Three-dimensional video: the thorny path to the viewer

In this post, I decided to present my vision of the situation with the 3D TV market, when the extreme enthusiasm of manufacturers, which resulted in large-scale updates of product lines, threatens to face the utter indifference of us, consumers. It is, by the way, deserved. This is a short version so as not to overload with details and facts. Full blog here

The IFA 2010 Consumer Electronics Show in Berlin, held a week ago, clearly showed how enthusiastic 3D manufacturers are in their products. Three-dimensional image offer to watch on TV, projector and mobile phone, as well as record on camera and take pictures. The only question that remains is whether this marketing rage is shared by potential consumers.

Viewpoint of manufacturer: 3D insanity at IFA

Ordinary 3D TVs were presented at the IFA last year, and in 2010 they even appeared on the market, albeit with a controversial success. Of course, this year they have not gone away either, and the manufacturers, presenting absolutely fantastic achievements in such areas as ultrathin, image quality, etc. in the new models, nevertheless did not get tired of emphasizing 3D support as one of the most important advantages of their offspring .
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But business was not limited to TVs. Sony, which has already managed to stake out a spot on the 3D TV market, is rapidly developing new niches. In particular, this month she showed two 3D-projectors: VW90ES and CF3D. Both support Full HD and will be available this year. The price is estimated at 8 and 10 thousand euros, respectively. So it is hardly worth talking about full-fledged competition of 3D projectors with televisions, which we can already see in the “two-dimensional” sphere. It is not by chance that Samsung and Mitsubishi are only conjuring up prototypes of 3D projectors, while Epson completely ignores the segment.

Noted at IFA 2010 and Toshiba, which is catching up - the company introduced the model BDX3100KB, its first Blu-ray drive with 3D support. However, the company can still dramatically make up the leadership in the 3D segment, as described in more detail below.

Panasonic also surpassed the original “screwing” of 3D to the most incredible things even Sharp with her phone and presented a stereoscopic camera lens! Earlier this year, Panasonic had time to submit a 3D video camera HDC-SDT750 (already sold in Japan for $ 2000) apiece, and by the end of the year they plan to make a camera with 3D.

Points will not pass

Directly or indirectly, but all manufacturers who made a bet on 3D 1-2 years ago are now forced to admit that stereoscopic technology, which requires glasses for viewing three-dimensional images, will not be able to massively penetrate the market. Apparently, its lot will remain cinemas and rare fans of technonos. As a result, companies that today are still only announcing TVs, Blu-ray drives and other equipment designed to use glasses (and plan to try to sell it all in 2011) are simultaneously conducting active research and development to create “glasses-free” 3D technology with comparable quality "immersion."

The emergence of mid-priced televisions with 3D support without glasses is really capable of giving an additional incentive to a stalled market. So, Toshiba is going to present the first LCD TV, where you can watch 3D video without glasses, as early as next month. The company's specialists were able to integrate a set of special lenses directly into the screen, which form an image for each eye separately. However, it is already possible to assume in advance that it will be necessary to keep the head strictly straight due to limitations on the angle of visibility, and it will be difficult to watch it in the company.

Point of view of the consumer: both want and prick

In the previously mentioned Nielsen study, in addition to points, among the reasons why people refuse to buy 3D TVs was the high cost and a small amount of suitable video content.

The price is really high, but it is falling quite actively. More recently, it was impossible to find a model cheaper than 100 thousand rubles. Today, the Russian market is flooded with relatively cheap TVs, mainly from Samsung, and the 40-inch model with 3D support is already available for about 50,000. Although it is clear that we are talking about TVs with very simple characteristics. And while in Russia about 3 thousand models with 3D support have been sold, which, of course, is an insignificant figure for this type of electronics.

One can hope that the price problem will disappear by itself, as has already happened with Full HD TVs. Much more relevant and more difficult to solve is the problem of content, which, by the way, remains relevant for HD to this day. Watch now on freshly bought 3D-TV is practically nothing. Unless, of course, you yourself have not filmed anything beforehand. The number of films released on Blu-ray with 3D support is almost less than the number of drive models with technology support. Studios are not particularly keen on the novelty, as there are few potential viewers - in total, a vicious circle is obtained.

A similar problem with television content. Three-dimensional TV - the pleasure is expensive and few are willing to risk. Although the first experiments this year still appeared. ESPN and Discovery in January announced plans to launch related projects. Since July OCEAN-TV has played music videos with underwater footage in 3D. The British provider Sky launched a 3D sports broadcast.

Well, in Russia, the pioneers of "three-dimensional" television broadcasting were NTV and Panasonic. On September 15, all subscribers of the NTV + HD package received a new 3D channel. However, the package price has not changed - all the same 850 rubles. The channel demonstrates material on various subjects: films, clips, animation, and sports broadcasts. Interestingly, the partners plan to create this content themselves with the help of Panasonic 3D cameras, but for now, they are buying ready-made. Watch the same channel on any 3D-TV with shutter glasses.

And yet it is not clear how long such content can attract interest, even in bulk form. When we go to the cinema for a 3D session, it is usually a blockbuster or full-length animation, that is, in any case, a high-quality video product. Can a music video or a football game be carried away by users?

The current situation with the 3D-TV remains very controversial. A bunch of companies are investing billions so that 3D ceases to be a niche fun for a few wealthy people for a few views, but for now this is the case.