3D TV!

Everyone is talking about HDTV. What about 3DTV? Ever been to IMAX? It’s exactly that, only this time it’s smaller, about 42 inches. But what a glorious technology it is! Fortunately, I got to test it out during the recent Samsung product launch at the Tent City in Manila Hotel. There were loads of new TVs, DVD players, digital cameras and camcorders strewn all over but only this one machine, the PS42A450 plasma TV, really caught my eye. There were two specially-made eyepieces that need to be worn to view the images in 3D. Samsung’s demo videos were not quite well done but I would assume that the same IMAX technology would work in this particular model.

For the uninitiated, what IMAX theaters do is to split the primary colors of an image in a display, usually into 3, making the screen look blurry. But once the user wears the eyepieces the colors come back together and there’s a sudden depth in some of the images making them “float” out of the screen. Samsung should have tried the last “Bewoulf” film that had an IMAX-like 3D effect so the PS42A450 could have been better appreciated.

Hmn…. imagine playing video games in this TV…

According to Roma Ramirez, Samsung Philippines’ product manager for widescreen TVs, this model will arrive in the Philippines. She hasn’t given any figures yet but she assumes that it could be within the 100,000-peso range. I would doubt that considering that flat-panel displays beyond 37″ still cost around P60,000 (it’s a far cry since 32″ TVs cost P120,000 in late 2006). Nevertheless, this thing will definitely fall into the hands of some filthy-rich scion… or their tech-addicted sons.

Here’s my initial test of this 3D TV model. Th video is in Inquirer.net’s VDO section:

Me wearing the eyeglasses for Samsung’s first 3D TV. The glasses are bulky but they get the job done…. making the screen come to life.

42-inches of viewing pleasure. It’s like having a mini-IMAX at home.

http://www.inquirer.net/vdo/player.php?vid=637&pageID=1

~ by lordalessi on April 24, 2008.