Apple could provide 3D the push it needs for mainstream status
Editor ©RapidTVNews | 07-12-2010
After being granted a patent for 3D video technology allowing multiple users to experience 3D content at different viewing angles without the need for special glasses, Apple’s entry into 3D market could be the impetus that takes 3D into the mainstream says analyst In-Stat.
Viewing angle limitations and the need for glasses, along with high cost, have been the main gating factors for 3D to date and the analyst believes that Apple is taking the right steps to remove the viewing obstacles at least.
In analysing the 3D market in a new research report, 3D in Mobile Devices: 3D Adoption Will Be Highest in Smartphone, Handheld Gaming, and Tablet PC Markets , In-Stat predicts that even though the market for 3D in the home and in mobile devices is currently limited , the continued development in glasses-free technology, boosted by Apple’s entry, 3D projection will “undoubtedly become a part of mainstream life”.
"Autostereoscopic 3D, or glasses-free 3D, is currently available. However, its development has been aimed mainly at mobile applications, like smartphones and handheld game consoles," commented Stephanie Ethier, Senior Analyst. "For example, Sharp is launching a glasses-free 3D smartphone in the US in 2011. Nintendo is set to launch its 3DS handheld game console in Japan, Europe and the US in the first half 2011. However, a notable difference between these 3D-enabled mobile devices and Apple’s 3D projection system is that these mobile devices are optimised for a single viewer experience. Apple’s 3D projection system would be optimised for a multiple viewer environment—one that is much more suited to driving 3D adoption in the home."
Initially filed four years ago, Apple’s patent regards existing 3D technology methods as “impractical, and essentially unworkable, for projecting a 3D image to one or more casual passersby, to a group of collaborators, or to an entire audience such as when individuated projections are desired.” The patent also suggests that, by detecting the general location of each user in the viewing area and adjusting accordingly, multiple images can be projected to different points on a special reflective screen, allowing multiple users to simultaneously view the 3D image from different points in the room without the need for glasses. In-State speculates that the proposed 3D technology could also support a significant Apple TV upgrade, which, it adds, is already HD compatible.
