So I Actually Saw A 3D 'Home' Setup...

[BMXTRIX]

Okay, not at a home, but at the Sony Style store in Pentagon City mall here in Virginia.

It was a demo disc (apparently) running on Blu-ray as far as I could tell and some shutter glasses.

Nobody was waiting to try it out as well, so I got to sit down and watch their canned clips of Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs in 3D, which I had also see in the theater with my son in 3D. Intermittently they had a Sony starfield logo pop up with a ton of 3D put in.

My impressions:

There were four things I can say that I really noticed that mattered...

1. The colors were amazing. None of the junk with old red/green glasses. This was the polarized full color effect we maintain in theaters, except with shutter glasses. The colors popped and allowed for the vibrance of that film to shine through with excellence. Since this has been one of the biggest issues with lousy 3D at home, it was great to see it overcome.

2. The depth was what it should be. With 3D kicked in, you got an immediate immersion into the 3D that the movie presented. It was very satisfying to see the effect properly recreated on a 55" (or so) LCD display.

3. The shutter glasses had noticable flicker. Period. I'm not sure if this would cause me headaches. I'm NOT sure if they were operating at 120hz, or if this mock up was only running at 60hz, but the flicker from the LCD glasses was definitely there. I put my finger over the IR sensor which maintained timing and saw the shutters go WAY out of sequence before turning off completely (clear). It was interesting to see how quickly and accurately they restored their proper timing, but it still had noticably flicker.

4. The image dimmed, quite clearly, by 50%. While LCDs are still going to be great with this technology, especially with after dark viewing, the front projectors are going to need to pump out a few more lumens to maintain 100"-110" screen sizes (typical) and keep their punch.

Overall, while I was very happy with what I saw, the flicker was my big concern and I am going to wait to buy in until the shutter speed increases enough to deal with it better. Obviously, if I was watching a 60hz demo, then we may get an immediate jump with the actual technology at 120hz. It may take 240hz to really work to eliminate it though. We'll see. But, it was very cool to see a nice display properly render 3D with some lightweigh glasses which took care of the necessary 3D effect.

 

[Midwesthonky]

Thanks for posting your experience with the 3D system. It will be an interesting technology to watch over the next couple of years.

 

[BMXTRIX]

So, I went back to the Sony Style store and sat down for about 20 minutes or so just watching the same five minute sequence loop over and over. Kind of boring, but I was playing with the setup more than anything else to see what it was like and to see if I would get eyestrain.

I found that the most irritating thing was definitely visible lights within the scope of my viewing. So, another display to the right of the 3D setup would have more flicker in it which bugged me, and a overhead light, while turned on low, was still bugging me a bit. The 3D itself remained excellent, but I did have a few convergience issues and ghosting which was something I consider somewhat typical when I view 3D.

The color pop was still there and the more I looked at it, the more I appreciated it for sure. Removing the glasses clearly showed the blurry single (appearing) image on screen, but as soon as the glasses went on, a 3D image was all I saw.

The flicker was still present, but did not seem as pronounced as the first viewing which I heard could be attributed to low batteries in the glasses.

I was able to talk to a sales associate for five minutes and interrogate him on things.

He let me know that the number one comment from people has been that the flicker has been noticable, so this will clearly be something which Sony will be addressing. He also let me know that the TV is an early demo release of their upcoming 3D display and is operating at 240hz and the glasses are operating to deliver 120hz per eye. Whoa! Pretty impresive specs.
The player is Sony's current 3D BD player and he talked a bit about the upcoming PS3 3D upgrades which should be done around July to add 3D gaming (first) followed by 3D Blu-ray playback. (It only does everything?)
The audio system in the store could NOT handle the 3D video passing through it, so they had to go direct to the display from their player and hook up audio via toslink to their sound system. This makes the new Panasonic 3D player with dual HDMI outputs a very interesting option for lots of people.

I asked about glasses and he let me know that he really hadn't heard anything solid on it, but that the flat round battery (like a large watch battery) that he was using in the glasses had to be replaced every 2-3 days and were not rechargable. I can only imagine that this will NOT be the case with the final product(s). There was a fair bit of supposition that Sony will have many styles available, perhaps even prescription versions.

He asked if I wanted to do a survey, which I definitely signed up for.

At the end of things, this really has me sold on 3D being here to stay for home use and that I won't be making any more display purchases for my home in a primary area (projector) unless it is 3D capable. Not a big deal since I've got a nice setup already, but I will be going to a 3D projection setup at some point in the next couple of years I expect and I think manufacturers have the goods to deliver the quality for 3D this time around.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

I have Sony Style showroom few block from my work in midtown. Been there before couple of times.
As soon as it gets a bit warmer I promise to revisit them , hopefully they have 3d demo in place

 

[BMXTRIX]

Sony has a nice marketing site for their 3D stuff...
http://discover.sonystyle.com/bravia/sony3d/

Let's you look up a store in your area (if there is one).

At the end of the day, I probably won't end up with any Sony 3D product, but it sure is nice to see what they have coming to market.

 

[Jack Hammer]

A few weeks ago I was Our World Underwater (scuba show) and the Wreck Diving magazine booth had a 3D display of video from a deep dive on a WWII wreck. I spent about ten minutes watching and was very impressed with the effect. It was nice that even when I moved around to simulate different seating positions, the effect was still maintained and not locked to one position or distance. Though, if I went too far to a side the image on the edge of the screen began to double, this was much further than a normal seating position would be.

What impressed me most wasn't the stuff that "leapt" out from the screen but the overall depth and balance of everything working together to help give me a feeling of being there. It's hard to comment on the colors because of the nature of underwater filming and how the deeper you go the more color it filters out. Depending on depth this can leave muted and darker colors which while I find makes a wreck look better, it makes poor subject matter to evaluate a tv.

When I talked with them about the the 3D technology and how realistic and cool the effect was, they told me it wasn't the same type setup that is readily available to the public but a "very expensive professional 3D system." This one was using polarized glasses, not even the shutter system and I was pretty impressed. I was led to believe that the consumer polarized systems didn't perform as well, so it may not be a fair comparison. Either way, I definately see this in my future.

 

[jostenmeat]

This makes the new Panasonic 3D player with dual HDMI outputs a very interesting option for lots of people.

Ah Ha! Great work-around.

I asked about glasses and he let me know that he really hadn't heard anything solid on it, but that the flat round battery (like a large watch battery) that he was using in the glasses had to be replaced every 2-3 days and were not rechargable. I can only imagine that this will NOT be the case with the final product(s).

Yeah, seriously. Perhaps charger stations? I hope they are not expensive, because I'd want 8 of them. Sometimes, I need more than 8.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Sony has a nice marketing site for their 3D stuff...
http://discover.sonystyle.com/bravia/sony3d/

Let's you look up a store in your area (if there is one).

At the end of the day, I probably won't end up with any Sony 3D product, but it sure is nice to see what they have coming to market.

Thx, as I suspected mid-town NYC Sony Style store WILL have the latest and the greatest
I'll talk to my boss (amateur AH under my guidance) to go together there on Monday (they promised 50F so it should be nice)

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

Okay, not at a home, but at the Sony Style store in Pentagon City mall here in Virginia.

It was a demo disc (apparently) running on Blu-ray as far as I could tell and some shutter glasses.

Nobody was waiting to try it out as well, so I got to sit down and watch their canned clips of Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs in 3D, which I had also see in the theater with my son in 3D. Intermittently they had a Sony starfield logo pop up with a ton of 3D put in.

My impressions:

There were four things I can say that I really noticed that mattered...

1. The colors were amazing. None of the junk with old red/green glasses. This was the polarized full color effect we maintain in theaters, except with shutter glasses. The colors popped and allowed for the vibrance of that film to shine through with excellence. Since this has been one of the biggest issues with lousy 3D at home, it was great to see it overcome.

2. The depth was what it should be. With 3D kicked in, you got an immediate immersion into the 3D that the movie presented. It was very satisfying to see the effect properly recreated on a 55" (or so) LCD display.

3. The shutter glasses had noticable flicker. Period. I'm not sure if this would cause me headaches. I'm NOT sure if they were operating at 120hz, or if this mock up was only running at 60hz, but the flicker from the LCD glasses was definitely there. I put my finger over the IR sensor which maintained timing and saw the shutters go WAY out of sequence before turning off completely (clear). It was interesting to see how quickly and accurately they restored their proper timing, but it still had noticably flicker.

4. The image dimmed, quite clearly, by 50%. While LCDs are still going to be great with this technology, especially with after dark viewing, the front projectors are going to need to pump out a few more lumens to maintain 100"-110" screen sizes (typical) and keep their punch.

Overall, while I was very happy with what I saw, the flicker was my big concern and I am going to wait to buy in until the shutter speed increases enough to deal with it better. Obviously, if I was watching a 60hz demo, then we may get an immediate jump with the actual technology at 120hz. It may take 240hz to really work to eliminate it though. We'll see. But, it was very cool to see a nice display properly render 3D with some lightweigh glasses which took care of the necessary 3D effect.

Just visited same demo in the local Sony Style in Midtown and I'd say I 100% confirm everything BMX said.
Yes, the colors great and depth is easily can seen. Images is slightly dimmed, maybe a bit less than 50% but surely dimmed.

Flicker IS very, VERY noticeable and annoying - my boss even felt dizzy only after 10mins or less in glasses.

On side note, they have dark room in back with huge 130" plus screen and top of the line sony projector. Last time I was there - they were showing nature clips and it was stunning quality. now only a mere transformers 2 video clips wasn't a nearly as cool or stunning.

 

[bombarde32]

Flicker IS very, VERY noticeable and annoying - my boss even felt dizzy only after 10mins or less in glasses.

I understand what causes the flicker. The opening/closing of shutters. But I haven't heard a simple explanation of why you need the shutters? Why can't they just set it up like in the movie theater where you throw on a cheap pair of 'shades' and pray no one looks at you for the next 90 minutes.

 

[zhimbo]

I understand what causes the flicker. The opening/closing of shutters. But I haven't heard a simple explanation of why you need the shutters? Why can't they just set it up like in the movie theater where you throw on a cheap pair of 'shades' and pray no one looks at you for the next 90 minutes.

This is my understanding: Movie 3-D works through polarized light, and the glasses are differently oriented polarized glasses.

Home 3-D works by alternating frames, and letting only one eye see "even" frames and the other eye see "odd" frames.

 

[BoredSysAdmin]

I think as BMX mentioned, noticeable flicker is most likely caused by not sufficient refresh rate of ether the TV or 3D glasses.

 

[Jack Hammer]

Like many things, early adopters will just have to suffer til it gets better next year.

 

[BMXTRIX]

I understand what causes the flicker. The opening/closing of shutters. But I haven't heard a simple explanation of why you need the shutters? Why can't they just set it up like in the movie theater where you throw on a cheap pair of 'shades' and pray no one looks at you for the next 90 minutes.

The simple explanation isn't simple really, but the explanation above is close.

The light from the projector is sent through a spinning polarizer typically and this polarized light is projected onto a special screen that does not affect the polarized light and allows for cheap polarized lenses to receive the stereoscopic image properly.

Polarized LCD, plasma, and even home projection is prohibitively expensive. Like, thousands of dollars more per display, if it's even possible at all with the display technology you are using.

So, while buying 10+ pairs of glasses may not make sense, buying 2-6 pairs is far less costly than using polarized technology in the home viewing environment.

Moreso, we are likely to see 100+ different types of active shutter glasses hit the market in the next few years ranging from killer boutique brands at hundreds of dollars a pair to some sub $50 a pair Chinese import product. Pricing within 2-3 years I expect to be typically about $50 a pair, so for a family it'll add $200-$300 to get the 3D glasses for your home setup.

 

[just-some-guy]

MAGNOLIA and SEARS are supposed to get 3D sets in soon.

but this is one wagon i am not going to jump on right away.

 

[just-some-guy]

i just got back from seeing 2 3D demos at BB.



is what i have to say.

FAR better quality than avatar 3D at the theater.

having this, in my room, at 119" is just going to be PHENOMENAL !!!