Philips: Don't get too excited about 3D

BERLIN--Shelled out several thousands for a Philips Cinema 21:9 television? You'll be pleased to hear it's obsolete.

Philips has bumped the firmware and added a micro polarizing lens to the screen, to create a prototype 3D TV.

The TV gets its tri-dimensional input from a prototype 3D Blu-ray player. Philips said Thursday at IFA 2009 that it's "actively participating in the 3D specification work of the Blu-ray Disc Association."

Philips' Cinema 21:9

(Credit: Philips)

But hold it right there. Amid the 3D arms race--which has all the major manufacturers at IFA insisting that 3D is the next big thing--Philips is sounding a note of caution.

The company said it has "no immediate plans to launch any commercial 3D TV products in the short term" and that any plans "will depend on 3D TV standards." In Thursday's press conference, Philips conceded that 3D isn't stable yet and that the technology "isn't quite there."

In other words, Philips has punted the prototype 3D television to keep up with the Joneses--i.e. Sony.

(Source: Crave UK)

[ddhboy]

I'll just buy an LCD TV and wait 10 or so years so everyone can figure out what it is exactly they're doing. We're still waiting for consumer level OLED, who knows how long that will take if it ever does, and throwing in 3D sets complicates the whole situation because lord knows that most shows will never truly implement the technology, or wait at least 2 decades to have it a widely common practice, mostly because it doesn't really change anything story wise and is just a hell of a lot of money.

I guess that 3DTVs would help games, but again, what's the purpose rather than throwing in a bit of wow factor?

[basraw]

why do i keep buying all the losers over the years?

betamax, microsoft hd-dvd, dreamcast, vectrex .. stop the madness!

[calculatorwatch]

i hate to be "that guy" but honestly, i think 3d is just a fad, watching a movie in 3d is really cool at first but then the excitement dies down and you realize it doesn't add enough to the movie viewing experience to make up for the fact that your eyes hurt and you're wearing goofy sunglasses

by the time 3d tvs are possible and affordable, not many people will care

[brookstalley]

Wow, Philips sure is being wild and crazy with this whole "it's a prototype, hence not ready for mass market" thing. What's next? Automakers showing ideas for future cars years before they appear in showrooms? Crazy.

[galeso]

micro polarizing lens? Does that mean the glasses will just be 2 polarized lenses, no electronics. Maybe no headaches.

[Heebee Jeebies]

Unfortunately in this day and age of movies. 3D isn't going to make a crappy movie and good one, just like HD doesn't make a crappy movie a good one. DVD is still just fine.

Robert

[peterwhite]

by galeso September 3, 2009 4:22 PM PDT
micro polarizing lens? Does that mean the glasses will just be 2 polarized lenses, no electronics. Maybe no headaches.

Nope, I've seen the demo - it's replacing the glasses - the room still needs to be dark but the effect is a 3D movie without stiff cardboard cutting into the bridge of your nose.

It's pretty cool, I have an Ambilight HDTV and BluRay primarly because I wanted to get BR 3D movies. My 360 upconverts to 720P via HDMI and that's plenty good for DVD / non-3D movies.

I'm interested in buying plastic / rubber 3D glasses but am a little nervous about the cheesy websites online. I guess I'm snobbish in that if the sites were more professional then I wouldn't be so nervous about spending money with them :-\