Glasses

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While many may have already written about 3D TV, if you’ve been hanging out for glasses-free models your perseverance might be rewarded very soon. Dutch company Dimenco has launched a Kickstarter campaign for its 4k glasses-free television which it plans to sell this year for €899 (US$1,244).

The 39-inch television will feature an UHD resolution and it has a lenticular coating which gives a real-world 3D resolution of 1080p.

Interestingly, the company says that despite being a native 3840 x 2160 display, the coating will reduce the visible resolution to 1080p with 2D sources. Dimenco has not announced whether the television will accept a 4K input says the TV will accept a 4K input.

“Dimenco has solved the restricted freedom of movement and loss of resolution by applying an unique optical structure on top of the 4K (UD) resolution LCD panels”, according to a press release.

One of the knocks against glasses-free 3D TVs is restricted viewing angles, but Dimenco says “the 3D can be perceived is 140 degrees so you will be able to enjoy from different angles.” The set lacks a built-in tuner, making it technically more of a monitor than a TV.

The company says the Kickstarter campaign will help set up its production line in China with the first TVs expected to arrive in September.

Though we have seen several prototype glasses-free televisions they have yet to make any impact on the market. Toshiba’s model came and went while Vizio’s TV announced in 2013 isn’t due for another year or two.

Updated May 1 with additional information from Dinemco’s rep Bas Ploeger; see his comment below.

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Glasses

Yesterday, CNET Australia had a quick hands-on session with the Sony Vaio L Series desktop, the company’s first glasses-less 3D computer or display. Our conclusion? Decidedly lukewarm.

First things first, despite the Vaio moniker, this Vaio isn’t a laptop. It’s an all-in-one PC-in-a-display, in the vein of HP’s Touchsmart and Apple’s iMac ranges.

Like the Touchsmart, the Vaio L incorporates a capacitive touchscreen, allowing users to interact with it via either the traditional keyboard and mouse or via the screen.

Unlike the others, the L Series also includes a glasses-less 3D feature where, instead of having to don the usual set of rather chunky specs, the computer is equipped with a forward-facing webcam that tracks the head and eyes of the main user, adjusting the 3D display automatically. This means that unlike some other glasses-less 3D setups, such as the Nintendo 3DS, you don’t need to have your head and body fixed in the one place the entire time.

It sounds great in theory, but unfortunately, in the slightly dark and crowded environs of an inner-city restaurant, the computer on more than one occasion stopped tracking the main user, in favour of someone else or no-one at all. It had an even tougher time picking up my eyes behind my own spectacles.

Just as bad, in 3D mode, there’s quite an obvious gap between the screen’s pixels, creating a rather cheap-looking grid effect. And, as to be expected from a glasses-less 3D implementation, the 3D effect itself is several levels more subtle than spectacle-based solutions.

On balance, if we do end up recommending the Vaio L Series after performing a full review, it, probably, won’t be based on its 3D capabilities, but on its other strengths. What it does show, though, is that glasses-less 3D still has a long way to go before it comes close to matching 3D implementations using active or passive glasses, and by then, people may not care anymore.

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Glasses

It was another bumper week for 3D at techfest trade show IFA. LG launched a 3D OLED TV, and Samsung punted the world’s largest 3D LED TV. There were 3D projectors from Sony and LG, Panasonic announced a release date for its HDC-SDT750 3D camcorder, and Sony even had a 3D Vaio laptop prototype. Sadly, all require special glasses to get the 3D effect.

We didn’t have the heart to tell them you lot aren’t bothered.

Amid all the three-dimensional hoopla, you may have read about glasses-free televisions being shown off to journalists and industry types at trade shows like IFA, where Crave checked out the latest technology last week. Visitors oohed and aahed at sans-specs screens exhibited by Samsung, Philips, Vestel and Sharp — 3D without glasses, what’s not to love?

The opposite sex don’t like specs

Primarily, the fact that it’s not that good. The glasses-free tellies on display at IFA aren’t going to be in shops any time soon — they’re adverts for the concept of 3D rather than advances in the technology. They swap silly glasses for smoke and mirrors.

Glasses-free 3D is an old concept. The principle of all 3D is getting a slightly different image to each eye, which the brain combines to create an illusion of depth. Glasses-free screens work on the lenticular principle, dividing each frame into vertical strips and showing a different image on alternate strips for the left or right eye.

Lenticular displays work at small sizes, like on the Fujifilm FinePix Real 3D W1 camera, the Nintendo 3DS, or the prototype mini-camcorder thingy currently being shown off by Sharp.

Boys don’t make passes at girls who wear glasses

The downside of lenticular displays is that, unlike glasses-based 3D, you need to be in the right place to get the effect. Visitors to Philips’ stand at a trade show can stand square in front of the screen for 20 seconds of cooing appreciatively at the gorgeous 1080p video before wandering off in search of the next free pen, but that’s not going to fly with six of you piled on a sofa in front of Avatar on Blu-ray.

Even if you are in the sweet spot, there’s still the possibility of eye strain and headaches. Looks like we’re stuck with those glasses. For the latest 3D TVs, check out our reviews of the LG LEX8, Sharp 3D Quattron LC-60LE925E and Panasonic Viera GT20.

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