LG unveils specs of Flatron M4200D 2D/3D display

While there's always plenty of room for skepticism when delving into the realm of 3D, we tended to think LG knew what it was doing when showing off its oh-so-intriguing 42-inch 2D/3D LCD monitor. The mysterious display now has a proper moniker (Flatron M4200D) and a bevy of specs to boot, including a "Full HD" 1,920 x 1,080 resolution, 500cd/m2 brightness, 8-millisecond response time, and a 1600:1 contrast ratio. The 3D filter is reportedly one of "lenticular" nature, which provides auto-stereoscopic images (similar to the iFusion 3D) to onlookers without the need for style-hindering glasses. Of course, attempting to capture 3D imagery on camera is a lesson in futility, so we'll have reserve judgment for its effectiveness until we can eye one ourselves, and hopefully this "unique feature" won't give LG (or M4200D viewers) the same headaches that Philips experienced when trying something nonpareil.

[Ndric @ Oct 25th 2006 2:24PM]

Looks very very flat.

[bsm0f0 @ Oct 25th 2006 2:49PM]

yeah, she's not all that cute either ...

[Nick @ Oct 25th 2006 2:56PM]

True, but her shirt also gives the impression of 3D objects on a flat surface.

[joey @ Oct 25th 2006 4:16PM]

At CES2006 I got to see this and really liked it. You had to stand at the 3m mark that they provided.

When asking about the unit, LG explained they had demo'd this the year before as well but didnt know its faith... I guess thats changed.

[Nate @ Oct 25th 2006 4:45PM]

I'm assuming that it is 3D as in a viewer can walk around the television (in the front) and view different angles of the image, or is it supposed to be 3D in the real sense that it "pops out" at you from the front?

[Florida3d.com @ Jan 5th 2007 12:08PM]

lenticular and barrier strip 3-d technology use shifting patterns of two images to create the 3-d image. The picture is flat in the photo because you have to be in front of the monitor to see the 3-d effect. This is also a problem because if you move away from the "sweet-spot", the spot where your eyes converge and see two separate images, you loose the 3-D effect.

Finally, to see real 3-d the images must be stereoscopic, few people know how to shoot images in stereo, and 2-d images converted to 3-d are not the same, or exibit the same quality.

New 3-D displays are wonderful, and the technology is improving. (We did not have autostereoscopic displays 10 years ago.)

Hopefully, I can find the capital to continue working on perfecting 3-D video for industrial and professional markets. It is a stereoscopy is a demanding technology, and the rules of 2-d media production do not work.

If you have red-blue glasses you can see a sample of my work at www.florida3d.com.