Thank you, blue beings of “Avatar.” You, with the stars in your yellow eyes, have brought momentum to the Next Big Thing in TV technology.
James Cameron and his lovely fantasy species are largely responsible for the widespread awareness of the trend of the moment, 3D TV.
With the box-office blast from “Avatar,” and the announcement this week that several major companies are collaborating to introduce the first full 3D network, the stage is set for 2010 to be the year of 3D TV.
3D experience, take us to your leader. We want to ask whether this is a passing fad or the way we’ll be watching in coming years.
Truth is, I’m more inclined to surround myself with apparently multidimensional movie images than to crave a 3-D World Cup soccer match. After a taste of the “Avatar” magic, I’m ready to believe.
Until now the problem has been chicken-and-egg: The TV set makers weren’t rushing to manufacture 3D televisions because there wasn’t much content out there to put on them; the studios weren’t in a hurry to produce 3D content because there weren’t enough people with 3D receiver sets to appreciate it.
Now both ends are working together.
What makes the idea more real now is the plan by Sony, Discovery and IMAX to launch an entire network devoted fulltime to 3D content. That should be up and running in 2011. By June of this year, ESPN plans to start a feed of live sports events in 3D (the channel would go dark when not playing live).
Expect much more on the subject since CableLabs is testing 3D systems in Louisville; Comcast is experimenting with 3D video on demand, and almost every TV manufacturer is rolling out 3D HDTV sets with different types of “active” or “passive” 3D technology.
Eager public awaits
The next immersive phase of home entertainment was heralded this week at the start of the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, that annual gizmo fest that promises to fast-forward shoppers to the future — batteries not included.
Frightening, isn’t it, how we can be emotionally sold on these concepts before even handling the merchandise? Like the Apple iTablet, hyped as the greatest thing since Moses, something else we’ve been conditioned to crave before it’s introduced or road tested — this is going to be the Game Changer.
Right?
The idea of 3D movies is old, of course, dating at least to the 1950s. (See the famous Life magazine black-and-white photo for fun, and see Vincent Price in “House of Wax” for a vintage multi-dimensional scare.) What’s new is the promise of 3D TV in your living room. This year.
It won’t be cheap and it won’t be pretty: 3D TV will set you back $2,000 and will require you to wear those dorky, bulky and costly glasses. To really feel immersed in the entertainment, you’ll want a new HDTV set, a 3D Blu-ray player, 3D glasses for the whole family, and surround-sound speakers.
Sitting here calmly, rationally, I can’t imagine putting thousands of dollars toward improving my TV-watching experience. Just give me a good show.
But if you’d asked me after I found myself totally immersed and overwhelmed by the 3D experience in the Panasonic demo booth at the cable expo in Denver this fall, I would have been ready to whip out the credit card.
The reality is, it’s going to take time.
Analysts say we’re years away from middle-class adoption of home 3D TVs. Maybe after everyone has a next-generation iPhone, a windmill and a new electric car.
Joanne Ostrow: 303-954-1830 or jostrow@denverpost.com
