Thursday, January 14, 2010

Loved Avatar but 3D TV not quite ready for prime time


A couple of months ago our 60" rear projection TV lost its convergence and I briefly entertained the notion of buying a new LED LCD flat screen TV.  But, when a repair technician said he could fix our old set for $200 and I saw TVs being advertised as 3D ready, I knew the best choice would be to pay the $200 and keep watching the old set for a few more years rather than splurge for HD when 3D is so close to becoming a reality in home theater.

My decision was reinforced when I went to see Avatar and was totally enthralled with a visual feast that was not stuffed with 3D gimmicks.  But, from what I've read about the first spate of 3D models planned for later this year, I don't think I'll be shelling out for a 3D HD set in the near future after all. 

I had heard quite some time ago that the home theater products offering a 3D experience would not require glasses.  So you can imagine my consternation when I read that both products requiring glasses and those that do not were showcased at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this year.  Even more exasperating is to read that those requiring glasses will be viewable with proprietary glasses that may not work on other models.  Excuse me?  This sounds like the old VHS vs. Betamax problem again!  Come on, people!  Didn't we learn that lesson back in the 80s??  If models that don't require glasses are already "almost" market ready, why bother with glasses anyway - especially if there's an issue with standards?

Fortunately for me, I'm one of the few "techies" out there that has also not yet upgraded either my DVD player or my DVD collection to Blu-Ray yet because of a nagging feeling that the "video evolution" was still a work in progress.  Of course the outrageous monthly fee the satellite companies want for rather limited HD programming has been a big factor too.  So, at least I'm not one of the millions of consumers that would have to pitch (or relegate to the bedroom) a nearly new HD set and blu-ray player that will soon be obsolete AGAIN!!