CES, it's that time again. Thoughts? care? predictions?

[RGA]

Frankly 3D will be a winner if they start - and to be blunt about it - producing porn videos in 3D if they have not done so already. Think of the possibilities. I'm not against 3D at all - it just needs to be better than what was shown - which most found to be pretty much crap most saying the still images were good but rubbish during motion. But they'll improve it I am sure and probably within a few years they'll get it better enough to sell it. And then go through 5-8 years of improving it - err rolling out the better versions in a timed manner to get the overspending early adopters to continually upgrade.

I think the best thing would be for it to be a switch on/off feature.

The televisions with the built in web cams and mics are a nice addition - using your television screen for video conferencing is a good idea.

[frahengeo]

Frankly 3D will be a winner if they start - and to be blunt about it - producing porn videos in 3D if they have not done so already.

Thought this was funny when I read it a while ago. A little excerpt taken from one of my favorite sites:

http://www.thedigitalbits.com/mytwoc...5.html#011110d

(Bill Hunt of The Bits is speaking about interviews he's had with the adult film industry in Las Vegas during CES)

They've been a little more cautious with Blu-ray, though as I noted that market is finally starting to take off. The OTHER reason for their lack of 3D enthusiasm is a little more amusing: At least one adult studio exec I spoke with at the Expo said he didn't think guys were going to want to... well, let's just say "do their business"... while sitting in front of a screen wearing "those damn silly glasses!" Go figure."

[Woochifer]

Frankly 3D will be a winner if they start - and to be blunt about it - producing porn videos in 3D if they have not done so already. Think of the possibilities.

Not so sure about that. My understanding is that porn in HD has been a mixed bag. That extra resolution reveals stuff like scars, blemishes, zits, and other buzzkills that don't show up at lower resolutions.

Porn is not the driving force that a lot of people in the tech press think it is, otherwise HD-DVD would have won out over Blu-ray.

There's really not much in the way of 3D production for porn. It's the major studios that have driven 3D so far. In the theaters, 3D is a done deal. It's no longer a novelty and has been proven to sell tickets.

75% of the box office receipts for Avatar have been for 3D screenings. With that movie potentially on its way to breaking the all-time records, it's a game changer for 3D in much the same way that Star Wars was a game changer for visual effects and surround sound (1st movie with Dolby Stereo, which allowed for 2.0 surround out of ordinary 35mm optical soundtracks). Demand for 3D was already growing, but Avatar has accelerated the process.

I'm not against 3D at all - it just needs to be better than what was shown - which most found to be pretty much crap most saying the still images were good but rubbish during motion. But they'll improve it I am sure and probably within a few years they'll get it better enough to sell it. And then go through 5-8 years of improving it - err rolling out the better versions in a timed manner to get the overspending early adopters to continually upgrade.

While I'm eternally skeptical of the hype-driven tech press, most of the reports I read have been positive on the 3D demos. Some reports were less than enthusiastic (some of the demo booths at CES also had issues with the shutter glasses losing sync with the timing code), but I can't think of any of them that regarded 3D as "crap" or "rubbish." The display technology also varies significantly by manufacturer, even though the industry now supports a standard 3DTV signal format.

I think the best thing would be for it to be a switch on/off feature.

For the short-term, you'll probably see separate feeds, much the same way that you currently see SD and HD simulcasts. If the signal is 2D, your TV will display it that way. If it's in 3D, that's also how the TV will display it. Since the new 3D approach involves combining two alternating 60 Hz video signals into a single 120 Hz feed, I would guess that backwards compatibility is possible by simply displaying one of the two 60 Hz signals. It won't look any different than any other HD video source, and won't be like the older 3D features that had the polarized images overlaid on top of each other.

The adopted 3D standard is basically an extension of the existing MPEG-4 AVC format. 3D Blu-ray titles will start coming out by the middle of the year, and they will include options for the 2D and 3D version. Directv and Discovery/Sony/IMAX have already announced 3D channels starting up around the end of the year.

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

For the short-term, you'll probably see separate feeds, much the same way that you currently see SD and HD simulcasts. If the signal is 2D, your TV will display it that way. If it's in 3D, that's also how the TV will display it. Since the new 3D approach involves combining two alternating 60 Hz video signals into a single 120 Hz feed, I would guess that backwards compatibility is possible by simply displaying one of the two 60 Hz signals. It won't look any different than any other HD video source, and won't be like the older 3D features that had the polarized images overlaid on top of each other.

The adopted 3D standard is basically an extension of the existing MPEG-4 AVC format. 3D Blu-ray titles will start coming out by the middle of the year, and they will include options for the 2D and 3D version. Directv and Discovery/Sony/IMAX have already announced 3D channels starting up around the end of the year.

For 3D, the BDA has decided that the 2D+metadata is the appropriate way to go on this. Much like the lossless extension on Dts MA Lossless, the primary signal(core) will be the 2D stream, and any TV that has the built in 3D decoder will see the metadata stream and multiplex that into the signal.

[E-Stat]

For 3D, the BDA has decided that the 2D+metadata is the appropriate way to go on this. Much like the lossless extension on Dts MA Lossless, the primary signal(core) will be the 2D stream, and any TV that has the built in 3D decoder will see the metadata stream and multiplex that into the signal.

That sounds like a very practical approach. I hope the movie producers themselves don't fall prey to the gimmicky effects I saw in previews last weekend for several upcoming 3D films (Shrek, Pirahna 3D, Despicable Me). What I really liked about Avatar (especially when I saw it at a full size 400 seat 1570 IMAX) is that the effect was not flaunted and disappeared instead into a greater sense of reality. I will invest my money into duplicating that sense of visual realism.

rw

[RGA]

Hmm maybe you didn't get the humour - but boobies in 3D - c'mon people work with me here.

[Mr Peabody]

With metadata will users still need glasses?

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

With metadata will users still need glasses?

Unfortunately yes. The metadata contains the second video stream and the control code for syc'ing the glasses. There have been non glasses 3D sets by Mitsubishi, but that presentation was completely inferior to what the BDA has certified. Since both the theaters and the home version of 3D will use the Rea l3D system, you will have the same effect as in the theaters soley based on the size of your screen.

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

That sounds like a very practical approach. I hope the movie producers themselves don't fall prey to the gimmicky effects I saw in previews last weekend for several upcoming 3D films (Shrek, Pirahna 3D, Despicable Me). What I really liked about Avatar (especially when I saw it at a full size 400 seat 1570 IMAX) is that the effect was not flaunted and disappeared instead into a greater sense of reality. I will invest my money into duplicating that sense of visual realism.

rw

You will always have filmmakers that use technology in a flattering effective way, and others in a gross, gimmicky and distracting kind of way.

Whe had that same problem when the film community migrated over from matrixed Dolby Stereo to discrete 5.1. Some used the extra dynamic range and channels in a gimmicky and overpowering fashion, and others used it with extreme effectiveness.

[Feanor]

Unfortunately yes. The metadata contains the second video stream and the control code for syc'ing the glasses. There have been non glasses 3D sets by Mitsubishi, but that presentation was completely inferior to what the BDA has certified. Since both the theaters and the home version of 3D will use the Rea l3D system, you will have the same effect as in the theaters soley based on the size of your screen.

That's pretty cool. So should I hold off buying that HDTV (to replace my CRT) untill the 3D models are available?

I suspect I won't because the 3Ds will hit the streets are the usual, very high, skim-the-plutocrats-first prices. Just like the LEDs, 240Hz, etc.

[E-Stat]

You will always have filmmakers that use technology in a flattering effective way, and others in a gross, gimmicky and distracting kind of way.

I guess some things never change. I first saw the potential of the medium with one of the "real" IMAX format films about the undersea kelp forests off the California coast. The realism was spooky.

rw

[Woochifer]

Hmm maybe you didn't get the humour - but boobies in 3D - c'mon people work with me here.

Uh, porn in 3D involves more than just them boobies shootin' out of the screen!

I would know since I've actually seen a 3D porn flick before. This was one of those cheesy productions from the 70s using the old blue/red glasses and it developed a cult following with the midnight movie crowd. Now THAT was the face of fear -- a midnight audience full of drunk college students collectively screaming "DUCK!" when the money shot's about to get pointed towards the camera!

[Sir Terrence the Terrible]

Uh, porn in 3D involves more than just them boobies shootin' out of the screen!

I would know since I've actually seen a 3D porn flick before. This was one of those cheesy productions from the 70s using the old blue/red glasses and it developed a cult following with the midnight movie crowd. Now THAT was the face of fear -- a midnight audience full of drunk college students collectively screaming "DUCK!" when the money shot's about to get pointed towards the camera!

LOLOLOLOLOLOL....er....ewwwwwwww!!!!!

[poppachubby]

Hmm maybe you didn't get the humour - but boobies in 3D - c'mon people work with me here.

Dude I was pushin for porn back on page 2...where were you?