ESPN to launch 3D network

How can the PS3 go 3D if it isn't using a 3D Blu-ray player? I would have expected them to just come out with a new console and have the 3D factor be their selling point. Maybe they'll just come out with a new version of the PS3?

Well as far as I can tell there has been no official word of what Sony plans on doing. I would expect them as well to release another PS3, but one of the websites I was reading yesterday mentioned they may just release a new update for the PS3 which could make it compatible. This is still somewhat in an infancy stage but I would imagine either option would work.

As for content, you’ll need a 3-D-capable Blu-ray player or, some day, cable box. Manufacturers are quick to brag about whether their Blu-ray players can output 3-D properly, so just google the model of your player. (If you have a PlayStation 3 or a DirectTV box, you’re in luck: These devices will gain 3-D capability through firmware upgrades, according to their respective manufacturers.) Then you’ll have to buy special Blu-ray discs that are explicitly labeled to use the same 3-D tech as your TV and glasses. So far there’s only one 3-D Blu-ray disc available: Monsters and Aliens, which Dreamworks released with great fanfare last week. (There are other 3-D Blu-ray discs available, but they use the old blue-and-red glasses 3-D technology, which doesn’t look nearly as good.)

Read More http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/...#ixzz0ccf45iiP




Here's a few images and descriptions brough to you by the wonderful www.wired.com during CES.

Mitsubishi’s “3-D ready” TVs are already shipping. That’s not surprising, because they’re an underdog: Mitsubishi’s TVs are 120 Hz, so you’re probably not going to get as clear a 3-D experience as you would with the aforementioned televisions. The TV pictured above is Mitsubishi’s WD-82837, an 82-inch display that is already available, and costs just $4,200. Mitsubishi says this model features technologies to improve noise reduction, sharpness and shadow details. Read More http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/...#ixzz0cceLR5Lw

Panasonic promises its TC-PVT25 won’t compromise high-definition quality, even for 3-D material. According to Panasonic, the 65-inch 240-Hz plasma will preserve all 1,920 x 1,080 (1080p) pixels in each eye — so long as you hook up the correct type of Blu-ray player, pop in a 3-D capable disc, and so on. Panasonic says the TV will include one pair of 3-D glasses when it ships in spring. No word on pricing yet. Read More http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/...#ixzz0cceTVFMF

Toshiba’s biggest product at CES was the Cell TV, a web-connected 3-D TV with the guts of a supercomputer. The 65-inch TV boasts a 480-Hz refresh rate, which becomes 240 Hz for each eye in 3-D mode — a standout feature that Toshiba promises will deliver “unbelievable fast-motion clarity” in 3-D. The TV features a transmitter that synchronizes with active-shutter 3-D glasses, too. Above all that, Toshiba says the Cell TV includes software to convert standard television to be watchable in 3-D form. Huge promises, right? We’ll see if Toshiba can deliver. No pricing or launch date announced yet for this behemoth. Read More http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2010/...#ixzz0cceoZCMn

How can the PS3 go 3D if it isn't using a 3D Blu-ray player? I would have expected them to just come out with a new console and have the 3D factor be their selling point. Maybe they'll just come out with a new version of the PS3?

Forgot to update this thread when I read about this a while back.

I actually was in West Palm a month or two ago and they have a big Sony store in their local mall with a bunch of 3D movies and games set up everywhere. It was definitely something to try out, but i'm still not sold on wearing the hideous glasses.



http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-20010230-1.html

Updated September 2, 2010: At the IFA show in Berlin Sony announced that this upgrade would arrive in October, not September as the company had previously indicated. (via Engadget) People who bought the Sony PlayStation 3 for its built-in Blu-ray player may have another reason to feel good about themselves. Sony has confirmed that in October the multitalented game console will receive a firmware update that allows it to play 3D Blu-ray discs. "We're launching another Firmware upgrade--and this one is going to upgrade the PS3 to support Blu-ray movies in 3D," said Mick Hocking, senior director of Sony Computer Entertainment Europe, at a press event in London late last week. He also mentioned future upgrades to support 3D photos and 3D YouTube videos. The console's update for 3D gaming came worldwide in June. When the 3D Blu-ray upgrade hits homes this fall, the crucial installed base of 3D-compatible Blu-ray hardware will increase significantly; there are "35.8 million PlayStation 3s out there," according to Hocking. The upgrade, which we assume will be free as usual, makes the cost of upgrading to 3D a bit less expensive than before. Of course, you'll still need a new TV and expensive glasses for everyone, but at least PS3 owners won't have to buy a new Blu-ray player. Standalone, non-PS3 3D Blu-ray players like the Samsung BD-C6900 and Panasonic DMP-BDT350 are currently quite expensive, at about $400 each. The least expensive such player is actually Sony's BDP-S470 ($199), which along with the BDP-S570 and a couple of HTiBs, was made 3D compatible via a separate firmware upgrade in June. No other maker offers a similar upgrade for 3D. On a technical note we wondered at CES in January, when we first heard about the 3D PS3 Blu-ray update, whether the console would be able to handle the "full HD" 3D called for in the Blu-ray standard, which we were told needs HDMI 1.4-compatible hardware. Sony told us that despite the older hardware in the console, which was launched before even the HDMI 1.3 standard was available, the PS3 would have no problem delivering full HD 3D. Hocking backed up that claim with the following quote: "The [June] upgrade basically makes every PlayStation 3 HDMI 1.4 compatible--that's the standard that governs 3D displays." We're inclined to believe Sony on this one, and we're looking forward to testing the upgrade ourselves. Read more: http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-...#ixzz11QDoF5yV

So right in time for this Firmware release about to drop, this thread gets an update.

Supposedly Toshiba has a glasses-free 3D TV coming out, but you have to sit close to the TV for the 3D effect to work. I suspect they just put a lens in front of the screen.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Toshib...&asset=&ccode=

I had read somewhere about another company working on using water molecules somehow in a separate compartment to create the 3d effect, but never got to the part of how it was actually supposed to work. By the time they master the technology it'll be useless and holographic projections will be readily available.

I'm more excited for the eye implants to artificially add additional dimensions to our vision, myself.

lolwut

Gills would be nice as well.

Eyes-on, glasses off, with Toshiba's glasses-less 3D TV

http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/innovat...ex.html?hpt=T2




# Toshiba is getting lion's share of buzz at Ceatec with glasses-less 3D TV
# Device was announced last night and people flocked to demonstration
# You have to sit very close to the center of the screen to get the effect
# The 12-inch 3D TV goes on sale in Japan at the end of this year for $1,500

Ceatec doesn't officially start until tomorrow, but Toshiba is already getting the lion's share of the buzz here on the show floor, with its Glasses-less 3D TV. The device was announced last night, and people flocked to the demonstration in a dark makeshift theater today, where the wait was nearly an hour early this morning. The reason? Because finally, mercifully, a TV maker has come up with a way to watch 3D at home without those ridiculous plastic glasses. There were three sizes on display: 12 inches, 20 inches, and 56 inches. While the smaller size models are destined for the Japanese market in December, the 56-incher is just a prototype and there are no imminent plans to make it into an actual product, according to a Toshiba representative here. The 3D Regza TV uses the Cell Broadband Engine that takes a 2D image and then simultaneously creates nine images of it from nine different directions, in real time. It's displayed on a high-definition LED TV. CNET: Watch an explanation video of how the technology works After spending some time in the theater, we found the TV works surprisingly well. It's not a 3D cinema-quality experience, and there's clearly room to improve, but again, you don't have to wear any glasses. Still images fare better than moving images. And you have to sit (though we stood during the demo) very close to the center of the screen to get the effect. With the 12-inch version, move more than a few inches to the left or right and the 3D effect is lost. However, the viewing angle was better on the 20-inch model, and the best on the 56-inch one. And there's another matter of practicality: to get the best effect, you have to stand pretty close to the LED TV, closer than any normal person would want to for fear singeing their retinas. That's why the glasses-less 3D laptop, a Toshiba Dynabook, is a far more realistic application of the glasses-less technology: It's the same size as the 12-inch TV, but since it's natural to sit very close to a laptop and look at it straight on, the aforementioned problems are negated. The 12-inch 3D TV goes on sale in Japan at the end of this year for 120,000 yen, or $1,500. The 20-inch will have a 240,000 yen price tag, or about $2,900. Sorry, rest of the world, you'll have to wait, since there's no timetable for bringing either to other markets.

Speak of the devil.