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Toshiba Regza GL1 3D preview: no frills, no glasses, some issues (video)
It's with some surprise that we pen, finger to key to screen, praise for a 3D display -- particularly one that is glasses-free (the staff is still a bit divided, for example, on Nintendo's 3DS screen). But here we go. Toshiba's 20-inch Regza 20GL1 3D set was on hand at CEATEC, and it's actually a set we could see ourselves comfortably watching for a given span of time. Viewing angles are none too shabby, the refresh rate doesn't visibly distract or inherently cause headaches, and at 720p, you can actually get an enjoyable image. The 56-inch concept conjured up a worthy picture as well, but then again, it's a prototype with no immediate purpose other than causing attendee awe at this point. If we had to fault it, we'd say that the viewing angles where you see two distinct perspectives (see the picture above for an example) are too wide, which means you'd have to be really careful about where you sit on the couch if you were to buy something like this for your den. Also on hand was a notebook, which at this point just didn't cut it. Perhaps it's just too early in development, but what was saw had minimal depth and an unfortunately low resolution / perceived refresh rate; when the video loop it was playing switched to the Windows 7 UI, it looked grainy and extremely difficult to read -- undoubtedly the side effect of trying to use a display designed for permanent 3D use in 2D mode. That leaves us to talk about 12-inch 12GL1, and what can we express other than disappointment? The 466 x 350 resolution (yes, that's less than standard definition) is just awful, you can lose the 3D effect moving marginally to the left or right, depth is not pronounced, and medium-to-fast pace footage just doesn't work. For all the warm-yet-cautious approval we give to the 20GL1, its little brother is quite the black sheep, especially at ¥120,000 ($1,443). Not that ¥240,000 for 20 inches is a bargain, but at least you're getting a quality screen... and for once, you don't actually need additional eyewear to enjoy it. Decidedly two-dimensional snapshots and video taken from an almost pitch-black showroom (i.e. very not optimal) can be found below. %Gallery-104266%
Sharp's 3D tablet panel doesn't require glasses, RGBY 3D TVs launching this summer do
Don't think Sharp's going to sit by and let Panasonic, Samsung, and Sony have all the 3D TV fun. The Japanese company, and fourth-largest LCD TV maker, plans to begin selling its own 3D TVs in Japan this summer before launching in the US, Chinese, and European markets sometime later in the year. To prove it, Sharp ponied up some sample RGBY ("Y" for yellow) 3D LCD panels it claims to be the "industries brightest" in sizes up to 60-inches. While these biggie panels all require active 3D shutter glasses for the extra-dimensional effect, Sharp was also showing off a 10.1-inch 3D display prototype for netbooks or tablets that -- like its 3.4-inch parallax barrier display announced last week and suspected to be headed to Ninty town -- doesn't require glasses at all and can be produced with or without a touchscreen. No word on when that pup might begin mass production, however. 60-inch panel pictured after the break with a real live woman doing the pointing -- amazing.
StreamTV's 42- and 37-inch 3D TVs don't require glasses, do include Blu-ray, might not exist
Ever heard of StreamTV? Us neither. Yet there it is, a pair of entries just added today to Amazon.com. Most interesting is the 42-inch 3D TV that, like its 37-inch bro, includes a built-in 500GB HDD, Blu-ray player, and "full browsing capabilities using Entertainment Portal." Oh, and it doesn't require 3D glasses. Do you believe it? Take our advice and wait for a bit more info before entering your $5,999.99 pre-order. May 7th isn't too far away.
i3D's glasses-free prototype screen aims to take on all of 3D's problem areas
Uncomfortable, expensive glasses and a lack of 3D content -- that'd be the short list of stuff we dislike about current 3D TVs, but coincidentally it also happens to be the exact issues i3D is determined to wipe out with its glasses-free technology. We stopped by to meet with the young, Los Angeles-based company last week, and though it obviously isn't the first to develop spec-less displays, its proprietary hardware and software combo was really impressive. The demo of a 7-inch prototype really tells the whole story -- and we encourage you all to see it for yourself in the video after the break, though obviously you won't be able to experience all three dimensions from your standard LCD. Our time screen-gazing was pretty breathtaking, even though the smaller display was far from immersive. As for the viewing angle issue that's the Achilles' heel of the others, i3D claims its technology allows for three-dimensional viewing at close to 90 degrees, though it was hard for us to really evaluate that on such a small screen. The coolest thing by far is the software's ability to convert 2D to 3D content on the fly. One second we were watching a two-dimensional clip of Cars and then with the tap of the 3D button the car was driving off the screen. While this isn't the first company dabbling in 2D conversion, we haven't seen any others doing this without the glasses, and i3D does claim it can convert any resolution programming. We'll have to see it to believe it, but if it does work and the quality lives up to what's being promised there'd go our lack of content issue! Apparently the price of the technology should add at most 20 percent to that of a current HDTV, but here's where we tell you that we wouldn't be surprised if it took years for all this technology to make into Best Buy's Magnolia Home Theater section. Given the fact that we met with the company in a backyard, we'd say that both it and its technology are in the early stages. But hey, it makes you feel better that someone is working on that 3D frustration list, right? %Gallery-88839%
No-glasses 3D display with 64 viewing angles to debut at CeBIT
Singaporean outfit Sunny Ocean Studios is pledging to put all of the autostereoscopic 3D we've seen so far to shame with a new 27-inch display offering 64 viewing angles it will show at CeBIT. A serious upgrade from the 8 or 9 viewing angle lenticular displays we saw at CES this year, the company claims it's ready to refit regular displays for 3D and also assist in 2D-to-3D image conversion. We've got all of the usual questions lined up like how will this affect resolution, what's necessary to render the necessary 64 different frames for each viewing angle and of course, how much does it cost, but founder Armin Grasnick says his company can handle screens of up to 100-inches quickly and inexpensively, likely by not wasting precious R&D funds on website design. The current state of 3D is glasses all the way, but we could get a peek at the next step March 2 in Germany.
Intel shows off glasses-free 3D demo -- now this is more like it
If you've kept even a loose eye on our CES coverage this year, you'd know that 3D is firmly "in." But our main gripe is that the glasses requirement makes it largely impractical for in-home use. Intel had a comparison demo setup in its massive booth, and it had a top display arranged to showcase glasses-free 3D and the bottom to demonstrate the more traditional glasses-required 3D. A technician at the booth explained that the footage was all specifically shot to fit the format, and a special overlay was applied to the 3D HDTV in order to complete the magic. He confessed that the resolution was "sub-720p," and there were only eight specific places that you could stand at in order to actually get the full experience. We stood around 10 feet back, dead center, and were downright wowed by the results. You could honestly see loads of depth, and everything appeared buttery smooth. Stepping closer resulted in less-than-awesome visuals, but we're definitely stoked by the possibilities here. Take note, TV / content makers -- glasses free > glasses-required. %Gallery-82534%
Hitachi exhibits 10-inch glasses-free 3D display
Hitachi's face-recognizing, power-saving plasma may have been the outfit's show-stopper at CEATEC, but this little bugger here showed some pretty fantastic potential as well. The 10-inch 3D display, more formally known as the Full Parallax 3D TV, one-upped most every other 3D display at the show thanks to its ability to showcase dimensions sans any glasses. Unfortunately, the native resolution is just 640 x 480, and yes, it really is just 10-inches in size. In due time, the outfit hopes to scale up to screen sizes that may actually be appealing to end users by utilizing multiple projectors (each of which with a 800 x 600 resolution), though a 4K x 2K 3D display (of the glasses-free variety) is still probably a couple of trade shows out. At least.[Via 3D-Display-Info]
NY storefront hosts the first no-glasses 3D LCD ad
Like 3D, don't like glasses? Check out 750 7th Avenue at 50th Street in New York for the Snickers display where Inwindow Outdoor and Alioscopy have teamed up for the first 3D LCD ad on a storefront. The 42-inch panel uses an 8x recorded autosteroscopic (read: no glasses) 3D process to make the catchphrase jump off the wall at passers-by. The installation debuted May 6, and for the small cost of being marketed to vs. the now-shelved €18,000 Philips screen we once lusted after, it's a cheap way for us to get a peek at the future.
Tough economic times cause Philips to axe a dimension, get by with just two
Many people are giving up many things to get by in this dire recession, things like vacations, new cars, and highly expensive though well deserved plastic surgery procedures to finally deliver the pectoral definition that nature and daily push-ups won't. Sacrifices all, but perhaps none as big as that made by Philips, which is getting rid of an entire dimensional plane and going strictly 2D. Last year the company talked up display after display after display with glasses-free 3D tech, but now they, along with the company's entire 3D Solutions division, are all being scrapped in favor of more immediately profitable endeavors. So, who wants to buy a vibrating jacket?
3DFusion debuts glasses-free 3DFMax display
Forget all those 1080p sets with internet connectivity -- what you really want is an HDTV that does three-dee. Over at the Digital Signage Expo in Las Vegas, 3DFusion has announced the market launch of its 3DFMax stereoscopic, glasses free, broadcast ready (get all that?) 3D display. The set is built upon the Philips WOWvx 3D solution, but outside of that, we're really left to wonder what this thing's made of. No resolution, no contrast ratio, no price. Just the hope of a chicken in every pot and a 3D HDTV in every den.
