If it already hasn't been said, we'll say it again: 3D is going to be huge. Destined not to be confined to the success of Avatar, TV manufacturers are already angling for a piece of the golden entertainment pie. CES 2010 could have been called CES 2010 3D, such was the emphasis on the emerging 3D elephant in the room.
However it's been Avatar's massive box office takings that have signalled the early signs of a booming 3D 'gold rush', with content driving the worldwide push towards 3D-everything.
In addition to Sony, who today announced a July release of their first 3D Bravia TVs, Panasonic and Samsung have both confirmed the upcoming release of 3D TVs for Australia. Panasonic confirmed that their first 3DTV would be released sometime around the middle of this year.
When it came to price, the best Panasonic could say, was that it would be "affordable". When pressed for further details on their pricing, Panasonic representatives were tight lipped; no formal decision has been made towards pricing, but an announcement is due in April this year.
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| The soon to be released Panasonic 3D TV |
To be released at a similar time to the Panasonic 3D model, Sony have also confirmed that they are moving full steam ahead with their first 3D TV, the Bravia LX900, which will be launched in July this year.
Samsung informed us that their first 3D TV will launch in April, giving the Korean manufacturer an opportunity to be first to market of all the 3D TV vendors in 2010. A Samsung spokesperson confirmed the TV will use LED backlighting and will be 46in in size.
LG told us that they have no official timeline for 3D television this year, and the same goes for Sharp. We're waiting for confirmation from Toshiba on the timeframe for the rollout of the Cell TV.
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| Pansonic shows off their latest 50in 3D TV |
First impressions - Panasonic
We sat down with Panasonic for a demonstration of their 3D TV. Panasonic were keen to stress to us that their 3D TV works very differently to the traditional cinema method used to display 3D images for movies like Avatar. Panasonic's 3D TV uses a technology known as sequential frame method. Essentially, this means that the left and right frames of the glasses work independent of each other.
This frame flicker rate can sometimes cause eyestrain in certain people. In our case, that's exactly one of the feelings we got while watching the TV. While it's hard to knock the stunning imagery of the 3D screen, we were more than relieved to take the glasses off or watch the footage in 2D.
3D has also been known to induce a range of ill feelings in some people, from motion sickness and eyestrain to epileptic attacks. A recent story at Hot Hardware described how watching 3D films can help diagnose vision problems among some people.
There are certain viewing exercises you can do to limit 3D eyestrain, and this helpful guide does a good job to promote how best to watch a 3D picture.
As with Sony's new LX900, Panasonic's 3D TV incorporates other advances that in theory, should mesan better picture quality to previous generation panels. Placed side by side with one of Panasonic's current generation plasmas (the 50G10) - the difference was pronounced. Blacks were far darker and whites were brighter and significantly more luminous on the newer panel.
Pansonic representative also said the company will not produce 3D TVs in the LCD format.
3D glasses - Panasonic
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How you'll look with Panasonic's 3D glasses.
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There have been significant improvements to 3D glasses since the the 1950s when the red and blue cardboard glasses were a staple of drive-in theatres.
That said, the new variety are chunky. The current cinema 3D standard (Real 3D) are almost as unobtrusive as a pair of slightly thick sunglasses. Panasonic's 3D glasses, by comparison, feature thicker rims and more pronounced curved lenses. Actually, they look more like a pair of swim goggles.
Panasonic claims the battery life for each pair of glassess lasts approximately 100 hours. Each TV sold is likely to have at least one pair of glasses bundled with the unit, and they willalso be available as a separate purchase.
Like the Sony, Panasonic's 3D TV allows viewers to switch between regular 2D programming and 3D content; the latter which will be (at first) available via Blu-Ray and via broadcast mediu ms such as Foxtel 3D further down the track.
The NRL has shown early interest in the burgeoning broadcast form, with an intent to get on board the 3D bandwagon with 3D sports broadcasts, borrowing from the NFL, who have already demonstrated 3D matches in the United States.
More recently, a British Football match between Manchester United and Arsenal was aired in 3D to selected pubs across the UK.