards – the fragmentation could seriously impede progress, generate confusion and slow consumer uptake," says Sarah Carroll, at consumer electronics research firm Futuresource Consulting.
The closest the industry currently has to a standard is Panasonic's campaign to add 3D playback to the Blu-ray standard.
If other manufacturers get on board, the move could lead to a single format for discs or broadcasts that any 3D or even 2D TV set can play. So far they have put development of competing technologies first.
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Bob Johnston
Producer
johnston.rw@gmail.com
My Blogs:
http://3dproductionnews.blogspot.com/
http://filmmoney.blogspot.com/
http://3devents.blogspot.com/
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