3D Geek Alert: Now Companies Are Innovating! Simple New 3D Lens For Panasonic's G Series On Its Way!!

Wow. Love this elegant solution for capturing 3D at home! As we have seen in the past, if you wanted home 3D you had to buy an all in one unit and foot the bill accordingly. Moreover, while they are indeed 3D cameras, they were one dimensional with regard to flexibility.

Now enters Panasonic with a truly wonderful innovation! I do not know how well if performs yet, but on a purely high level the new 3D Lens for the LUMIX G Micro System Series (a Micro 4:3 system) seems to hit all the needs of today's consumers.

The system utilizes two integrated optical systems within a single lens assembly feeding left and right eye images to a single (and flexible) CCD to be processed by Panasonic's 3D image system. The interchangeable lens assembly is very compact too. The result should be very elegant: No time lags or distortion between left and right eyes, even when shooting moving objects

Screen Digest says that by 2014 there will be 3DTVs in about a quarter of all homes in major markets. That is an impressive figure. Someone has to provide consumer solutions to capture all those family moments in 3D and Panasonic is definitely stepping up (Canon and Sony will also probably do something similar for their interchangeable lens camera systems, but they will most likely be beamsplitters by design, and therefore bulky).

I am loving the innovation I have been seeing lately in consumer home 3D electronics. Impressive thinking is taking place. I will more than likely be picking up one of these G series cameras now that 3D is involved. :-)

Source: Screen Digest, ‘Bringing 3D Home: the opportunities for 3D broadcast’, 2010

Stereoscopic 3D Technology Awards Coming October 5, 2010; Call For Nominations Now On

Jim here. The International 3D Society is now accepting nominations for its Stereoscopic 3D Technology Awards to be held October 5, 2010 at 7pm at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.

The 3D Technology Awards honor technological achievement in the stereoscopic medium -- mainly cinema, television, special venue, themed attractions, video games, PC and other media. The Society announced today that it is accepting entries from the 3D professional community to be voted upon by a blue-ribbon 3D Technology Awards panel. The first 3D Technology Awards of its kind, the program will recognize individuals and organizations that have made a significant impact on the advancement of stereoscopic arts and technologies from January 1, 1980 through December 31, 2009.

"The International 3D Society is seeking to honor the contributions of engineers, scientists, and inventors who have helped to create the stereoscopic medium," said 3D Awards Committee co-chair and Oculus 3D President Lenny Lipton. "We are interested in calling attention to work that has been done in the recent past to advance the technology of the 3D moving image."

Buzz Hays, Society Chair and Senior Vice President of the Sony 3D Technology Center, Sony Corporation of America, added, "For those of us who have worked in 3D, it is nice to see our colleagues recognized with awards presented by their peers."

"All of us working in this exciting 3D environment today realize we are standing on the shoulders of giants who created the very technologies which make stereoscopic 3D possible," said Jim Chabin, President of the International 3D Society. The organization is a professional community dedicated to advancing the arts and technologies of Stereoscopic 3D.

The 3D Technology Awards Show will feature MasterImage3D passive glasses and technology. Rules, regulations and entry forms are available online at http://www.international3dsociety.com/awardstech.html. There is no entry fee for submissions. The deadline for submissions is May 30, 2010. Nominees will be announced prior to the show.

International 3D Society sponsors include Signature Sponsor XpanD and Founding Sponsors MasterImage 3D, Panasonic Hollywood Lab and IMAX.

AWESOME! About time this took place. I am really looking forward to seeing the outcome of the show! Best of luck to everyone involved.

The French Open Will Be Shown In 3D! In Europe Anyway...

Jim here. Panasonic is partnering with France's Federation Franchaise de Tennis, Eurosport and Orange to provide The French Open in glorious 3D. Specifically center court games.

The 3D action will take place between May 23 and June 6, 2010 on Panasonic S3DHD TVs in selected retail outlets. France will enjoy much more coverage at the retail level and if you happen to live there, Orange will be broadcasting the 3D event to their own TV channel.

Eurosport is assisting by taking the Orange S3D feed and delivering it to 3000 retail stores in 58 European countries outside of France on Panasonic's VT20 S3DHD Plasma TVs.

I am impressed with the collaboration of these large corporations in delivering the goods. Everyone loves a good tennis match and I think 3D is a perfect way to show it off. Would have love to have seen Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe battle it out again this way! Hmmm... Converting classic sports moments in 3D? :-) Let's get on it!

And get that French Open 3D broadcast over to North America!

Report from NAB 2010: S3D is Everywhere!

Michael here reporting from NAB 2010 in Vegas. Saturday and Sunday featured the all-3D Digitial Cinema Summit, in which every S3D topic under the sun was presented and discussed by distinguished S3D professionals. Especially valuable to me was the real-time stereo footage (shot by 3ality Digital) which helped demystify stereo shooting. Errors were intentionally introduced, then fixed, as the audience of 600 something attendees watched with their Real-D glasses.

But that was just a tiny slice of the S3D smorgasboard that was presented. There were some fireworks too, as speakers voiced multiple conflicting opinions regarding 3D conversion. To get an idea of all that was discussed, check out the program here. The only really newsworthy item to come out of the Summit was a new, compact 3D camera from Sony. I was surprised to see it, as the Summit was about S3D education and discussion of where S3D is now, where it's headed, and where it will be in the future.

Today I watched a presentation of the making of Alice in Wonderland, as well as got to see the showfloor. S3D is absolutely everywhere. Panasonic had 6 of their $21,000 AG-3DA1 cameras available for attendees to try out by shooting a special backdrop with a live actor. I played with them for a while, and now I really wish I owned one. Sony has a gigantic S3D LED display, as well as a huge S3D broadcast truck in their booth. And just about every broadcast-related company was showing off their 3D solutions.

Off to the side of the Summit room were some demos of various 3D broadcast formats, including side-by-side, top/bottom, and 720P60 feeds of the same footage. I talked to TDVision today, and they wanted it to be known that they are throwing down the gauntlet against the half-resolution formats that were spoken about and demoed at the Summit.

Ethan Schur of TDVision spoke out against these half resolution 3D formats:

We choose service compatible 2D + Delta over frame compatible (top/bottom and side-by-side) because you don't disenfranchise the 2D users (2D version is included), you get the full HD quality, and you can watch it on any TV in the best quality possible . We shouldn't be sacrificing quality. Who wants to pay all this money for a 1080P television, a nice Blu-ray disc and all these kind of things, and then you are only watching half the pixels?

The problem is that a lot of people in their homes still have old set-top boxes from 2003 and before that, and that people are saying I don't want to make a big investment in 3D, I just want to shoehorn whatever I can into these old clunker set-top boxes. You can't keep your set-top box forever. These boxes can't even do 1080P."

I agree...I want full S3DHD. It seems some people think it may take until 2013 or so (as was said by one speaker at the Summit) until we get Full S3DHD broadcast. I hope it happens faster than that.

I'll be back on the show floor tomorrow to see if there's anything cool that I missed, then it's back to LA.

3D Geek Alert: First Batch Of Panasonic S3DHD TVs Sell Out

Jim here. Not surprising and not really something to laud about because we simply do not know how many were actually bought yet - BUT - all of Panasonic's S3DHD TVs were sold out in the first week of release this month.

They were sold in bundles which is good because everyone loves a good combo. $2900 got you a 50" S3DHD Plasma, 3D Blu-ray Player and one pair of 3D glasses.

Look for increased sales of the systems throughout the year, especially when the 3D AVATAR Blu-ray comes out (hopefully in November, in time for the holidays).

It won't hurt the ratings or 3D TV sales when The Masters is televised in S3DHD - complete with the infamous return to golf for Mr. Tiger Woods this April 5-11, 2010.

S3DHD Gamers Rejoice! NVIDIA Bringing 3D Gaming To Panasonic 3DTVs

Jim here. NVIDIA announced today a partnership with Panasonic and will be joining the "Panasonic Touch the Future Tour" to show off the graphics card maker's new 3DTV Play - a software solution that allows consumers to connect their new S3DHD TVs to compatible GeForce powered computers. Of course, Panasonic just launched their lineup of new VIERA 3DTVs this month.

So what does this mean to consumers? It means you have the power and versatility of S3DHD PC gaming on much larger screens. Further, the active shutter glasses that come with each VIERA 3DTV also works with NVIDIA's GPUs.

Take a look at the features (coming later this spring):
• Can be run on GeForce GPU-based desktop or notebook PCs equipped with an HDMI or DVI connector
• Full support for all HDMI 1.4-compatible 3D TVs, including Panasonic VIERA Plasma full HD 3D TVs
• Enables 1080p24, 720p60, and 720p50 3D formats
• Advanced NVIDIA software and graphics drivers automatically convert more than 400 games to stereoscopic 3D in real time, without the need for special patches.
• Enjoy full HD Blu-ray 3D playback with real-time GPU accelerated decoding and playback on GeForce GPUsi
• Watch streaming 3D movies
• View 3D photographs directly on the 3D TV
• NVIDIA 3DTV Play software will be available later this spring and sold separately with an anticipated U.S. MSRP of $39.99. It will also be available for free for current NVIDIA 3D Vision™ customers.

“NVIDIA is all about raising the bar of PC gaming, and gamers are going to love playing in 3D on one of the new Panasonic VIERA 50-inch full HD 3D TVs,” said Phil Eisler, general manager of 3D Vision technology at NVIDIA. “This is truly one of those ‘must experience to believe it’ moments, and we are ecstatic that consumers will have the chance to try it for themselves on any of our 15 stops across the US.”

Want to try all this excitement first hand? You can! Check out these tour cities and dates and make it on your calendar:
Tour dates and locations are:
3/15 - 3/17 New York, Penn Pavilion, 401 7th Ave at 33rd St
3/15 - 3/17 Chicago, Tribune 445, 445 S. Michigan Avenue
3/15 - 3/17 Los Angeles, Hollywood and Highland, 801 Hollywood Boulevard
3/20 - 3/22 Boston, Copley Place, 2 Copley Place
3/22 - 3/24 Detroit, Detroit Opera House, 1526 Broadway
3/22 - 3/24 Scottsdale, Fashion Square Mall, 7014 East Camelback Road
3/25 - 3/27 Philadelphia, King of Prussia Mall, North Gulph Road
3/29 - 3/31 Minneapolis, IDS Tower, 80 8th Street South
3/29 - 3/31 San Francisco, One Market Plaza, 1 Market Street
3/31 - 4/2 Washington, Union Station, 50 Massachusetts Ave, NE
4/6 - 4/8 Dallas, Grapevine Mills Mall, 3000 Grapevine Mills Parkway
4/6 - 4/8 Seattle, Top of the Market, 93 Pike Street, Suite 307
4/7 - 4/9 Atlanta, 595 North, 595 North Ave, NW Atlanta
4/12 - 4/14 Houston, The Warehouse, 4108 Dupont Street
4/15 - 4/17 Miami, Ice Palace, 59 Northwest 14th Street

Want another reason to go? You will have a chance to win a complete Panasonic full HD 3D home theater system—featuring a Panasonic VIERA® 50” full HD 3D TV, a Panasonic 3D Blu-ray Disc player, and a pair of Panasonic 3D Eyewear. One of these systems will be given away at EACH market listed above! If that isn't motivation I don't know what is. After you come back from the event, let me know what you think!

NVIDIA is a sponsor of MarketSaw

It's Starting! S3DHD TVs Are Being Sold RIGHT NOW!! ...And MLB's All Star Game Will Be In S3D

Jim here. Panasonic has created a new $2,900 S3DHD television bundle to be sold exclusively at Best Buy stores. It includes a Panasonic 50" TC-P50VT20 S3DHD TV ($2,500), a S3DHD compatible Blu-ray player (DMP-BDT300, $400) and a single pair of 3D glasses (TY-EW3D10U, $149).

Best Buy held a media event to publicize the immediate availability of these TVs - it is definitely NOT vaporware. Pictured are the first people to buy the bundle in Manhattan's Union Square.

Panasonic plans subsequent S3DHD TV releases for 54", 58" and 65" later this year.

Regarding S3D content, DirectTV promised at the Best Buy event that the first of their 3 new S3D channels would be running by June and that the 2010 MLB All-Star game will be in S3D! Fox was on hand as well and said that ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS would soon be out in S3DHD. They did not comment on the availability of AVATAR in Blu-ray at the event.

Samsung already has S3DHD TVs on sale through Amazon (Our write up is right here).

Awesome that these S3DHD TVs and Blu-rays are out there RIGHT NOW! Also, with all the competition heating up it is only a matter of time before we see those prices drop. But in all honesty, I thought the prices would be much higher to begin with. I am very pleased.

Source: Cnet

Samsung To Offer 3D Blu-rays of Shrek, Monsters Vs. Aliens; Plus More 3DTV News

Michael here. According to Reuters, Samsung has announced that anyone who buys one of its 2010 3D TVs - which are coming out this month - along with their 3D Blu-ray player will get a kit that includes viewing glasses and a 3D version of Monsters vs. Aliens.

They also stated that the Shrek series will be available in 3D in the second half of 2010.

Meanwhile, Sony announced that they will begin selling 3DTV's in Japan on June 10, and internationally soon after. Sony expects its 46-inch model, which includes two pairs of 3D glasses, to sell for 350,000 yen ($3,875). According to Reuters this is 52 percent more than its latest regular LCD TV with a comparable screen size.

Oh, and Panasonic will officially launch sales of its 50 inch 3DTV tomorrow at a Best Buy store in Manhattan. Whether it will be available at other stores tomorrow is unclear.

Every significant TV manufacturer will be bringing out their 3D TV's within the next few months. Now the question is when those 3D Blu-rays will arrive. Hopefully we hear announcements of titles like Beowulf, Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs, Ice Age 3, Coraline, Journey 3D, Up and of course Avatar soon. It would be a shame to have those TVs out there without a good number of 3D Blu-rays. We know the technology is ready...now we just need to wait for the studios to make their moves.

Best Buy - Listen Up: LLLLETS Get Ready To DEMO!

Jim here. Big box electronics retailers heed warning: No more just standing around citing specifications and pointing at flat screens! You are going to need to do more than always say "This is the set I have at home and it is great".

With the advent of S3DHD televisions you are going to have to demo it, or not have access to them! So says Panasonic. When the VT25 lineup of S3DHD plasmas come on stream in May, retail employees will have to be well versed in the technology and be able to effectively demo what the consumer will be buying.

Said Bob Perry, SVP Marketing at Panasonic: "To us, all of our retailers are really important, but if a retailer cannot properly display it we will not allow them to sell it."

From Twice.com: Panasonic sees 3D as a key differentiator for plasma technology, since it has an inherently rapid switching capability that is necessary to deliver the rapidly alternating full 1080p images to each eye of viewers equipped with special active shutter glasses.

"We believe that when they go into retail and see our 3D plasmas, the average consumer will say, "That looks better" he said. "We aren't going to trash LCD, but are going to make sure the consumer knows that if they want the best 3D experience so far, it is going to be available from Panasonic plasma."

3D TV will be a central part of Panasonic's focus in its previously announced upcoming 15-city "mini-CES" showcase that will use three touring "show booths" with a wide range of products, to hit each of the East, West and Central regions of the country, hitting heavily trafficked venues in the nation's top designated market areas.

...the tour is part of an intensive advertising and promotional blitz for 2010, estimated at around $100 million, that will see Panasonic spend twice as much on advertising some product categories, over the previous year, he said.

I am so glad that Panasonic is putting its foot down on this. Customer service at some of these retailers can be abysmal; I had a guy telling me a few days ago at one of these stores that 3DTVs will be around NEXT YEAR sometime. I hope other manufacturers follow suit. Consumers deserve the best information possible on what they are buying. S3D deserves it too.

Panasonic Sets Price for 50 & 54 Inch Viera Plasma 3DTVs

Michael here. A major TV maker has priced a flat panel 3DTV for the first time. Panasonic has announced that its 1080P Viera VT2 series 3DTV sets will be available in Japan on April 23. The 50 inch model, the TH-P50VT, will retail for approximately 430,000 yen, or $4,800. The 54 inch TH-P54VT will cost 530,000 yen, or $5,900.

This is quite expensive, but hopefully we'll see the prices drop fast as competitors enter the fray and the demand for S3DHD in the home increases with high profile 3D Blu-rays such as Avatar.