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3D TV is Starting to Take Shape

Posted by JD on February 12, 2010

NEW PANASONIC SC-BTX70 BLU-RAY 7.1 HOME THEATER SYSTEM

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NEW SONY SA-VS350H 7.1/5.1 HOME THEATER SPEAKER SYSTEM

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Samsung HT-Z320/XAA 1000W 5.1-Ch Home Theater System

$81.53

3D on TV

After the huge success of Avatar, with its undeniable eye candy, serious conversations have started about bringing three dimensions to the home theater. And according to recent reports, it looks like Sony is among the first to actually move on this. Sony recently announced that their newest home theater models will be 3D-compatible. At this point, we’re only talking about the receiver and speaker systems, but just that fact that compatibility is built in seems to confirm Sony’s commitment to the new technology.

In separate (but obviously related) news, Sony also announced that a firmware update for the PS3 would soon be released, giving their premier gaming platform (along with its Blu-ray DVD player) 3D compatibility as well.

So how will 3D TV work at home? Well, pretty much the same way it works in the theater. When we look at the world around us, our brain merges the information from both eyes to create one picture. The difference between the visual information from each eye is what allows our brain to computer as depth. So it’s a simple matter for a human to distinguish which items are near and far way.

Three-dimensional entertainment essentially tricks the brain into thinking that it is receiving slightly different images from each eye so that it will create depth in the image we see. That’s why you have to wear 3D glasses at the movie theater, with each lens a different color. The movie is then printed with two differently colored images on top of each other, and we’re fooled into thinking things are flying out at us.

So what does this mean for home systems. Unfortunately the glasses are going to be with us for a while longer. But they’ll be way more comfortable and stylish than the throwaway glasses we get handed at the box office. The two different colors will probably be replaced with a more complicated and more effective way of filtering the images and creating the sense of 3D.

The introduction of 3D televisions is still months away. But these recent moves by Sony signal that 3D is definitely on the way.