Why buy a 3D TV?

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ruben999

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#138686 13-Jan-2014 14:57

Hi everyone,

Is 3D TV taking off?

Are there any channels that support 3D? In the near future?

Do all new movies (that are 3D in the cinema) come out on 3D Blueray/DVD?

If No, how do I justify buying a 3D TV? I know its only a few hundreds more, but I just dont see the benefit.

And I wont even get started on those silly glasses :).

Thanks guys.

Ruben

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#966226 13-Jan-2014 14:57

You should be talking about 3D 4K UHD TVs now.. ;)

Sony

geekiegeek

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#966271 13-Jan-2014 15:52

I think that even the TV manufacturers have given up on 3D, CES was all about 4K with hardly a mention of 3D.

Personally I've always thought it was a bit of a gimmick for home use unless you have a 100" screen that can fill your field of vision.

tehgerbil

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#966273 13-Jan-2014 15:59

CES 2014 I believe marked the end of 3D TV (as we know it anyway.)

Read this

TV manufacturers will always produce a product for a market, if there's enough profit in it, but 3D is a shrinking market, and it's shrinking faster and faster.

Just some of the reasons for this:

1. There is (3 years later) still no good 3D content.
2. There's no 3D channels on cable/FreeTV
3. Thanks to the loss of Marbecks etc, there's nowhere to buy 3D content.
4. 2D- 3D conversion is just nasty, and very poorly managed.
5. there's no 'value' in 3D
6. If you didn't have great vision the effect can be lost/cause headaches

On the other hand, take 4K as the emerging new technology. Here are the reasons it will take off,

1. You can already make content yourself (Samsung Note III creates native 4K video)
2. Upscaling doesn't actually look that bad, watching high quality BD on a 4K TV is quite enjoyable
3. It won't be an 'upsell' it will become standard fro the middle-range up
4. You don't need to buy anything special to use it
5. thanks to the likes of the iPad, and galaxy note software consumers are aware that higher pixels equate to enjoyable experience.
6. Every can enjoy it no matter your eyesight.
7. there's instant value added for the consumer

Stark contrast to the above list for 3D!

dclegg

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#966280 13-Jan-2014 16:03

The only reason we bought a 3D TV (Panasonic Viera TH-P50ST60Z) was because the 2D model we were originally after was too hard to source. Because Panasonic has given up on plasma sets (and because I still prefer it over LED), we either had the choice of waiting for more stock to arrive, or to purchase the next model up. This just happened to be a 3D set, but it also come with the added benefits of a better 2D picture, and more HDMI inputs.

We haven't used the 3D functionality much. We've watched one 3D movie with it (which looked OK), and I've experimented with a few 3D PS3 gaming sessions. Definitely not a must have feature for us.

MarkX

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#966285 13-Jan-2014 16:15

tehgerbil: CES 2014 I believe marked the end of 3D TV (as we know it anyway.)

Read this

TV manufacturers will always produce a product for a market, if there's enough profit in it, but 3D is a shrinking market, and it's shrinking faster and faster.

Just some of the reasons for this:

1. There is (3 years later) still no good 3D content.
2. There's no 3D channels on cable/FreeTV
3. Thanks to the loss of Marbecks etc, there's nowhere to buy 3D content.
4. 2D- 3D conversion is just nasty, and very poorly managed.
5. there's no 'value' in 3D
6. If you didn't have great vision the effect can be lost/cause headaches

On the other hand, take 4K as the emerging new technology. Here are the reasons it will take off,

1. You can already make content yourself (Samsung Note III creates native 4K video)
2. Upscaling doesn't actually look that bad, watching high quality BD on a 4K TV is quite enjoyable
3. It won't be an 'upsell' it will become standard fro the middle-range up
4. You don't need to buy anything special to use it
5. thanks to the likes of the iPad, and galaxy note software consumers are aware that higher pixels equate to enjoyable experience.
6. Every can enjoy it no matter your eyesight.
7. there's instant value added for the consumer

Stark contrast to the above list for 3D!

Have to disagree with you on the loss of Marbecks etc. Plenty of 3D movies available from the Warehouse, JB Hi Fi and overseas from Amazon UK or US. Also pricing of the 3D movies is very good. Typically between $10 and $25 for non new releases.

geekiegeek

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#966291 13-Jan-2014 16:23

MarkX:
tehgerbil: CES 2014 I believe marked the end of 3D TV (as we know it anyway.)

Read this

TV manufacturers will always produce a product for a market, if there's enough profit in it, but 3D is a shrinking market, and it's shrinking faster and faster.

Just some of the reasons for this:

1. There is (3 years later) still no good 3D content.
2. There's no 3D channels on cable/FreeTV
3. Thanks to the loss of Marbecks etc, there's nowhere to buy 3D content.
4. 2D- 3D conversion is just nasty, and very poorly managed.
5. there's no 'value' in 3D
6. If you didn't have great vision the effect can be lost/cause headaches

On the other hand, take 4K as the emerging new technology. Here are the reasons it will take off,

1. You can already make content yourself (Samsung Note III creates native 4K video)
2. Upscaling doesn't actually look that bad, watching high quality BD on a 4K TV is quite enjoyable
3. It won't be an 'upsell' it will become standard fro the middle-range up
4. You don't need to buy anything special to use it
5. thanks to the likes of the iPad, and galaxy note software consumers are aware that higher pixels equate to enjoyable experience.
6. Every can enjoy it no matter your eyesight.
7. there's instant value added for the consumer

Stark contrast to the above list for 3D!

Have to disagree with you on the loss of Marbecks etc. Plenty of 3D movies available from the Warehouse, JB Hi Fi and overseas from Amazon UK or US. Also pricing of the 3D movies is very good. Typically between $10 and $25 for non new releases.

Plus the cost for extra glasses if there are more then 2 people wanting to watch :-)

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JayADee

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#966300 13-Jan-2014 16:43

dclegg: The only reason we bought a 3D TV (Panasonic Viera TH-P50ST60Z) was because the 2D model we were originally after was too hard to source. Because Panasonic has given up on plasma sets (and because I still prefer it over LED), we either had the choice of waiting for more stock to arrive, or to purchase the next model up. This just happened to be a 3D set, but it also come with the added benefits of a better 2D picture, and more HDMI inputs.

We haven't used the 3D functionality much. We've watched one 3D movie with it (which looked OK), and I've experimented with a few 3D PS3 gaming sessions. Definitely not a must have feature for us.

I think that's the same TV we have. Great picture, which is why we bought it, nothing to do with the 3D! Like you, we tried the 3D to watch a movie exactly once. Wouldn't bother again.

Buzz Bumble

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#966306 13-Jan-2014 16:51

geekiegeek:
... Personally I've always thought it was a bit of a gimmick ...

Yep, 3D was just a gimmick by TV manufacturers trying to sell a new model to people who already have a perfectly good TV. They then moved on to the gimmick of "Smart" TVs, which again are largely a failure. Now they're moving on to the gimmick of 4K TVs, which currently, thanks to basically zero 4K content to watch and even less chance of TV being broadcast in 4K, is even more of a useless gimmick than 3D was.

They're already / still working on the next gimmick too - Smellovision. They're trying to add it to mobile phones and tablets as well. :-\

DarthKermit

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#966325 13-Jan-2014 17:23

I find 3D movies a waste of time, as well as giving me eyestrain, so I can't say that I'm enthralled with the idea of 3D TVs.

There has never been any content broadcast in NZ in this format. The only way to see it is on select 3D blurays.

Whatifthespacekeyhadneverbeeninvented?

geocom

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#966331 13-Jan-2014 17:36

First of all I actually like 3D content.

The only 2 issues I have seen are.
1. Active glasses should have never been invented they have some real problems and cost a fortune but most early 3d TV's came with these.
2. There are people who cannot view 3d my grandparents for one could not see any difference. Although the same thing could be said about stereo audio.

Mighty Ape have a selection of 3d Blu-Ray disks as well. If you want to watch a amazing 3d video then watch ww2 in 3d.

4K content is going to have some major issues.
4K files are going to be huge. 3d is 2 HD screens. Where as 4k is 4 HD screens worth of data.
Freeview are highly unlikely to start 4k streaming as you can sell 4 different channels for the same amount of bandwidth in HD. Even less likely on Sky and a snowballs chance in hell on sat freeview.

Geoff E

charsleysa

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#966371 13-Jan-2014 18:25

3D isn't dead, it'll always be around, too much money has been invested. The problem is that it's expensive, especially blu-ray ($30 - $40 for new release).

Also a big problem is that not everyone can view it without some sort of discomfort, which is about (guess) 40%.

Hence why 4K is taking the spotlight since everyone can view it.

Regards
Stefan Andres Charsley

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NzBeagle

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#966377 13-Jan-2014 18:35

geocom: First of all I actually like 3D content.

The only 2 issues I have seen are.
1. Active glasses should have never been invented they have some real problems and cost a fortune but most early 3d TV's came with these.
2. There are people who cannot view 3d my grandparents for one could not see any difference. Although the same thing could be said about stereo audio.

Mighty Ape have a selection of 3d Blu-Ray disks as well. If you want to watch a amazing 3d video then watch ww2 in 3d.

4K content is going to have some major issues.
4K files are going to be huge. 3d is 2 HD screens. Where as 4k is 4 HD screens worth of data.
Freeview are highly unlikely to start 4k streaming as you can sell 4 different channels for the same amount of bandwidth in HD. Even less likely on Sky and a snowballs chance in hell on sat freeview.

All good points, for both advancements. 4K will be interesting, I hope they have some feasible ways for access to content in the near future, as I think this will be a driving factor.

I'm sure I heard recently that some channels were looking at dropping their 3D broadcasts overseas? Is there yet a 1080P broadcast in NZ, sorry if I missed it. but last I saw was 1080i/720p.

I'd look at 4K more than I'd care for 3D, mainly as I'd be looking for a bigger TV if I was replacing the existing one and would want to retain the pixel density.

mattwnz

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#966378 13-Jan-2014 18:42

3D tv without glasses will be the future. There were apparently some good ones at CES, and they apparently even work when you are not directly in front of the screen.

Buzz Bumble

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#966399 13-Jan-2014 19:17

I doubt 3D TV nor 4K TV will ever be a big thing. These days everything moves so fast that by the time TV show makers are starting to even think about using 4K, the TV set makers will already be trying to sell 10K, or 40K, ... or holographic TVs.

driller2000

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#966402 13-Jan-2014 19:20

I brought samsungs flagship plasma in dec 2011 - because it was one of the best reviewed tvs around - and i still love it today - the fact it had 3D was largely immaterial

I would think 3D is bolted on to most middle to top end sets - much like "smart" functionality

As always YOU should target what is important to YOU - if 3D is one of these things, then sure incl it in your desired feature list

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