Quote Originally Posted by Swish
It seems like such a fad to me, and nothing more. Sitting around in your house with funny glasses on to watch a 3D movie doesn't appeal to me one iota. I would also submit that there will be very few movies available in 3D and that that whole thing falls apart within a year or two.
How can it be a fad when it's built into an existing HD video standard? The 3D spec is basically a metadata-based add-on to the existing MPEG-4 AVC standard (the same one that underpins Blu-ray and newer cable/satellite receivers).

How can 3D "fall apart" when it's well on its way to becoming standard issue on the majority of new HDTVs, Blu-ray players, and cable/satellite receivers? All of Directv's MPEG-4 HD receivers were updated for 3D service last summer, and the system software for the PS3 (which make up about half of all Blu-ray players) was enabled for 3D last fall.

The hardware is rapidly moving to 3D whether you want it to or not. It's a simple function of the updated MPEG-4 spec making its way into the latest video processing chips, and those processors migrating their way into new devices. Within your two year timeline, it's actually more likely that the majority of new HDTVs will simply come with the 3D function built in, since all of the new video processors will support it.

At the implementation end, the biggest R&D efforts in the TV industry right now are with glasses-free 3D TVs. But, whether the implementation uses shutter glasses, polarized glasses, or no glasses, they're all based on the same signal standard.

As far as content goes, in addition 3D theatrical releases, there are already four 3D broadcast channels on the air, including ESPN 3D. Development of new 3D HD cameras is well underway that will allow for one camera to be used simultaneously for 2D and 3D feeds. Once this happens, then the ramp up of 3D for live events will likely occur rapidly -- think sports, concerts, and event-based programs like American Idol.

Deployment of 3D TV is occurring much faster than it did with HDTV, and there's really nothing to impede that progress, given that it's a simple refinement of an existing standard. If you don't want to watch something in 3D, you don't have to. But, the new HDTV that you buy in a few years will likely have the 3D feature built in regardless.