It seems that 55-Inch OLED TV wasn’t enough for LG: the Korean company today announced it’s ready to showcase another monster TV at the CES 2012 in Las Vegas (which kicks off on January 10). This model comes with a 84-inch 3D LCD display with 4K resolution (3,840×2,160 pixels).
To put things into perspective: 4K resolution, which LG calls “Ultra Definition”, is four times the resolution of full HD. Other details are scarce at this point, but LG promises “slim and narrow bezel design”, controllable 3D picture effects, and 3D sound zooming capability. → Read More
NXP Software, developer of the CineXPlayer mobile application, is launching a new iOS app for recording and converting video into 3D. The app, VideoCam3D, lets you record in both blue/red and split screen 3D and works in conjunction with the CineXPlayer video viewing app, which also supports 3D movie playback.
→ Read More
Do you remember that 55-inch monster of a naked-eye 3D TV Toshiba unveiled back in October? The company now announced [JP] a date (December 10) and confirmed the final price (US$11,700) for the device. But there’s a drawback: Toshiba has still to decide if they will release the TV outside Japan, too.
To recap, the TV features 3,840×2,160 pixels resolution in 2D mode (that’s four times the resolution of full HD) and a solid 1,280×720 resolution in 3D mode. Users are not required to use glasses, just with the smaller naked-eye 3D TVs Toshiba started selling in Japan late last year. → Read More
Since 2006, Tokyo-based Burton has been working on Aerial 3D, a technology that makes it possible to produce pictures in 3D in mid-air or underwater – without using a screen (that’s what I call “True 3D Technology” indeed). Burton says their laser-based system is the only one of its kind.
The current system projects objects at 50,000 dots per second and with a frame rate of 10-15. The Aerial 3D works by focusing laser light, producing “plasma excitation from the oxygen and nitrogen in the air”. → Read More
Epson Japan announced [JP] the so-called Moverio today, a see-through 3D head-mounted display (HMD), which is the first of its kind, according to the company. Think of it as mix between of NEC’s transparent HMD Tele Scouter and Sony’s cool 3D OLED head mounted display HMZ-T1, powered by Android OS.
The Moverio creates the experience of watching 3D (or 2D) pictures on a virtual 80-inch display that’s 5m away – while still being able to see what’s happening around you in the real world. Apart from the display itself, users get a small controller that offers 1GB of internal memory and a microSD card slot. → Read More
Naked-eye 3D displays, even large-sized models, are nothing special anymore, but they usually have a common problem: the 3D effect when viewing pictures isn’t as strong as with displays that require users to wear glasses. Professor Kakeya from Tsukuba University in Japan is trying to solve the problem.
The way his 3D display works is actually pretty simple: it uses multiple layers and lenses to boost the sense of depth perception. → Read More
Digital photo frames are a dime a dozen nowadays, and recently, 3D models have been popping up, too. Fujifilm today announced the FinePix REAL 3D V3, a so-called “digital viewer” that displays pictures in 3D and doesn’t require users to wear glasses.
The company says its new device is the first in the world to support 3D movie and picture playback and compatibility to other 3D devices via the HDMI interface (camcorders, consoles, 3D Blu-ray players, etc.). → Read More
Japan’s National Institute of Information and Communications (NICT) and JVC Kenwood have developed what they say is the world’s biggest 3D display. The device boasts a screen size of 200 inches, offers 57 different viewing angles, and best of all, it doesn’t require you to use glasses to view pictures in 3D.
The auto-stereoscopic display is based on 57 projectors in an array, produces 3D pictures in full HD and weighs 500kg. It was first announced by the NICT in January this year but appears to have been altered since (the earlier version used 64 projectors, for example). → Read More
Truth be told, I wasn’t very impressed with what electronics makers showed at the CEATEC 2011 tech exhibition – especially because a lot of the new products were “leaked” to the Japanese press before the event started.
However, here are a total of five of the coolest innovations Japanese companies showed at CEATEC 2011 in video form, delivered from our friends at Diginfo TV (YouTube channel). All the videos were shot directly on location and are in English. → Read More
If you’ve ever dreamed of getting an super-realistic replica of your face for whatever reason, here’s your chance: a Japanese company called REAL-f [JP] is creating so-called 3DPFs (“3 Dimension Photo Forms”), copies of human faces “in 3D”. The startup offers two versions, a mask type replica and the so-called mannequin type, a replica of the head.
The way it works is that REAL-f first shoots pictures of a person’s face from various positions and imprints the image on vinyl chloride resin stretched over a mold. According to the company, it’s unique production technology makes sure that even details like the iris and blood vessels are replicated accurately (see the pictures to judge for yourself). → Read More
The CEATEC 2011 exhibition in Japan is just one day away, and Hitachi is already showing one of its coolest products: the company has been working on glasses-free 3D projection systems for years and is apparently making progress.
The newest version [JP] uses a set of 24 projectors, lenses, translucent half mirrors to superimpose 3D images on an object in the real-world. In the picture above, for example, the hatchling isn’t real, but the cradle is. → Read More
If you thought Sharp’s 4K TV we’ve shown you last week is impressive, think again. Toshiba today unveiled a 55-inch LCD that boasts the same resolution (3,840×2,160 pixels, 4x full HD) but can also display pictures in 3D – no glasses required. The TV will be shown starting tomorrow during the CEATEC Japan 2011 exhibition near Tokyo.
Needless to say, the REGZA 55X3 [JP] is the first TV of its kind. Unfortunately, the resolution stands at “just” 1,280×720 in 3D mode. → Read More
Sony, which provides many theaters with the projectors and hardware needed to display 3D cinema, has informed those theaters that starting this spring, it will no longer provide 3D glasses for free. From now on they’ll have to foot the cost themselves — and by “they” I mean “we,” because obviously the theaters aren’t going to voluntarily pick up this extra expense. → Read More
While there’s a bit of a learning curve, 3Defy is a great demo of, at the very least, the latest in Flash programming. It’s basically a site that lets you add 3D effects to 2D photos that you upload or link. Using a fairly rudimentary set of brushes and tools, you set an object in a scene and try your darnedest to push, pull, and bend it until it looks realistic.
It’s a bit wonky right now and there’s a ridiculous sign-up process just to play around, but the resulting images are fairly striking and you can embed them in web pages or link them out to friends and neighbors. I made this one. It’s horrible. → Read More
Here’s a 3D screen of a different kind: a research team at Japan’s Keio University has developed a display that allows users to “touch” virtual 3D characters. The way the so-called RePro3D works is that it combines a naked-eye, full-parallax 3D display with a tactile interface that lets users manipulate virtual objects in a 3D environment with their fingers. → Read More
Do you remember the 3D HD display specifically designed for gaming that Sony Computer Entertainment unveiled back in June at E3? It took them a while, but now big S in Japan announced [JP] the final release date for the device in its home market: November 2. For the equivalent of US$582, buyers will get the 24-inch monitor itself, an HDMI cable, and a set of 3D glasses.
A game isn’t included in the Japanese package – a separate set of (active shutter) 3D glasses will cost $78,. PSP games are displayed in full screen, while a system called SimulView allows 2 users to play 3D games on one display but to see full-screen images each. → Read More
Epson has been working on HTPS (high-temperature polysilicon)-based TFT panels for years now, and yesterday the company announced the launch of the world’s first such panel for 3D 3LCD projectors. There will be two models, one measuring 0.74 inches (pictured) and another one with 0.61 inches, both will full HD resolution.
According to Epson, the new devices use a technology called “Bright 3D Drive” that helped to boost the image refresh rate from 240Hz to 480Hz. As a result, 3D pictures produced by the new panels are said to be 1.5 times brighter than those created by 240Hz models. → Read More
Sharp Japan announced [JP] the Aquos Quattron 3D LC-70X5 for the local market yesterday, a follow-up of sorts to the LC-70LE735U that’s been available in the States for a few months now. Just like that model, the LCD measures 70 inches, can produce 3D pictures and offers Sharp’s “Quattron Quad Pixel Technology” for better display of colors.
The main selling point of this new model is the full array LED back-light that Sharp markets as “Mega Brightness Technology”. According to the company, the backlighting in the LC-70X5 is twice as strong as in the previous model, obviously resulting in brighter pictures (see below for an example). → Read More
This TV is a beast. It’s called the ZL2, and to be honest it’s the only TV I actually have gadget envy for right now. The rest of the 3D TVs out there rely on end-of-life active shutter glasses or immature polarized 3D, but this monster is going straight to the lenticular lenslets. This technique involves a layer of tiny lenses that direct the light in the direction of the viewer, with a slightly offset to send a different image to each eye. No glasses required.
Oh, and did I mention that this TV has a resolution of 3,840 x 2,160? That’s “quad-HD,” twice the height and width of 1080p and four times the pixels. → Read More
Earlier this year, during CES 2011, Sony showcased a prototype of a wearable 3D display that looked much like those virtual reality helmets we’ve been seeing since the 1990s. And today, the company announced that it’s actually ready to start selling the OLED device, dubbed “Personal 3D Viewer”/ HMZ-T1, on November 11 – in Japan. → Read More
