Samsung's sub-$1000 3DTV may have already broken cover, but the real star today is the UN65C8000: a 65-inch 3D LED LCD TV that's the largest in the world. Talk about immersive. UPDATED:
The UN65C8000 features 240Hz refresh, Samsung's 3D processor, and built-in Wi-Fi to access Samsung Apps like Hulu and ESPN. Of course, with great size comes great expense—you'll have to drop $6,000 to bring one of these home. And while it's nice that Samsung's throwing in two pairs of 3D glasses and an exclusive How To Train Your Dragon 3D BD as part of their 3D starter kit, something tells me that doesn't offset the price enough to ease much of the sting.
On the 3D plasma TV side, Samsung's outing two higher-end models to complement the sub-$1000 PN50C490. The 58-inch PN58C680 and 50-inch PN50C680 will be available this month for $2300 and $1600 respectively.
UPDATE: After watching some 3D Blu-ray content on the UN65C8000, I can tell you that LCD 3D technology has definitely improved since January. The image still isn't quite as smooth as plasma alternatives, but it's definitely not as jittery as previous efforts. Of course, all the quality in the world still doesn't make up for the lack of content. It's a problem that's getting better, but there still doesn't seem to be enough reason yet to pull the trigger on on 3D.
SAMSUNG EXPANDS BLU-RAY 3D CONTENT AND INTRODUCES WORLD'S LARGEST 3D LED TV FOR THE HOME
New 3D TVs across a range of price points allow everyone to experience immersive 3D at home
RIDGEFIELD PARK, NJ, August 11, 2010 – Samsung Electronics America, Inc., a market
leader and award-winning innovator in consumer electronics, today announced new 3D
content exclusive to Samsung. This fall, Samsung will make available 3D Blu-ray versions of
DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc.'s (Nasdaq: DWA) global 3D blockbuster How to Train Your
Dragon, IMAX's original productions Into the Deep and Galapagos, and Giant Screen Films
Mummies: Secrets of the Pharoahs. Samsung also announced four new 3D LED and Plasma
TVs, further adding to the world's broadest lineup of 3D home entertainment products. The
expanded 3D TV portfolio features Samsung's proprietary technologies and innovative design
and larger screen sizes to deliver more immersive 3D experiences.
Samsung's latest line-up of 3D-capable HDTVs and new Blu-ray 3D films underscore its
ongoing commitment to give consumers compelling content and superior products that together
deliver an outstanding 3D home entertainment experience in the home.
"With 3D, people can explore the wonder of an immersive entertainment experience in the
comfort of their homes," said John Revie, senior vice president of Home Entertainment,
Samsung Electronics America, Inc. "As the HDTV market leader for four straight years, we are
proud to lead the way into the next dimension of premium entertainment and will continue to
collaborate with industry leaders like DreamWorks Animation, IMAX and Giant Screen Films to
deliver richer content to the home."
Rich Cinematic Content Now Available for the Home
The availability of unique, high-quality 3D content is key to providing consumers a total 3D
entertainment experience for the home. To that end, Samsung's ongoing strategic alliance
with DreamWorks Animation represents the best in 3D technology and animation, and gives
Samsung TV owners exclusive opportunities to access 3D Blu-ray versions of this rich cinematic
content. How to Train Your Dragon is among the top ten movies of 2010 and joins Monsters vs.
Aliens as the second DreamWorks Animation title available exclusively to Samsung TV owners
in 3D Blu-ray.
The IMAX documentaries take audiences on a spectacular three-dimensional exploration of two
unique environments and bring the beauty of these locations right into the living room. Into the
captures unique marine life and magnificent undersea worlds. The audience will become sea
dwellers, discovering a living breathing kaleidoscope through the magical prism of IMAX 3D
technology.
Galapagos is part adventure, part scientific expedition and part fantastic voyage. Viewers are
taken on an immersive cinematic experience as they "accompany" the scientists as they delve
into the largely unknown waters surrounding the volcanic archipelago to explore the natural
wonders of a realm that is truly a living natural science laboratory.
Finally, with Mummies: Secrets of the Pharaohs, a film made by Giant Screen Films, viewers
will travel back in time and experience the grandeur of Egypt in the time of the Pharaohs
and explore the mysteries and science enshrouding the ancient royal mummies and their
subsequent modern day discoveries. The film is narrated by Christopher Lee of Lord of the
Rings fame.
Expanded Range of Full HD 3D LED TVs Delivers Premium 3D Experience
With its sleek 65-inch screen, the new Samsung UN65C8000 is the largest Full HD 3D LED
TV available for the home today. Featuring Samsung's built-in 3D processor, Real 240Hz
refresh rate technology, dynamic 8,000,000:1 contrast ratio and proprietary Precision Dimming
technology, the award-winning LED 8000 series delivers unsurpassed picture quality and an
immersive 3D experience in an ultra-slim design. The LED 8000 is WiFi-ready and supports
Skype via Samsung Apps. This means that the TV becomes a huge video screen and brings an
almost life-like quality to video calls. Keeping in touch with friends and family around the world is
now an activity the whole family can participate in, right from the living room. Viewers can also
access a full range of apps – such as Hulu Plus and ESPN Next Level – via Samsung Apps at
their convenience.
New 3D Plasma HDTVs Make It Easy to Bring the Wonder of 3D Home
Samsung has expanded its 2010 Plasma HDTV line-up with the introduction of three new 3D-
enabled plasma TVs that deliver outstanding immersive 3D experience and premium picture
quality at an affordable price.
The Plasma 680 Series offers an immersive 3D experience, and underscores Samsung's
commitment to performance, design and value. The Samsung Plasma 680 Series features
Full HD 1080p resolution and 600Hz Subfield Motion to deliver crisp, lifelike images, and
clear motion, while the Mega Dynamic Contrast Ratio creates deep blacks and brilliant colors.
Available in 50- or 58-inch screen sizes, the Plasma 680 Series also allows users to share
media files stored on PCs or other DLNA-compliant devices on the big-screen via AllShare. The
attractive Touch of Color design adds a subtle black-to-dark blue accent to the set's bezel and
exceeds the more stringent ENERGY STAR 4.0 standards.
Offering great value and features, the 3D-capable Plasma 490 Series is smartly wrapped in an
attractive piano key black cabinet with a dark blue Touch of Color design. Delivering premium
picture quality with its Clear Image Panel technology and 600Hz Subfield Motion technologies,
the Plasma C490 showcases a high-performance picture quality at a great value.
The 3DS wowed the crowds at E3. The 3D handheld certainly had the most buzz coming out of the show. Of course, people have been most amazed by the 3DS's ability to do 3D images without the use of glasses, and - while the effect is amazing - it is pretty straight forward in how it is achieved.
The video above explains the basics, but if you are more of the reading-type, then here it is laid out as simply as we can put it.
Let me first explain how 3D vision works. The truth is that each eye only sees in 2D, the brain has evolved to composite those 2D images into a single 3D image. The only requirement is that the source images must be taken from a slightly different perspective. The slight difference must be equal to about the average distance between human eyes.
The image above is a cross-eyed 3D image. If you cross your eyes so that your left eye is looking at the right image and your right is looking at the left, then you will be able to see this image in 3D. For more information on how to see cross-eyed 3D go here.
With almost any videogame getting the two source images is fairly easy. Videogames have all of the requisite visual information to create two 2D images from a slightly different perspective. The hard part is getting the correct image to the correct eye.
That is the trick. The eyes can't just compile two images on their own. The correct image must be viewed by only the correct eye. The left perspective must be viewed by the left eye and vice versa. For this problem there are a plethora of solutions.
One of the oldest methods is anaglyph glasses. These glasses put a cyan and red lens on opposite eyes. Then two projectors with corresponding cyan and red filters project the two source images onto one screen. The cyan lens blocks cyan light and the red lens blocks red light, ensuring that each eye only sees the correct source.
The way that Nintendo tackles this problem without glasses is pretty ingenious, but also has its limitations. It is called a parallax barrier. A parallax barrier works like a vent. It is a filter placed over the screen that precisely directs one image to the left and the other to the right with a separation of a few degrees (equal to the distance between the average human's eyes). It does this using tiny shutters.
Basically, it is like a pole sitting in front of a light source and your right eye can see behind the pole, but the left eye can't. Only the scale is so microscopic that your brain doesn't realize the pole is there and combines the two images as if they were one.
The way a standard 2D screen emits light.
The way a parallax barrier emits light.
To recap:
1 Two 2D images taken from a slightly different perspective
2 Both are emitted from the 3DS's screen
3 The left image and the right image occupy every other vertical column of pixels
4 The images are then directed out of the screen by the parallax barrier
5 Where they hit the eyes and are combined into a single 3D image
Of course, there is a drawback. In order for the two images to hit the eyes correctly the viewer must have their eyes placed in the screen's sweet spot. The sweet spot on the 3DS will be 1 - 2 feet out and directly in front of the screen. This is why we haven't seen this technology take off in televisions and movie theaters, but we may soon be seeing it in mobile phones and computer monitors.
发 表 于:
2010.08.25 10:29:53 AM
文章主题:
Re: 我不是雞肋！ 2D轉3D解決內容不足燃眉之急
toshiba says death to 3d glasses!
(東芝公司說，3D眼鏡已死亡！將推出畫質優、動作順暢、高解析的各角度裸視3D TV)
Sales of 3D TVs for the home have not been that great. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out the reasons why. The 3D TVs on the market right now are expensive, and the active glasses most of them require are expensive too. Many consumers have just been holding out and waiting for sets that don’t need glasses to land.
We know the tech for 3D with no glasses is there thanks to Nintendo and others. The good news is that if you have been holding out for a 3D TV, Santa may want to pack one up for your Christmas gift. Toshiba is reportedly set to offer three new TVs that support 3D without needing glasses.
We have no hard details on the sets at the moment, but my money says the three models will only differ in screen size. The sets will reportedly cost “several thousand dollars” and will land in time for Christmas. Maybe it’s time to start saving!
Attack of the Show's sit-down chats are usually populated with C-level celebrities and the semi-stars of genre television, but Kevin Pereira shocked the world on Monday by delivering an in-depth interview with directorial superstar James Cameron.
Here's the sit-down portion of the interview:
And here's the second part, in which the pair turned Attack of the Show's gadget review segment into an exploration of Cameron's revolutionary 3D camera rig:
发 表 于:
2010.08.30 11:15:23 AM
文章主题:
Re: 我不是雞肋！ 2D轉3D解決內容不足燃眉之急
3D TV大尺寸...才夠震撼...
======================================
Sony 3D LED LCD Wi-Fi TVs just released
Earlier this week, Sony rolled out new 3D LED LCD Wi-Fi TVs namely the KDL-55NX810, KDL-60NX810, and KDL-46NX810. These LED TVs are equipped with WiFi so you can access the Internet for the movies or TV shows you’ve missed and backlight dimming technology.
Sets are 3D-ready so you can also watch 3D movies at home but 3D glasses and emitter are not part of the package.
Pricing is $3,000 for the 46-inch model and $4,700 for the 60-inch 3D LED TV. Available this September.
At Sony's IFA press conference, their CEO Sir Howard Stringer talked up Sony's 3D might. Expect to see Sony: Train Driver Simulator! on the PS3 shortly. [TechRadar]
Glasses-less 3DTV sounds like the greatest invention ever, right? But secretly, I think we were all worried it would look quite rubbish. After a lengthy session with Sharp's parallax barrier technology, I can say chin up! It's not that bad.
Sharp wouldn't say whether their parallax barrier technology's actually being used in Nintendo's 3DS, but from what I saw today it's very similar—and Sharp's going to do extremely well sticking these panels in phones, cameras, laptops and tablets, I think.
Two differently-sized panels were on display at their stand at IFA, with the 10.6-inch 3D LCD offering 1280 x 768 resolution when playing 2D content, or 640 x 768 in 3D. They claim that the optimal distance is around 50cm, something I confirmed by standing a meter away and then just inches away. This is very much a technology for personal use, for being used in a tablet or netbook.
The smaller display measures 3.8-inches, and was very much demonstrating how a smartphone such as the one we caught wind of weeks ago would work. Playing 2D content would render in 800 x 480 resolution, with 3D content playing back at 400 x 480. Optimal distance is shorter, at 30cm—which makes sense, considering the size of the panel.
When asked about the resolution, the product manager I spoke to said that it boiled down to battery life: specifically, if they increase resolution to 1080p for 3D content, the battery life would be extremely poor, and that wasn't something they are willing to compromise on at the moment.
However, they did say they're not limited by size. 42-inch TV sets are entirely possible—but whether you'd want a faux 3DTV set is another matter entirely. The smaller panels on show today had quite a bit of flicker when you moved your head left and right (it flickered approximately five times when moving my head, for just the smaller-sized panel).
At least parallax barrier technology would be cheaper without those pricey glasses...though that's a very small consolation when you can't move your head more than an inch before the image shifts.
Launch periods were certainly not mentioned, with Sharp only saying products with the displays would go on sale when they're ready. But, their smartphone-sized panels are most definitely not going to be relegated to Asia, where their smartphones sell well. We can expect to see phones with 3D displays in the US, Europe, and other parts of the world—but whether that's under Sharp's name or someone else's, remains to be seen.
Interestingly, they also showed off their 3D camera, presumably using the module we wrote about here (though there wasn't any 3D video on offer.) There was nary a detail to be told about the camera, however I did snap a few photos of the camera itself, and the screen with a photo (of yours truly), though it's obviously difficult to see the 3D effect through a photo. Especially when it's so low-res, grainy and dark, as the photo in the gallery below will demonstrate.
Now, I'm no fan of traditional 3D. It makes my eyes feel like they're about to pop from their sockets, and I just don't see the point in buying a set (unless you're a gamer). These Sharp panels are so much fun though, and didn't give me the same headache/nausea I experience with passive or active glasses.
The larger model was touchscreen, and damn responsive too—a lot better than I was expecting. Playing on a loop, a pop-up book-like video had dancing Three Little Pigs and other nursery rhymes which you could control with a touch of the finger.
It was blurry, however. Not as sharp as traditional 3DTV, and while it was a lot brighter, the resolution was a lot poorer. I'm not too sure about the usages of such displays, but the screen on the camera was terrific, displaying photos you had taken just seconds before. It could render Fujifilm's 3D cameras absolutely useless, if the pricepoint was good enough.
That's the thing. While the technology was brilliant in practice, it's no replacement for true HD on anything larger than a laptop—anything smaller, and it's a great novelty, but not something you'd want to pay too much extra for.
