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3D TV -- Advances In HD Home Entertainment
3D television more commonly called 3D TV is currently the latest trend in the high tech digital television entertainment and gaming world.
About 3D Entertainment
3D entertainment has been around for decades. It came in the form of glasses with red and blue lenses, all made out of plastic and paper. Today, that form of 3D has been tossed aside for better and more expensive technology.
The new 3D is also more complex: a 3D camera films the same sequence with two lenses, creating a doubled image. Then the shutter glasses come in and sync the two images together (if needed). To do this, the glasses block one of your eyes and switches between them at the same frame rate as the entertainment you're viewing. Welcome to the world of 3D television.
The type of 3D in theaters is exactly the same as the 3D televisions heading to stores this year. The only difference is the companies making the technology for home use. Currently, Sony, Panasonic and Samsung are the first three that will be bringing the 3D HDTV experience into your living rooms.
The others will have similar devices and TVs out by the time you are reading this. To actually watch something in 3D, you'll need a 3D TV, some shutter glasses, and either a 3D DVR or Blu Ray player. All of this will cost you around $3,000+.
3D Television Entertainment
So, what kind of entertainment is there for 3D television? Unless you're a sports fan, nothing is being broadcast in 3D at this time. The PGA will be airing the Masters Tournament in 3D, but other programming has yet to be shown or is currently being filmed.
3D movies won't be coming out until later this year, so you'll have to wait a while for the film distributers to get their new releases on store shelves. The blockbuster hit "Avatar" will be one of the first, as well as a 3D version of "Monsters vs. Aliens".
If you remember how long it took for HD to get into the majority of households, 3D television may take just as long to do the same.
Also, people with certain vision problems won't be able to view 3D content because of the shutter glasses' effect. There's not much of a reason to grab 3D-compatable devices, unless you really want to be the first to have them.
For everyone else, it's best to wait until there's enough content to make it worth using and for cheaper hardware to watch it on. Plus, ESPN is currently the only channel on board for 3D broadcasting, so don't expect the other cable channels to follow suit for a while.
3D television has potential, but there's not enough to justify buying the first batch of devices right now. However, if you just can't wait or have the extra cash to spend, $3,000 is what you'll have to pay for the 3D TV, glasses, and Blu Ray player. That's a high price to pay and will definitely make many consumers wait until cheaper 3D hardware becomes available.
For now, take 3D television for a test drive. If you like what you see, the TVs and other devices will be out this holiday season. Keep in mind that 3D HDTV programming will take a while, so you'll basically be stuck with 3D Blu-Ray movies until then.
