ActiveShutter3d
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Sony, Panasonic, Samsung team up for 3D supergroup
Normally when the giants of the entertainment industry team up, it's to record "We Are The World"-- but not this time. Sony, Panasonic, X6D and Samsung are forming a supergroup that makes the Traveling Wilburys seem small-time. They're forming the "Full HD 3D Glasses initiative," a project to standardize 3D glasses. Currently, we have wholly incompatible active-shutter models based on different technologies, which the consortium wants to replace with a unified standard that will let you use the same pair of spectacles on any display or at any theater that uses the Xpand 3D standard. The doors open on the joint testing center later this month, which will check and approve products to the program, gaining the logo you see before you as a badge of honor.
Samsung's 75-inch D9500 3D TV announced for Korea, doubles as wind shield (updated)
3D is best served on a large plate, which is why Samsung's latest HDTV got us all dribbling over our TV munchies. This 75-inch platter, dubbed D9500, has stolen the short-lived crown off LG's 72-inch LZ9700 to become the world's largest LED-backlit 3D LCD HDTV, and obviously Samsung's still staying faithful to its active shutter 3D technology following its recent price drop on its glasses. The 240Hz display will also come with the usual Smart TV features, garnished by a QWERTY flip remote for your web-browsing and SNS needs on that large screen. Oddly enough, only an ex-factory price of a hefty ₩19,000,000 ($17,600) is quoted here, so customers will have to pay a bit more than that during the pre-sales at the end of the month. Alternatively, you can hold off your shopping spree until Samsung pushes out its 70-inch "Ultra Definition" 3DTV. Update: A little birdie told us that this 3DTV will be making its way to the US in August, and will retail at around $13,000. Additionally, four premium active shutter glasses will be included. Thanks Anonymous!
Samsung's entire line of active shutter glasses gets a price cut, more money for your popcorn
Following its pledge to make 3D TV experience more affordable, Samsung's just announced a price drop on the rest of its active shutter glasses lineup. As you probably already know, the entry-level SSG-3100GB went from $129.99 down to just $49.99 last month; and now we have the better-looking SSG-3300CR plus SSG-3300GR reduced by $50 down to $129.99, along with the swanky SSG-3700CR (pictured above) getting a $70 discount to just $149.99. Of course, these premium spectacles are still far from affordable compared to their passive counterparts, so it'll be interesting to see if Samsung's attempt to lure more 3D viewers will work at all. Ultimately though, we'd love to see other manufacturers follow suit -- bring on the 3D price war!
Acer brings HN274H and HS244HQ 3D monitors to the US, motorbikes not included
In case you're looking for some more options in the 3D monitor market, Acer's just announced a couple of new models for the US that might do the job. First up is the HN274H pictured above, which claims to be the first 27-inch LED-backlit monitor supporting both HDMI 3D and NVIDIA 3D Vision -- Blu-ray or TV set-top box for the former, PC gaming for the latter (via the usual DVI-DL). Though limited at 1920 x 1080 resolution, this display boasts a 100,000,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio with 300cd/m2 brightness and 2ms response time, along with a built-in IR emitter for the included NVIDIA 3D glasses, as well as a handful of ports: VGA, DVI, and three HDMI. All this for $689. If you prefer something smaller and more budget friendly, then there's the 23.6-inch HS244HQ as well. For $449 you get the same HD resolution, brightness, and response time, though contrast ratio is lowered to 12,000,000:1. Most importantly, there's no support for NVIDIA 3D Vision here (though you still get a pair of Acer 3D glasses), meaning gamers will have to consider other options. Press release after the break.
Toshiba shows off 2011 HDTVs with the most local dimming LEDs, facial recognition, 3D and more
Toshiba's focus at CES was glasses free 3D displays, but it highlighted more conventional HDTVs today at an event in Rome. Its new TVs and laptops all tie in to Toshiba Places, which sorts out access to different types of apps for video, social networking, music and other areas and is ready to launch this month. Separating Toshiba from the competition is a slew of new technology and the top of the line 55ZL1 model checks all the boxes: Seven core CEVO CPU for image processing, a Pro-LED512 panel that is the world's first with 512 zones of dimming among 3,072 LEDs, Personal-TV facial recognition that picks up on which user is watching then personalizes to their preferred settings and active shutter 3D glasses. The edge lit LED VL863 series will come in 47- and 42-inch versions featuring LG's FPR passive glasses 3D and four pairs of glasses, while the 32- through 46-inch UL863 drops 3D for built-in WiFi and Personal-TV. The SL863 series is the final step down, nixing built-in WiFi. Prices weren't listed but the new models should be shipping soon, until then you can find more details in the press releases linked below -- no word on the US-bound models yet.
Man discovers glasses-free 3D tech in the blink of an eye (video)
Who's got two thumbs and needs glasses to see 3D? Not this guy! Francois Vogel's figured out a way to remove those pesky spectacles from the equation, and he's ready to revolutionize the stereoscopic industry forever. Sure, you'll need a monitor with a 120Hz refresh rate, but that's a prerequisite these days anyhow, and the rest is sweet, sticky gravy dished directly to your eyeballs. Get a sneak peek at the game-changing tech in the video above, and keep an eye out for unicorns (we're sure they're around here somewhere). You'll never look at 3D the same way again, we promise. [Thanks to everyone who sent this in]
XpanD Youniversal 3D glasses hand & face on
We weren't able to check out the customization features of XpanD's latest active shutter LCD 3D glasses, but we did get to try them on at their booth for a moment. They're markedly lighter than the company's other 3D specs and the side pods for the battery and settings storage seem to do a decent job of blocking light from the sides. We'll need to sit down for a few rounds of NBA 2K11 3D or Resident Evil: Afterlife to know how they hold up in real life but in the meantime check out the pics in the gallery. %Gallery-113549%
XpanD universal 3D glasses now available for pre-order
The lack of inter-brand compatibility is a major annoyance with current 3D glasses -- not to mention stands in direct opposition to our fashionable couch potato aesthetic. Luckily, XpanD's universal 3D glasses are finally available for pre-order on Amazon, even though there's no word on ship dates. They are however currently priced at $108, which is slightly less than the $125-$150 range quoted by XpanD's Chief Strategy Officer Ami Dror last spring. That said, no surprise drop in price could justify their PR platitude as "the most anticipated product in the history of 3D."
