AV Adviser

4K, save it, we want 8K

Cleveland - As the TV manufacturers resign themselves to the fact that 3D in the home is dead for now, they have targeted another way to sell us a new television.  4K, or as they're calling it Ultra HD, is last year's 3D. 

Right now the price of an Ultra HD TV is a bit high, but expect that to fall rather quickly.  After all, the TV manufacturers are very good at cutting their own throats by dropping prices to the point where profit margins are razor thin.  Making TVs is not a winning proposition these days. 

So the manufacturers must come up with enticing ways for us to buy a new TV even though the flat panel we bought five years ago is just fine and high definition still looks dazzling.  So they're going to push Ultra HD (4K) down our throats now.  And, like 3D, I doubt the public will bite.

We don't need a new TV right now. Besides, there's not much content in 4K.  I doubt there will be much content either.  TV stations would have to buy all new equipment to produce 4K.  They just did that over the past decade or so to go HD.  They will not make that investment at this time. 

So why not work on 8K?  It's around the corner.  And it's got 4K beat.  8 is greater than 4.  Start tweaking this technology and perfect it in the lab.  That'll take a few years.  Then start campaigning the content producers to gear up for 8K.  They'll be more willing to invest after standard HD becomes, well, standard.  And consumers will be ready for a new TV by then, say five years or so. 

In the meantime concentrate on the internet enabled TV.  Work on new apps to bring internet content to the TV.  Create better ways to make the TV experience interactive.  And stop trying to sell us something that's not worth it. 

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

 

3D audio via a virtual sound ball

The technology in the AV industry is fascinating.  It's one of the reasons I love this business. 

I just read a story about a way to create a virtual 3D soundfield through what they're calling a "sound ball". It appeared in R&D Magazine, Home theater gets a boost from “Virtual Sound Ball”.

It'll be interesting to see if the technology makes its way into the consumer market.  My prediction is that an IT based manufacturer will beat the staid, traditional consumer electronics brands to the punch.

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal 

 

3D, could it be a fad once more

3D in the movie theaters has been a fad on three separate occasions, the 50's, the 70s and this latest one.  Calling it a fad means it's to be short-lived.  And by the looks of it, the present resurgence in 3D is heading in that direction.

Have you noticed that there isn't the onslaught of 3D movies there was just a year ago?  If people are growing weary of donning glasses for just a couple of hours in the movie theater what's that say about their acceptance of wearing them while watching TV at home. 

Sure enough there's signs pointing to a real lack of interest by consumers to embrace 3D technology in a TV.  I was never a fan of the idea.  It smacked of an attempt to make consumers think they need to buy a new TV when they'd just purchased a flat panel in the last five years.

Here's a story from Digital Trends that points out the waning interest in 3D, 3D simply isn’t motivating consumers to buy new televisions.

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

 

Sony's 3D Visor Already Modified For Virtual Reality

At the end of October I wrote about the new Sony personal 3D device, the HMZ-T1, Sony Introduces Personal 3D, HD Viewing.  In the story I reminisced about the 90s when we were promised virtual reality goggles in the near future.  I compared the Sony 3D visor to that device. 

Wouldn't you know it, someone has already taken the Sony HMZ-T1 and modified it to become a virtual reality device.

So if you've got a tech savvy teen and don't mind spending $800 dollars on their Christmas gift this may be the ticket. 

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

Toy Story 3D Blu-ray Trilogy Is Now The Reference

Earlier this week I was talking about the new Sony personal 3D visor.  The one big drawback being that the amount of 3D material was limited.  Yesterday's release of the Toy Story 3D Trilogy in Blu-ray may be only three more movies but they are now the standard bearer of 3D and Blu-ray.  Be warned, this box set is 3D only and not compatible with non-3D set ups. 

The Toy Story franchise is possibly the best trilogy of films ever made and I'm just talking about the movies themselves.  From a technical standpoint they are visually stunning, getting better with each release as technology advanced. 

Going back to render the first two movies in 3D when they weren't created that way can be a point of debate.  What can't be denied is the pure joy these films bring to anyone of any age. 

Expect to see these movies in nearly any 3D demo you come across while shopping.  They are immediately the reference material for the technology.

Here's a review from KVDR-TV, Toy Story 3-D Trilogy (Blu-ray).

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

Oppo's BDP-93 Disc Player Does It All

Last week someone asked me what Blu-ray player he should buy.  He had some strict criteria which made the choice obvious. 

He wanted a 3D Blu-ray player for one.  Though he doesn't plan on watching too much 3D there were a few titles that were on his list.  Anyway, since his new TV had 3D built-in it made sense to spring for a 3D Blu-ray player.

Of course he wanted the product to play DVD and CD.  All Blu-ray players offer that capability.  Being a big music fan he also wanted the player to be able to handle the niche formats of SACD and DVD-A. 

Though DVD-A is nearly dead and SACD is only appreciated amongst a hardcore fanbase here in the U.S. he wanted a player that had them built-in as well.  He has a decent library of these high res music discs.

Luckily there's one brand that realizes the needs of such discerning music and video geeks.  That would be Oppo's BDP-93.  Oppo is a relative unknown name to most consumers as they aren't carried in big box stores or most any store for that matter.  No problem.  You can buy their equipment directly from their website. 

At $499 it's not cheap but it is their entry level unit.  The BDP-95 runs $999.  That'll make the 93 seem more tolerable. 

3D TV Manufacturers Finally Standardize Active Glasses

Panasonic, Sony, and Samsung have finally gotten together on a standard for active shutter glasses needed to watch 3D.  Here's the story from HD Engadget, Panasonic, Sony, Samsung and XpanD finally team up for an active 3D glasses standard.

So now there's one less problem with the premature launch of 3D.  Of course, active glasses are a part of the problem no matter if they're standardized or not.  The active glasses have shutters that move and cause flickering in the peripheral vision of the viewer.  Some people tolerate it and others don't like it at all.  Active glasses also cut out 65% of the brightness making movies too dark.  There's also the fact that they need to be recharged and can loose their power during a movie.  Put another pair of glasses on you say?  At around $150 per pair it's a costly proposition.

There's always passive 3D where the glasses only cost a couple of bucks.  The problem with them is that in order to obtain 3D, the resolution to each eye is halved.  Now the movie is no longer in high definition. 

There are new technologies being developed but it does little good for those who already bought a 3D TV.  The good news is that 3D is packaged into TVs at little extra cost these days.  Many people have 3D TVs but just don't use the feature.   

And, really, why would you?  Two years in and there's still not much content.  It'll be interesting to see how much they push 3D at CEDIA Expo next month. 

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

Will Porn Stimulate 3D

I've talked about the relationship between the porn movie industry and consumer electronics before.  It's no coincidence that the Consumer Electronics Show coincides with the porn industry show every year in Las Vegas.

With the lack of 3D programming available leave to porn to create content and a source.  Penthouse is launching a 3D channel.

It started broadcasting in Europe on March 1 and promises to be available sometime in the second quarter here in the U.S. 

Will porn's adoption of the new medium be similar to that of the VHS tape.  The porn industry went VHS instead of Betamax and the rest was history. 

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

3D At Home Done Right, On A 180 Inch Screen

Like many in the industry I've stated my case against 3D.  It's too early to market with too many competing variations.  No one's wearing glasses to watch TV for prolonged periods of time.  There's little content presently. 

Unfortunately for me, I have to design infrastructures that will be able to accommodate 3D at some point for my Cleveland area clients.  Future proof the wiring in other words.  And boy is it confusing on how much bandwidth is needed for 3D and at what price is 3D delivered.  Do you lose some of the high definition?  These are my problems and I won't burden you with the boring tech specs. 

I have made a case for 3D in the home if you're going to do a projector and screen. Well, here's one I can get behind.  It's a dazzling home theater with a 180" inch screen, top notch audio and the best sources available.

The story comes from the folks at Electronic House, 3D Home Theater Features 180-inch Screen.  It's the kind of theater you drool over..  It's always fun to show a customer the ultimate possibility, the "what if" dream set up.  It gives you something to strive for.

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal

3D Soundbar By Haier Getting Some Buzz From CES 2011

I've heard from numerous attendees of the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show that one of the products to really make them take notice was a 3D soundbar.  I'm sure they walked by the booth thinking, "ho hum, another surround speaker bar". 

Oh contraire, it not a surround sound bar.  Those use a large number of small tweeters aimed at different angles to cause sound to reflect off flat surfaces on the sides of your room.  That along with a matrixing of the audio channels themselves, to create a pseudo surround sound. 

The 3D soundbar is also pseudo sound but imagine there's sound seemingly coming from everywhere.  That's the odd sensation listeners felt when hearing the Haier Evoke.  Here's a write up on it from the folks at Big Picture Big Sound, Haier Evoke Soundbar to Incorporate Sonic Emotion 3D Sound Technology.

Better still, how about a pitch from a Haier salesperson right on the CES 2011 floor.

If you have a question or if I may be of service email me at radiohannibal@gmail.com

John Hannibal