Posted 10.22.2009 at 10:45 am
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While the first 3-D television sets may start shipping as early as next year, they don't represent true three dimensional images. The televisions require 3-D glasses to work, and only present an image when viewed head on.
And while that may look cool now, Sony has already taken the next step. With a prototype displayed in Tokyo, Sony has shown off the first ever truly 3-D display with an image that can be viewed at any angle, almost like a digital sculpture.
The display is only 10.6 inches tall and 5.1 inches in diameter with a 95 x 128 pixel resolution, so it hardly competes with a modern flat screen in the awesome image department.
However, the narrator on the video claims that the image looks better than one might expect at that resolution, even if it is a bit tiny. Still, this device is just a proof of concept, and a prelude to larger, sharper 3-D displays.
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What if they were to stack a few of these together? then you could have a wider display
Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi. There are several different uses for this today, I see this being a necessity for CADCAM people visualizing their work in actual 3D, also for future drivers of exploratory rovers.
eureka! even more like star wars every day! for all of you who read the plasma knife(lightsaber) article, this is another thing fulfilled! the holograms aree possible! Yoda shall be here any minute! yyyyaaaaaaaaaaaayyyyyyyy!
wow the applications of this are endless , it looks like a fish tank to me , put digital fish in it !
digital fish and lightsbers, and have Jaws with a darth vader helmet and wammo! there's a product people actually want.
Sorry, but this is hardly the "first ever truly 3-D display". The US Government had a larger version that looked very similar but with higher resolution about 20 years ago!!! Just google "holographic display" and you will see countless prior inventions that are very similar.
Does anyone check facts here, or do they just report what they think will get the most hits?
I agree with 3DTOPO. There have been a slew of autostereoscopic "360-degree" 3-D displays since since the early 1900s. And to nitpick, until Sony reveals how this device works (or if a 3-D display technologists looks closer at it), it's still an open question as to if this is horizontal-parallax-only or true full parallax.
gregg favalora
founder, Actuality Systems, Inc. (who's made volumetric displays since 1997)
One other thing, the first sentence "While the first 3-D television sets may start shipping as early as next year" is also false! 3D-ready televisions have been shipping for at least a couple years now! They are already in living rooms, waiting for the most part 3D content! The glasses are extra, but they have been selling those for years as well.
Come on PopSci, this is just downright irresponsible reporting.
the glasses thing doesnt work, really does it though?
Im not sure.. i dont really see anything in 3-d all that much anyhow.. legally blind in one eye, you know..
Now this is what we have been waiting for! 3D televisions. Now all we need is great network and cable shows to warrant a purchase.
www.smashhitdisplays.com