The 3-D Experience
Author: Catherine Colleen Elsby
Publication Date: 2 August 2010
Millions of Americans cozy up in their living room on weekday nights to watch their favorite TV shows, or to cheer on their favorite sports teams. Now imagine, with the swift placement of a pair of glasses, that program surrounds you and your living room becomes the set.
No need to imagine anymore. Sony and Panasonic have fulfilled decades of hope of the 3-Dimensional experience to be put into the comfort of your own home. Although these types of televisions are approximately $2,000, the experience is guaranteed to be priceless.
Many networks have agreed to start using the 3-D technology to start filming their programs. One of them is ESPN. They’ve been test recording some events to perfect the new form of broadcasting. Their intentions are to make it seem like the football players are jumping out of the screen onto your home floor. ESPN initially plans to show 85 3-D live sporting events starting in June.
“The sports genre is probably the best suited to exploit this technology,” said Sean Bratches, an executive vice president at ESPN.
Other major sporting events such as the World Cup and the Olympics are also planned to be shown in 3-D.
Although some glitches exist in Sony and Panasonic’s plans of 3-D technology, including the amount of television bandwidth available, the smooth transition from the screen into a living room, and headaches that testers have experienced, the vice president of Panasonic is still confident in the future of 3-D televisions. Robert Perry expects 3-D TV to be common in homes within five to 10 years. Technology that will make 3-D TV possible without glasses should be ready in 10 to 15 years, he said.
In addition to television, Nintendo’s next portable game machine will feature 3-D technology. The “Nintendo 3DS” is planned to be released in Japan before March, 2011. This game machine, unlike the television sets, will not require the use of glasses. Nintendo is scheduled to release more information about the product at the E3 Expo in Los Angeles in June.
These advances in technology are fulfilling the media’s current obsession with 3-Dimensional programming, which was primarily set off with the success of this year’s Avatar, which grossed more than $2.6 billion at the box office. Most of the movie’s success is due to its 3-D showings, with 70 percent of its earnings made on 3-D screens.
Twenty more movies have been released, or are set to be released within the year, including Alice in Wonderland, Shrek Forever After, Toy Story 3 and Clash of the Titans.
