With the dawn of 3D in the home, those in the market for a new television are left to wonder if shelling out the extra money for a 3D TV is really worthwhile.
In short, the answer is a resounding "YES!"
In short, the answer is a resounding "YES!"
You really can't form an opinion until you actually experience home theater 3D. Some people draw their conclusions based on their experience with what they've seen in the theater recently under the "RealD 3D" or "IMAX 3D" formats. Others recall the 3D of yesteryear where you wore futuristic paper glasses with red and green cellophane lenses. All of these comparisons are unfair for various reasons.
A truly great 3D experience begins with how the source content was created. Was the film actually shot in 3D, as is the case with "Avatar" or was it more like "Clash of the Titans" which applied the 3D in post production? These two examples, in my opinion, illustrate the best and worst of the new 3D in the past year or so. "Avatar" was in 3D throughout the entire movie. You were immersed in the film and the 3D experience felt natural. It only added to the experience and you forgot you were even wearing the glasses or that the movie itself was pretty terrible. "Clash of the Titans" tried to piggyback off of Avatar's success and crammed in a few 3D scenes. It was essentially non-existent with only a few scenes in 3D leaving you wondering why you paid extra and why you were forced to wear these ridiculous glasses. In order to get a feel for the home 3D experience, you really need to walk into one of the big box stores, like BestBuy or the Sony store in The Comcast Center in Center City Philadelphia and give it a try. Your friendly blog host Shaun and I did just that, a few times actually, and we were absolutely taken with what we saw. Personally I am partial to Sony but the format is pretty standard so if you prefer another brand, my advice would be check it out and try on the glasses to see which ones fit or feel the best for you.
I recently purchased a Sony 55" NX810 3D television myself but originally my goal was not to bring the 3D experience home. My goal was to get a truly beautiful High Definition picture with crisp, bright, clear colors and deep, dark blacks. I wanted a super thin TV on the wall with no motion blur while watching a football game or a hockey game. This is where, in my opinion, you'll want to base your own decision when making your TV purchase because at this stage in the 3D game, there is no substantial content available for free on cable/satellite. Sadly , most of the 3D BluRay movies are awful as far as story/writing/effects. You don't want to go spending $1,500 - $4,500 on a 3D TV just so you can watch "Saw 3D" or "Piranha 3D" do you? I hope not.
I chose the 55NX810 because it has 1080p resolution, the most powerful Sony Bravia Engine, Dynamic EDGE LED backlighting and most important to me, MotionFlow 240hz refresh rate. You can read about those features here (http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10151&catalogId=10551&langId=-1&productId=8198552921666249185), as Sony will do a much better job explaining the finer details, but it all boils down to having the guts to do any job, 2D or 3D, and do it exceptionally. This TV has it all. My package came with the necessary 3D starter kit which includes the 3D transmitter, 2 pairs of glasses and "Alice in Wonderland" in 3D BluRay for $2,500. If you go this route, remember that your cables are just as important, and just as expensive. In order to take advantage of the 240hz refresh rate I had to buy cables that were capable of delivering the 240hz from the source to the TV. One 12' cable from Monster certified for 240hz and 3D transmission was $150.
BluRay movies are absolutely incredible! Even regular DVD up-converted via Sony Playstation look amazing. Watching the Super Bowl in HD blew me away. It was exactly what I was hoping for in a TV. Even when it's off, it looks like a piece of art hanging on the wall. The fact that it had 3D was simply an after thought until I actually took the time to set it up and experience the 3D for the first time. It was amazing. I was hooked.
We made some popcorn and sat down to watch "Alice in Wonderland 3D". Incredible. You have to see it to really believe it. Scenes have true depth and objects seem to float in your living room. It's not as dramatic as an IMAX theater of course, which is partially due to the screen size restrictions of the TV's themselves. The bigger the screen, the more dramatic the 3D effect but at this point it is simply a very enjoyable in-home entertainment experience.
As far as the glasses go, by the time I got to the end of the movie, I was ready to take them off. You really don't want to wear them much longer than a standard movie running time. Maybe they need to be broken in a bit since they were brand new but they started to irritate behind the ears and left a nice indentation mark on the bridge of my nose, although not much worse than some sunglasses. This is where comfort and brand loyalty come in. The only other brand I tried was Panasonic and although the glasses were slightly more comfortable, they seemed to be tinted darker than the Sony glasses and the frame didn't block out ambient light as well and I felt that took away from the image on the screen.
Next I had to pop in Call of Duty: Black Ops. This game gives you the option to play in 3D. Although the initial visual is mind blowing, putting in a 4 hour video game session in 3D will either result in permanent brain damage at worst or a puddle of vomit on your floor at best. Check it out though, some people aren't as sensitive to the motion sickness it can produce and there are plenty of other games out there that aren't as intense. For instance, with my purchase I was given a free copy of a game called "Pain!" to download through the Playstation Network and it was much less vomit-inducing and the 3D added to the object of the game.
All in all I am glad I bought in to the 3D revolution, albeit early. For all I know this technology could fizzle out or be completely replaced in a year or two and I'll be left with some useless but futuristic 3D glasses to display next to my Betamax and my HD DVD player. For now, I see 3D technology as an enjoyable change of pace or a special 3D movie screening event with the family on a Saturday evening. I even went out and bought "Saw 3D" and "Piranha 3D". And I recommend them.
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