Thursday, January 20, 2011

3D Not The Boon That Electronics Makers Think It Is

Well it seems that 3D cannot be appreciated by almost 1/4 of viewers out there.

Optometrists say as many as one in four viewers have problems watching 3-D movies and TV, either because 3-D causes tiresome eyestrain or because the viewer has problems perceiving depth in real life. In the worst cases, 3-D makes people queasy, leaves them dizzy or gives them headaches.

I am in the "problems with depth perception" camp when it comes to 3D. What it looks like to me is one thing in front of another similar to seeing a wooden cutout in front of another wooden cutout. It is supposed to pop into your living room but all I see are flat planes interleaved in front of one another. So I wouldn't pay $1 extra for a 3D TV and I may not be the only one. If I got sick from 3D then I would pay money to NOT watch it.

3-D TV sets were available in the U.S. for the first time last year, but shipments came in below forecasts, at just under 1.6 million for North America, according to DisplaySearch. Nevertheless, TV makers such as Samsung Electronics Co. and Panasonic are doubling down on 3-D and introduced more 3-D-capable models this month at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Those models cost more than regular ones and require glasses, just like in theaters.

I have a feeling that these models won't sell up to expectations either. I mean other then certain Blu-Ray content DVDs there really isn't much you can watch on 3D. I know ESPN was pushing their 3D a while back but I don't hear about it much anymore. Perhaps when there is a critical mass of 3D content they will start to take off but I know I (like the 1/4 of people that can't see or get sick from 3D) would be giving the whole thing a wide berth.

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