Japan manufacturers rolling out line of 3-D TVs
By JAY ALABASTER
Associated Press
CHIBA, Japan — Japan's big-name electronic manufacturers are readying flat-screen TVs that can show high-definition movies and video games in 3-D for launch next year.
At the country's biggest consumer electronics show, which opened Tuesday just outside of Tokyo, all the major makers had large 3-D prototypes on display. Visitors to company booths at the CEATEC show donned special electronic glasses and watched as soccer balls flew toward them in sports clips and virtual heroes dodged deep into the background of video games.
Sony Corp. and Panasonic Corp. have both said they will bring their first models to market next year. Details about what will be available to watch on the new TVs are still sparse, though the companies said they want to begin with movies and games.
"Content is the most important thing," said Masanobu Inoe, a Panasonic engineer who worked on his company's new 3-D plasma sets.
The companies are working on standards for broadcasts and discs, which may end up as an enhancement of Blu-ray, the high-definition format designed to supersede standard DVDs. Sony, which also runs a large movie studio, plans to release selections from its holdings.
"They will be in a standard format that can be viewed on other companies' TVs as well," said Sony spokeswoman Satsuki Shinnaka.
Some companies such as Sharp Corp. displayed 3-D sets but are waiting until more content and TV broadcasts are available before they set a product launch date.
Most 3-D technology involves showing two images, one for each eye, that viewed together are seen as a single three-dimensional scene.
Movies have been shown for decades using an older technology that requires bicolored glasses to filter out an image for each eye. The new generation of 3-D TVs uses a technology that rapidly flickers between two images, together with electronic glasses that allow each eye to see only one. Without the glasses, images on the screens are blurry and a bit nauseating to watch.
Toshiba Corp. also introduced a new TV, slated to go on sale later this year in Japan for about $11,000, that includes a high-tech chip it developed together Sony and IBM Corp.
The 'Cell' chip, which is also used in Sony's PlayStation 3, allows the TV to show and record eight channels at the same time. A prototype, due for release sometime after next year, can convert standard images to 3-D images for viewing with glasses.
Other companies including South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. and Hyundai have already launched 3-D TVs with lower specifications. Cable stations in Japan broadcast short clips in 3-D a few times each day.
The coming wave of 3-D TVs has been enabled by new technologies, but is also driven by manufacturers searching for ways to spur sales and differentiate themselves from a host of low-end TV makers cranking out flat-screen models at low prices.
But in a keynote speech to start the show, Panasonic President Fumio Ohtsubo said his company would not lose sight of products for lower-income countries, where markets are rapidly expanding.
"In each region, we want to create a new 'volume zone' of products that people want," he said.
3-D TV to be available next year
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3-D television expected to come to homes in 2010
By John D. Sutter
CNN
(CNN) -- Three-dimensional images are expected jump out of movie theaters and into living rooms by next year.
Sony and Panasonic say they will release home 3-D television systems in 2010; Mitsubishi and JVC are reported to be working on similar products.
"TV finally becomes real" in three dimensions, said Robert Perry, an executive vice president at Panasonic. "You're in it. It's the next frontier."
Perry compared the 3-D transition to the switch from black-and-white to color television and the shift from standard- to high-definition images. See what 3-D TV demos look like »
ESPN is test-recording some sporting events in 3-D, using cameras with two sets of lenses, which would make football players appear to jump out of home television screens during live 3-D broadcasts.
And, although television makers haven't released specifics, the price of 3-D TV -- which requires a new television, broadcasting content and 3-D glasses -- is not expected to be substantially higher than some high-definition televisions on the market now.
Still, there are skeptics who say that 3-D is not ready for prime-time home viewing.
There are concerns that 3-D broadcasts, which require twice the data, will gobble up an unworkable amount of television bandwidth. And some worry that 3-D glasses and graphics won't make a smooth transition to American living rooms.
Shane Sturgeon, publisher of HDTV Magazine, said some of the glasses give him a headache and will block some people from buying the new technology.
"From what I've seen from most of the manufacturers, it's just not there yet," he said of 3-D TV technology. "I think right now, the technology -- whether you're talking about the refresh rate or the strobing or the glasses -- there are too many things right now that get in the way of enjoyment of the film for it to kick off."
All 3-D technology relies on the idea that if separate images are presented to the left and right eyes, the human brain will combine them and create the illusion of a third dimension.
TV makers go about this in different ways, though.
Panasonic and Sony, which demonstrated their products for CNN at a recent tech expo in Atlanta, Georgia, use "active glasses" and TVs with high refresh rates to achieve the effect.
Two images, one for the right eye and one for the left eye, alternate quickly on the TV. Shutters on the 3-D glasses swap the viewer's vision from right eye to left eye at the same rate: 120 hertz, or 240 hertz for the images together. The TV connects with the glasses through a sensor that's placed between the lenses on the glasses.
"It's like a little Venetian blind: open, close, open, close, open, close," John Wyckoff, a Sony content manager, said of the glasses.
The effect moves so quickly that it tricks the brain into merging the images and creates the perspective needed to see images in 3-D, he said.
Glance away from the TV, though, and you can see the lenses opening and closing, which irritates some people.
Those who saw the technology at the recent Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association Expo seemed wowed by Panasonic's 3-D footage of Olympic events and skiers who appeared to send snow flying into the laps of the audience.
David Lesch fidgeted with his 3-D glasses during Panasonic's demo but said the 3-D picture on the company's 103-inch plasma screen was excellent.
However, it may not be effective for all TV programming, he said.
"I cannot imagine that I will watch CNN in 3-D," said Lesch, sales director at AV Media, which sells electronics. "But for sports, yes. To watch soccer and ice hockey -- anything -- that would be great."
These next-generation televisions would be able to play shows in 2-D or 3-D. They also would be able to show video games in 3-D, which Sony demonstrated at the expo in Atlanta.
Sturgeon, of HDTV Magazine, said JVC is working on a type of 3-D technology that's different form the strobing glasses used by Panasonic and Sony.
JVC's version uses polarized glasses to separate the right-eye image from the left-eye image and is more pleasing to the eye, he said.
Aside from the kooky glasses, people who want to watch television that jumps off the screen will need something to watch. The process of making live television work in 3-D probably would involve a major conversion of broadcast equipment.
Also, Blu-ray is said to be working on a product that would play three-dimensional movies at home.
Panasonic and Sony said they're still working out some kinks in their 3-D entertainment systems. The TV makers hope to ride the wave of popularity of improved stereoscopic 3-D movies, such as recent hit "Up," that are being shown in theaters.
Perry, of Panasonic, said he expects 3-D TV to be common in homes within five to 10 years. Technology that will make 3-D TV possible without glasses should be ready in 10 to 15 years, he said.
Michael Bridwell, spokesman for Digital Projection, a company that makes high-end 3-D home theaters, said 3-D is the biggest technology coming to television and home movies in the foreseeable future.
Well, at least "until we get to holograms," he said.
By John D. Sutter
CNN
(CNN) -- Three-dimensional images are expected jump out of movie theaters and into living rooms by next year.
Sony and Panasonic say they will release home 3-D television systems in 2010; Mitsubishi and JVC are reported to be working on similar products.
"TV finally becomes real" in three dimensions, said Robert Perry, an executive vice president at Panasonic. "You're in it. It's the next frontier."
Perry compared the 3-D transition to the switch from black-and-white to color television and the shift from standard- to high-definition images. See what 3-D TV demos look like »
ESPN is test-recording some sporting events in 3-D, using cameras with two sets of lenses, which would make football players appear to jump out of home television screens during live 3-D broadcasts.
And, although television makers haven't released specifics, the price of 3-D TV -- which requires a new television, broadcasting content and 3-D glasses -- is not expected to be substantially higher than some high-definition televisions on the market now.
Still, there are skeptics who say that 3-D is not ready for prime-time home viewing.
There are concerns that 3-D broadcasts, which require twice the data, will gobble up an unworkable amount of television bandwidth. And some worry that 3-D glasses and graphics won't make a smooth transition to American living rooms.
Shane Sturgeon, publisher of HDTV Magazine, said some of the glasses give him a headache and will block some people from buying the new technology.
"From what I've seen from most of the manufacturers, it's just not there yet," he said of 3-D TV technology. "I think right now, the technology -- whether you're talking about the refresh rate or the strobing or the glasses -- there are too many things right now that get in the way of enjoyment of the film for it to kick off."
All 3-D technology relies on the idea that if separate images are presented to the left and right eyes, the human brain will combine them and create the illusion of a third dimension.
TV makers go about this in different ways, though.
Panasonic and Sony, which demonstrated their products for CNN at a recent tech expo in Atlanta, Georgia, use "active glasses" and TVs with high refresh rates to achieve the effect.
Two images, one for the right eye and one for the left eye, alternate quickly on the TV. Shutters on the 3-D glasses swap the viewer's vision from right eye to left eye at the same rate: 120 hertz, or 240 hertz for the images together. The TV connects with the glasses through a sensor that's placed between the lenses on the glasses.
"It's like a little Venetian blind: open, close, open, close, open, close," John Wyckoff, a Sony content manager, said of the glasses.
The effect moves so quickly that it tricks the brain into merging the images and creates the perspective needed to see images in 3-D, he said.
Glance away from the TV, though, and you can see the lenses opening and closing, which irritates some people.
Those who saw the technology at the recent Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association Expo seemed wowed by Panasonic's 3-D footage of Olympic events and skiers who appeared to send snow flying into the laps of the audience.
David Lesch fidgeted with his 3-D glasses during Panasonic's demo but said the 3-D picture on the company's 103-inch plasma screen was excellent.
However, it may not be effective for all TV programming, he said.
"I cannot imagine that I will watch CNN in 3-D," said Lesch, sales director at AV Media, which sells electronics. "But for sports, yes. To watch soccer and ice hockey -- anything -- that would be great."
These next-generation televisions would be able to play shows in 2-D or 3-D. They also would be able to show video games in 3-D, which Sony demonstrated at the expo in Atlanta.
Sturgeon, of HDTV Magazine, said JVC is working on a type of 3-D technology that's different form the strobing glasses used by Panasonic and Sony.
JVC's version uses polarized glasses to separate the right-eye image from the left-eye image and is more pleasing to the eye, he said.
Aside from the kooky glasses, people who want to watch television that jumps off the screen will need something to watch. The process of making live television work in 3-D probably would involve a major conversion of broadcast equipment.
Also, Blu-ray is said to be working on a product that would play three-dimensional movies at home.
Panasonic and Sony said they're still working out some kinks in their 3-D entertainment systems. The TV makers hope to ride the wave of popularity of improved stereoscopic 3-D movies, such as recent hit "Up," that are being shown in theaters.
Perry, of Panasonic, said he expects 3-D TV to be common in homes within five to 10 years. Technology that will make 3-D TV possible without glasses should be ready in 10 to 15 years, he said.
Michael Bridwell, spokesman for Digital Projection, a company that makes high-end 3-D home theaters, said 3-D is the biggest technology coming to television and home movies in the foreseeable future.
Well, at least "until we get to holograms," he said.
"What the hell?"
Win Butler
Win Butler