3D HDTV looks set to be the next big thing in the consumer market, and it's already making an impact in the UK. Sky will be broadcasting this weekend's Premiership match between Arsenal and Manchester United in 3D in nine UK pubs, and the technology could soon become a fixture in the living room.
Whether you love it or hate it, get ready for 3D HDTV
It seems like only yesterday when 1080p and 120Hz were the top of the line specs for which our eyes lusted and our wallets despised. Well, that's old-hat now, and it's time you got yourself educated on the 3D technology that will define HDTVs in 2010 and beyond.
Now, let's get the obvious out of the way: 3D technology is nothing new.
Scientists have experimented with 3D visuals since the invention of moving pictures, and commercial 3D films can be dated back to the 1950s.
But somewhere between then and now, 3D lost its charm as serious technology, and gained a reputation for being kitschy and frivolous.
Today, companies like Sony and LG are preparing large campaigns to get 3D TVs into millions of homes. The playing field is definitely changing, but there are still some ghosts in the closet that 3D can't run away from.
3D Glasses: no more red and blue
Those funky red-and-blue tinted glasses are as much an icon of 3D as bad horror movies and the resulting headaches.
Old 3D movies used a technology known as anaglyphs.
The glasses forced each individual eye to perceive separate images based on the colour filtered through the lens. When your brain puts the two images together, depth can be perceived and a 3D effect is born.
The downside of using anaglyphs, however, is that you lose all sense of colour.
Perhaps in the 50s, the absence of realistic colour was less of an issue since technology was still transitioning from black-and-white images, but today 3D anaglyph technology would be a slap in the face to pretentious directors everywhere.
NEXT PAGE: 3D glasses compared
Comments
Lew Warren said: David your article is great but anaglyph 3D redblue glasses for movies was ONLY for short subjects in the 20s and 30s Polarization was invented in the 40s so ALL movies in the 50s and since have been using polarized glassesAnaglyph 3D is still used for movies on TV because the pixel structure even for 1080p isnt detailed enough to pass on the polarization The new 3D HDTVs will have to use the shutter glasses for true colorProjected HDTV could be polarized and therefore use the polarized glasses This would be a good solution for bars and large home theatersAnaglyph 3D was used and still is used for printed material such as comic books
callum said: Eric you do realise people were and still are saying the same about HD and bluray and I imagine many said the same as colourNo they dont expect the public to keep up with them As you may remember when HDTVs came out they were very expensive As with virtually all new technology a group of enthusiasts buy them and over time they get cheaper and cheaper until now where HDTVs are pretty much standardThe same will probably happen with this A few will buy them upon release it slowly drops in price over the next few years then more people choose to buy them so they get even cheaper etc etc
V.R. said: In rural Pennsylvania we are in a tech black hole The only way to receive cable is to buy a dish the only way to get half way decent net speed is to buy another dish In fact since the networks went digital the only way to receive their broadcasts reliably is through the satellite dish The converter boxes work but the signals can not be trusted to stay strong 3D TV sounds incredible but it also sounds like more trouble than its worth for at least a few years
Eric Adolpho said: I can understand technology moving on but in my opinion this has got to be over the top The manufacturers have just pushed out the LED televisions giving better clarity in viewing standards and now this What cost for the recievers and then the costs for say 4 people in a household for the glasses Is this all about changing your television as often as changing a pair off trainers How long do these companies expect the public to keep up with them the cost in doing it is very high Are we all rich people
Mike O'Connor said: Read elsewhere that free-to-air TV doesnt have the necessary bandwidth 40 mbps to broadcast 3D-TV in High Definition although BluRay can provide the bandwidth Whats the truth about the situation