PassiveGlasses
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LG launches new A540-T/D 3D notebook, adds A540-P IPS model
While LG neatly folded its glasses-free A540-H model into its CES line-up at the start of the year, it's now added another pair of notebooks to launch alongside it in Korea. This includes another 3D model that requires a pair of stylish squash goggles passive 3D glasses to gain that extra dimension. For those less disposed to hanging techno eye-wear off their face and watching Avatar again, there's the simpler two-dimensional joys of the A540-P, which houses a 15.6-inch AH-IPS display. All three versions house the same Core i7 processors and a GeForce GT555M for the necessary graphical grunt work. Fans of both mono and stereoscopic computing can consult the (Google-translated) press release below for more details.
LG unveils 84-inch 'ultra definition' 4K TV it's bringing to CES 2012
LG let us know at CES 2011 that it had 4K LCD televisions in the pipeline, but unfortunately they didn't make it out this year. Expect for that to change in 2012, as the company just announced it's bringing an 84-inch "ultra definition" (3840x2160) TV to Las Vegas to go along with its 55-inch OLED. It has all of LG's Cinema 3D and Smart TV features built-in, including support for that upgraded Magic Motion remote and voice control. There's no official word yet on when we'll see these on shelves or at what price, but it certainly looks production ready compared to other prototypes that have been displayed over the years. While we don't have easy sources of 4K-res video content yet, one of the reasons LG is making the jump first is for 3D. Its Cinema 3D tech uses a Film Pattern Retarder (FPR) screen and passive glasses that result in lowered resolution, but with those extra pixels there's no question about whether viewers are still getting at least an HD picture. So far 4K at home is the domain of Sony and JVC's high-priced projectors, but we'll see if any other companies (we'll check off Toshiba right now) show off upgrades in size and resolution of their HDTVs this year. Check the press release after the break for a few more details.
Vizio's M-Series Theater 3D TVs are officially available, at last
Last CES Vizio announced a slew of new LCD HDTVs with its passive glasses-compatible Theater 3D capabilities and Vizio Internet Apps built in, and now it's finally ready to announced the M-series midrange lineup is shipping nationwide. M3D models in various 40- and 50-inch sizes have been popping up over the last few weeks, featuring edge LED backlighting for between $1,039 (42-inch) and $1,649 (55-inch). Need something bigger on your wall? There's also a 65-inch version on the way in 2012, with a pricetag of $2,099. As usual, Vizio's displays bring a rather complete line of features without an ultra-high price tag, but there'd be more reasons to share the included four pairs of 3D glasses with friends if the NBA season would just ever start. As is, buyers will have to make do with whatever videogames and college sports they can find for now -- check after the break for more specs and prices.
Samsung, RealD pact for ZScreen passive glasses 3D TVs falls apart
Back at CES, Samsung's business display unit and RealD announced a deal to build passive glasses compatible 3D TVs with sharper resolution than FPR, since the active shutters are built into the screen itself. Turns out, that promise won't be fulfilled. In its Q2 earnings report released yesterday, RealD confirmed that the agreement fell through since Samsung's "initiative to manufacture panels... is not being pursued." RealD did say it's decided to explore "other potential partners," for the ZScreen technology but it has yet to offer any specifics. Equally ambiguous are the factors that led to the Samsung schism, though RealD CEO Michael Lewis told reporters that the Korean manufacturer simply "had a recent management change, reviewed all their projects and decided not to go forward." He added, however, that his company remains "bullish on the technology." Samsung, for its part, has yet to comment on the story.
The coolest thing I saw at IFA: LG's passive clip-on 3D glasses
Berlin's Internationalen Funkausstellung is by no means an unexciting consumer electronics show. Sure, there aren't nearly as many new gadgets to play with as you'll find at even the tamest year of CES, but there's still plenty else around to leave almost any tech buff feeling full. Still, this year's most exciting gadget -- to me, at least -- wasn't a new tablet, or cell phone, or even that Android-controlled robotic vacuum. No, the highlight of my week was these clip-on 3D glasses, which LG reps handed out to every interested spectator as they entered the company's booth. These dead-simple, yet completely life-changing specs were almost certainly overlooked by the 20/20 vision-abled, but for folks like me who can't stand sliding one pair of glasses over another just to watch Kung Fu Panda in three dimensions, those clip-ons you see above are the absolute best swag I could ever hope to find. There's really not much to them. The 3D experience was identical to what you'll get with traditional passive glasses -- these simply clip on top of your eyeglasses, rather than resting on their own. They also offer UV protection, and "communicate seamlessly with the TV." Well alright then. While attendees could get their own pair for free at IFA, you can also find these online for about 20 bucks -- sold as the LG AG-F220. I'd like to see them become much more widely available, and more affordable as well. So listen up, Hollywood: if you ever again want me to hand over five extra bucks at the box office to watch an animated bear kick his furry paw directly toward my temple, these better be waiting on the other side of the ticket scan.
3D glasses vending machine lets you be fashionable in the dark
There are certain things worth paying to upgrade: earbuds, perhaps, and maybe even Spotify. But when it comes to buying fancy 3D glasses for the sole purpose of looking cool in a pitch-black theater -- well, aren't we already spending enough on popcorn and Funyuns? EX3D doesn't seem to think so. Starting August 13th, moviegoers in San Diego will be able to trade in those freebies for fashion at a 3D glasses vending machine. At $22 - $30 a pop, these "affordable" and "stylish" glasses may be a boon for those who wouldn't be caught dead wearing the same specs as their friends. Of course, you can also use these babies out of the theater on a passive 3D TV. As for us? We'll stick with the freebies, thank you very much. Jump past the break for the full PR.
LG claims 4 out of 5 viewers prefer its 3D to Sony or Samsung, whips up some new ads
The next shot in the active glasses vs. passive glasses 3DTV war has been fired by LG, claiming survey results showing 4 out of 5 viewers polled preferred its technology to those offered by Sony and Samsung. According to the press release, all the displays were tested by Morpace Inc. in May at their default settings without any branding shown. Our experience with the LG LW5600 HDTV was that the passive solution was comfortable and bright, but did suffer a bit of artifacting on edges and text that we haven't spotted on active shutter glasses 3DTV. Hit the source link to pore through the data that's been made available or check out the press release and video after the break, while they argue over preference we're pretty sure the biggest challenge is convincing users to choose 3D in the first place.
LG LW5600 3D LCD HDTV review
Much like the format war that once divided us between HD DVD and Blu-ray, a battle between two different types of 3D-capable HDTVs rages on while customers wait to be convinced that any of the new tech is worth the trouble. One of the first to enter the battlefield for the passive glasses side from LG is the LW5600, a slim edge-LED lit LCD model that is most notable for its extras. Besides featuring a Film Patterned Retarder (FPR) screen that plays back 3D viewable with the same RealD glasses you use at the movie theater, it's a connected TV packing apps, Plex media streaming software and a "magic motion" gesture control remote. After perusing the spec list we couldn't wait to see if more features actually made for a better HDTV experience and if passive 3D is a competitive option for home viewing, so check after the break to see how we felt about it after a few hours on the couch.
TCO study compares active and passive 3DTV glasses, doesn't really favor one over the other
The debate over active and passive 3DTV glasses has, for the most part, been riddled with biased claims (and more than a little mudslinging) from TV manufacturers on both sides of the aisle. Now, however, an independent study from TCO Development has finally shed some light on how the two glasses can actually affect a user's viewing experience -- and yes, there are some differences. When researchers tilted the passive, film pattern retarder (FPR) above or below a vertical viewing angle of 15-degrees, 3D images tended to bleed into one another at a higher rate. Active glasses, meanwhile, transmitted white images at a luminance that was three times lower than what FPR-equipped shades delivered. But because passive 3D glasses display images at different polarizations for each eye, they don't offer as much vertical resolution as their active counterparts. Unfortunately, TCO didn't look into how each pair of glasses affects a viewer's health and comfort -- which, for most of us, would probably be the deciding factor. But as soon as it does, expect either Panasonic or LG to jump all over the results. Dive into the full PR after the break.
Vizio Theater 3D HDTVs show up on Amazon, confirm rumored pricing
The 32- and 42-inch versions of Vizio's E3D series HDTVs are now listed for preorder on Amazon at $499 and $699 just as our tipster indicated. The E3D320VX and E3D420VX are currently expected to ship in 3-5 weeks, which should also allow buyers interested in the new FPR-based Theater 3D technology to be among the first pick one up without heading to Walmart. Of course you still can if you want to, a 48-pack of paper towels should go well with your new 3DTV and its dual-sided QWERTY remote. [Thanks, Phil Z.]
LG woos Sony while it battles with Samsung over which 3D is best
The fight between the active shutter glasses 3D technology favored by TV manufacturers like Samsung, Panasonic and Sony against the Film Pattern Retarder (FPR) passive glasses 3D technology being pushed by LG got uglier this week. The Wall Street Journal points out LG's print ads currently running in Korea (they could be running here already, but we'd have to read physical magazines or newspapers to know for sure) claim that unlike the competition, it will work even when viewers lay down on their sides, though the effect may be slightly weakened. Samsung responded by citing experts recommending keeping your head horizontal to watch 3D since the cameras used to film it are aligned horizontally, and an executive apparently called LG's engineers "stupid" at a press conference, although reports of a "yo mama so fat" diss could not be confirmed. Of course, since these are the world's two biggest TV manufacturers, they sell to end users and other manufacturers like Sony, which Reuters reports LG is waiting to hear from about using its technology in the future. Sony and Samsung are already tight when it comes to LCD manufacturing but it's obvious LG is looking for a few more friends to line up alongside Vizio, Toshiba and Philips (which just announced its latest displays using active and passive glasses.) But back to the end users for a moment, if anyone's going to buy any of these 3DTVs, it may be wise to start selling consumers on why the feature is worthwhile at all and pointing out the growing amount of content -- this week's Big East basketball tournament, Killzone 3, the NBA Finals or Blu-ray 3D releases like Tron: Legacy -- before folks decide just waiting for 4D would be the wisest choice.
LG starts shipping new 'flicker free' 3D TVs with passive glasses
LG announced at CES that it was breaking from other TV manufacturers to push its own FPR technology for 3DTVs and now they've started shipping in Korea including the LW5700 pictured above. LG's new approach means placing a special film over the LCD screen (no plasmas, although OLED versions are planned in the future) letting users use cheap "flicker free" passive 3D glasses instead of keeping a conventional display and using more expensive active shutter 3D glasses. LG's new TVs with the screens should start arriving in the US in March, although Vizio is already selling one Cinema 3D TV over here with the technology and plans to deliver a slew of new models soon. Of course, the main downside to this approach is that it halves the resolution delivered to each eye when wearing the glasses, but -- if you hadn't already guessed from its tablets and phones -- LG is betting big on 3D this year, we'll see if it pays off.
Vizio unveils Theater 3D HDTVs with passive glasses tech in 22- to 71-inch sizes
We doubt we've seen all of Vizio's 2011 product lineup yet, but the latest information is that it's expanding upon the one Theater 3D TV model currently available with an entire line -- promising to offer 3D with passive glasses in sizes from 22- all the up to 71-inches. There are 21 models detailed in the press release after the break including LED edge lit LCDs, direct LED backlit models, ones with the Yahoo! Widgets VIA package and a couple of the new Google TV-powered models. No word on price or ship date yet, but the company is quick to point out that putting the 3D processing into the screen means cheaper movie theater-style 3D glasses with ostensible greater brightness and less flicker, plus compatibility with Oakley's "optically correct" specs. Check out all the details in the press release after the break.
RealD to license ZScreen for HDTVs, bring cheap 3D glasses to the masses
Most who have seen their favorite content in 3D have seen the light, but still find it hard to look past the glasses. Any 3D glasses are worse than no glasses at all, but expensive 3D glasses make even less sense to most. So while all the consumer 3DTV glasses so far have been of the expensive active shutter variety (which keeps the price of the TVs more in line with the 2D versions), RealD announced at the 3D entertainment summit that it would license its ZScreen technology (pictured above) to 3DTV manufacturers. This means that the same inexpensive 3D glasses used in theaters could be used at home. The big question of course is how much will these 3DTVs cost, and how will the 3D quality experience compare to what active shutter glasses can offer. But to those who hate heavy, expensive 3D glasses that require batteries, this is could certainly be good news.
AUO's 65-inch 3D HDTV panel headed for the conveyer belt in 2H 2010, boasts polarized specs
While it might have been a pipe dream back in '09, Taiwanese display manufacturer AU Optronics is firmly committed to blasting our eyeballs in 2010, with a monstrous 65-inch HD LCD panel ready for all the 3D and pseudo-3D content (we're looking at you, G-Force) you have on offer. AUO isn't hedging its bets on this one, either; at FPD China 2010, the company announced that they're using a polarized solution with cheap, $2 to 3 glasses to generate the 3D effect. Sure, polarized is the preferred method for most theatres, but it's often more expensive than active shutter tech for an in-home user -- and can come with some serious visual tradeoffs like permanent ghosting or halved vertical resolution. We won't know for sure until we get hands-on, but either way, expect to see AUO's panels in a branded 3D HDTV near you early next year, or just a few months before HDI drops a 103-inch monster of its own.
