The 3D Television revolution is here. The first of the 3D TV range are now available to buy!
Welcome to the home of 3d TVs and associated products. This website will be the first point of call for all the latest information on the supply of the revolutionary 3d TVs.
Throughout 2010, all the major manufactures will be launching 3DTVs. To read 3D TV reviews about the latest TVs and get the best deals available go to our 3D Products page.
There will be new 3D channels as well as DVD and BluRay movies. Click for information on 3D DVD and BluRay movies.
3D TV Launch Update
April 2010 is when the first 3D TVs will be available for purchase in the UK. It is likely to be August time before the Sky 3D channel comes on line so between now and then people will be limited to 3D DVD and 3D Blu-Ray discs.
Currently you can expect the following manufacturers to come to the market with 3D TVs: Samsung, LG, Sony, Panasonic and Mitsubishi. It is being speculated that Samsung and LG will start out around £2,000 for a 42 inch model and prices will increase by £300 - £400 as the TVs increased is size.
We can expect Sony and Panasonic to be priced above this market as TVs are carrying about a 20 - 25% premium from the current non 3D TV models.
For more information - read this article on the current 3D TV options.
While the market for 3D displays is still very much in its infancy, particularly in the UK, there's already a lot of excitement around 3D TV. The massive surge in 3D films will result in DVD and Blu-Ray 3D content coming downstream in between 4 and 6 months.
What does '3D Ready' mean?
In the same way that new high definition TVs were marketed as 'HD ready', you'll see the 3D-capable sets having a '3D Ready' sticker on them. A recent survey showed that 60% of people with a HD TV were not aware that they needed a HD source the get the most out of the TV.
To be a 3D TV the minimum refresh rate needs to be120Hz (a basic 60Hz displayed for each eye). The higher the refresh rate, the smoother the 3D effect. It won;t be long and we'll be seeing TVs with 240Hz (giving an output of 120Hz to each eye).
Although HDMI 1.3 cables will work, people will need to invest in 1.4 to get the full HD experience per eye.
The closest we can get to a 3D standard is that of Blu-Ray 3d. They are pushing a version of the existing high-def H.264/MPEG-4 AVC codec.
3D TV available on Sky
In the UK, Sky TV announced that they would be launching a Sky 3D channel in 2010. Alongside a 3DTV subscription you will need a Sky+ HD DVD Box and a 3D Ready TV. Sky has announced that the new channels will bring 3D sport and entertainment right into your house – literally!!
With Sony and IMAX, Discovery Communications announced a joint venture to provide 3D viewing service in the United States. It will only be a matter of time until this is available in the UK – probably through Sky + HD boxes as well. Don’t be surprised to see ESPN is looking to making a big splash with sports fans by offering live events in 3D. This could start as early as June 2010 with the FIFA World Cup.
3D TV technology
There are issues with 3DTV viewing though… The viewing angle for many 3D televisions is quite restrictive, with viewers needing to sit face-on at the correct range in order to see the three-dimensional image clearly. If you were in a cinema, this works fine in cinemas but in your front room, the size, shape and position of the TV and furniture may not be suitable.
Technology doesn’t stand still and already, companies, such as Philips, are attempting to overcome this hurdle by developing screens that don’t require 3D glasses. They have prototype 3D-TV code named WOWvx television. This By using a lenticular lens over the TV’s LCD panel, the TV will produce a 3D image that can be comfortably viewed from a variety of positions and angles.
3D TV films
Films are moving into the world of 3D and we can expect that 20 of the 170 films produced will be filmed in 3D in 2010. This is double the 2009 number of films. There has been big success for James Cameron's sci-fi epic Avatar. Jeffrey Katzenberg, the head of Dreamworks Animation has committed that his studio will make 3D versions of all its future movies. At CES2010 in Las Vegas, Katzenberg announced that Dreamworks would release Monsters vs. Aliens as a 3D Blu-ray disc in an exclusive promotion with Samsung and Technicolour.
So how does 3D-TV work? To answer this we should consider the red/blue glasses. This is the most primitive type of 3D. Technically the approach is called ‘Alternate-frame sequencing’.
By wearing the red/blue glasses what actually happens is that alternate frames display the image for one eye and then the other, and the glasses shutter quickly enough so that it blocks out the image for the correct eye at the correct time, thus producing a 3D effect.
3D Television
The key technology need to support this is to have a TV with at least a 120 Hz refresh at least. If you only have a standard 60 Hz monitor, each eye is effectively only seeing half of this (i.e. a 30 Hz picture) and this then becomes too flickery to be comfortable. When you look at IMAX 3D, there is a mixture of methods used to produce 3D images. One is the shutter type mentioned above, and the other is polarization. This required a special silver screen with two projectors in place and then people to wear passive glasses.
One of the companies that is leading with way with 3D-Television is Panasonic. In January 2010 they demonstrated a Panasonic Blu-ray 3D Disc Player and a number of 3D-enabled 1080p Plasma HDTVs. These 3Dtvs range in size from 50 inches to 65 inches. They have been quick to coin the phrase “Full HD 3D” for their 3D solution Full HD 3D as it has the ability to do full resolution 1080p High definition to each high for the best possible results. The technology relies on active shutter glasses.
Panasonic is adding the 3-D feature to its V Series line of Full HD 1080p plasma displays. Over time, 3-D capability will be rolled out to other lines. 3-D models include support for the new HDMI 1.4 specification so they can accept a 24p (24 frames/second) signal that is approximately twice the bandwidth of 1080p/24.
HDMI 1.4 will allow the Blu-ray players and other future source components to deliver a full 1080p (1920x1080 pixels progressive) signal to each eye for highest picture quality and no loss of detail. One pair of 3D eyewear is included with each TV with people having to buy extra pairs.
The Panasonic DMP-BDT350 will be the first 3-D enabled Blu-ray player. It will also offer an enhanced version of VIERA Cast. This will enable it to stream content from Netflix and Pandora in addition to YouTube, Amazon Video on Demand and other services available on the VIERA Cast platform last year.
Being a high-end model, the BDT350 also includes 7.1 channel analog outputs for full compatibility with the widest range of home theater gear. There will be two different HDMI outputs. One will be HDMI 1.4 output to allow 3D on the new 3DTV models and a standard HDMI 1.3 output for compatibility with current HDMI audio-decoding receivers.
The pricing and availability details have not yet been announced for the players or televisions but product is expected in the April or May 2010.
RealD Cinema is the world's most widely used technology for watching 3D movies in theaters and is the cheapest to install and maintain.
Gone are the days of visiting cinemas with 3d vision specs to specially watch a film in
3D as
3d will be stepping right out of your television into your front room! 3D used to be classed as a novelty but it is fast becoming the biggest exciting cinematic experience since the introduction of colour!
3D cinema
In 2009 more than 13 films have been released in 3D format including:
2010 looks already very promising with the 3D movie releases of:
The recent launch of Alice in wonderland has set the 3D Cinema goers alight and will be one of the biggest hits of the year. Don't be surprised to see this in the Oscars next year for special effects!
Movies in 2011 and beyond (all dates are best estimates):