By Paul Gagnon DisplaySearch 3D TV is back in the news, but not in a good way. This morning, an ESPN PR spokesperson announced in a tweet that they were discontinuing 3D to focus on other things, like UHD. This move had been rumored for some time in the tech press, stemming from a 2011 […]

The new Redray Player from Red plays 4K files as well as upscales HD files to Ultra HD content to a resolution of 4096×2160. Redray connects to 4K displays using a 1.4 HDMI output or one of four HDMI 1.3 outputs, with an additional HDMI output for 7.1 channel audio (for HD displays, Redray uses […]

As we expected, 4K and OLED displays were one of the key highlights from CES 2013. 3D technology and products were clearly well represented, but did not command the headlines they have at past CES events. But that’s just fine. It proves that 3D is moving beyond the introductory hype phase into a sustainable, product, […]

For those of you who are not familiar with the term “service compatible,” this refers to a new broadcast standard that could augment, and maybe replace, the current 3D broadcast standard called “frame compatible.” The frame compatible format has allowed cable and satellite providers to deliver 3D content to 3DTVs with minimal upgrade to their […]

The BETT show was the perfect occasion for makers to show new 3D DLP models combining cost effective, lamp-free illumination with 3D teaching. Texas Instruments DLP announced at BETT Show 2012 the availability of all new, lamp-free projection solutions from BenQ and Optoma, each powered by DLP technology. With lamp-free illumination versus traditional bulbs, the […]

BenQ today introduced the company’s first full-HD 3D home cinema projector, the W7000. Powered by DLP Link, the W7000 delivers 1080p 3D images with specified 2000 ANSI lumen brightness and a 50,000:1 contrast ratio. Integrated with HDMI 1.4a using TI’s BrilliantColor DLP system, the W7000 features VIDI lighting technology that the company says increases brightness […]

Priced at $200,000 and now shipping, Runco’s new 3Dimension D-113d projection system pairs Runco’s Constant Stereoscopic Video (CSV) approach with the optical filters and glasses of the Panavision 3D System. The result is what Runco is claiming is the brightest CSV projection in the world designed for private theaters. Because the Runco 3Diminesion D-113d doesn’t […]

Consumer behavior and TV set maker strategies are resulting in widely diverging TV product ranges across the world. While the industry is truly global, regional differences are increasing. For 3D, the most enthusiastic regions are Western Europe and China, while the mix of 3D in North America actually declined in Q3’11, according to the Q4’11 […]

Onkyo has become the first manufacturer to leverage 3D in ‘home theater in a box’ systems (HTiBs). The Onkyo HT-S6300 and HT-S7300 both have 3D-Ready HDMI 1.4a inputs, 1080p video upscaling, lossless Dolby and DTS high definition audio, Dolby height processing, Audyssey automatic room equalization, and numerous other high performance features typically not found at […]

Christie’s new Mirage WU7K-M is something you gotta see. Featuring a full WUXGA resolution (1920×1200) display and dual lamps (making uniformity nearly perfect), the Christie Mirage WU7K-M is a 6,300 ANSI lumens powerhouse. With dual-link DVI support at 330MHz full bandwidth and up to 10,000:1 contrast, the projector is designed for stereoscopic 3D applications and […]

Last month, Sanyo announced the introduction of two new ultra short-focus projectors with built-in 3D capability. Both projectors feature Sanyo’s compact chassis of about half the size of most other brands’ short-focus projectors. The PDG-DWL2500 is WXGA resolution (1280×800; 16:10 aspect ratio) with 2,500 lumens of brightness. The PDG-DXL2000 is XGA resolution (1024×768; 4:3 aspect […]

It’s a technology characterized by some in the industry as having “weak demand,” and that it “…will go away someday.” In the Insight Media 3DTV Forecast report, we note that for TVs more than 30 inches in diagonal, 108K LCD TVs were sold in 2009 vs. 15.2K PDP TVs. That’s a 7:1 sales ratio. But […]

Sharp Corporation has developed what they are claiming as the world’s first four-primary-color 3D LCD TV. Obviously requiring you to wear special 3D glasses, the 3D LCDs use a system based on time-sequential display technology with special active LC (liquid crystal) shutters in the glasses. In this system, images intended for the left and right […]

Want some real proof 3D technology is here to stay? Just type in “3D Glasses” into Google and take a look at the hits… One favorite is 3dglassesonline.com, with a “nifty fifty’s” take-out menu (web page genre) and the classic headline borrowed from McDonalds, claiming “Over One Billion Served!” That’s billion with a “B” and […]

Onkyo has announced March deliveries of its first 3D-Ready home theater receivers and home theater in a box (HTiB) systems. The new models consist of three A/V receivers and three HTiB systems ranging in price from $299 to $599, and all of them support the new HDMI v1.4 connectivity standard (not 1.4a) for new 3D […]

Insight Media, the leader in Emerging Display Technology Market Research, has issued an authoritative new report — 2010 3DTV Forecast Report: A Comprehensive Worldwide Forecast of 3D Television Unit Sales by Region and Technology.  The report finds that nearly 50M 3DTVs are expected to be sold in 2015, rising from 3.3M 3DTVs in 2010. “Insight […]

Since the 1939 Olympics in Hitler’s Berlin, the worldwide event is a natural draw for new broadcast technology transition. And, like color TV and the more recent HDTV that followed some 40 years later, technology transition for the broadcast industry is often slow in coming, due in part to the expense of ramping up the […]

If you watch developments in consumer AV, you’re likely picking up some of the buzz with the latest push toward 3DTV.  As such perhaps you’re also starting to give some serious thought to what that may mean to you as an AV consumer, and then, what the impact might be in education applications.  So when […]

Shown at trade shows for months, the 3D version of the Viera plasma line will be launched in May 2010 with two 1080p versions that will be 50” and 54” (ranging in price between $4500 and $6000).  No specific details are available, yet, but they are claiming the usual plasma-based contrast ratio of above 5,000,000:1 […]

Panasonic is the first Blu-ray manufacturer to actually show a production model 3D recorder/player in the form of the DMP-BDT900K.  It’s HDMI 1.4 capable, includes 2 HDMI ports, 2 USB ports (in and out) and an Ethernet port (for connecting to Netflix).  No price, yet, but expect it to be in the range of $1000 […]

We’re coming up on a month since the 2010 CES, and like partygoers waking up with a hangover, manufacturers, analysts, and reporters are slowly sobering up, taking a second, harder look at the blizzard of 3D products and demonstrations that dominated this year’s show… and what it all means. TV manufacturers are definitely looking for […]

HDMI Licensing has made the 3D portion of the HDMI Specification Version 1.4 available for public download on the HDMI Web site. This document provides public access to the 3D portion of version 1.4 of the HDMI Specification for organizations that require access to this portion of the Specification but have not executed an HDMI […]

Whether you’re a fan of 3D or not, you must have thought about whether it will make it in the high-end HomeAV market.  Is it going to be relegated to the theater-going public, or will it be a huge hit in the home?  Well, New York Times Columnist David Pogue has a video for you… […]

Nobody doubts the biggest buzz coming from CES was about 3D TV. Everyone was impressed with the new-found commitment that major manufacturers made to adopting 3D. Few will dispute the “inevitability” of 3D TV. But I want to make it clear that 3D was the buzz and not the honey of CES. Sure, there were impressive 3D TV demos from Panasonic, […]

Last week, Sharp announced its entry into the 3D presentation market with the introduction of six (yes, six!) 3D-ready DLP BrilliantColor projectors offering 3D projection from a single projector. All six projectors incorporate DLP Link technology, which allows for 3D projection when using compatible 3D field sequential content and active shutter 3D glasses that support […]

By Chris Chinnock Sr. Editor/Sr. Analyst, Insight Media Blu-ray Disc Association web site has no information about the 3D spec release or any details about how to access it. According to news reports and the people we have talked to about the spec over the last few months, “encoding of 3D video will be done […]

By Logan Enright Principal, The Enright Company Several years ago an optometrist told me I have a slightly lazy eye. “What does that mean?”, I asked.  “Those 3D movies at IMAX and Disneyland don’t look as dramatic to you as to others,” he said. I shrugged and thought, “So what?” Ratchet forward to 2010. The […]

The Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA) releases the Blu-ray 3D, a long-awaited standard for full 1080p viewing of 3D movies on home TVs. The first Blu-ray machines for 3D will be shown at CES in Las Vegas in January and shipping later this year. 3D movies (yes, Avatar!) will be played on these Blu-ray 3D machines […]

Sony Corporation and FIFA have announced an agreement: FIFA will produce the world’s first FIFA World Cup in 3D (up to 25 of the 2010 matches) using Sony’s 3D professional cameras. “Global sporting events such as the FIFA World Cup are very important drivers of new technology, particularly in the TV market”, explains Tom Morrod, […]

It’s the most expensive production Fox Films has ever made. Director James Cameron probably spent more than $300 million, the cost of the last “most expensive film ever made,” Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End. Fox teamed up with Cameron for Titanic (1997), which at the time cost a record-breaking $200 million but earned […]

Now more than ever, 3D is coming to the home, with backing from all major sectors of the entertainment and consumer electronics industries. 3D movie production is intensifying, cinemas all over the world are investing in 3D technologies and feedback from audiences has been highly positive, with encouraging ticket sales. Yet the ultimate goal is […]