“Yes, this 3D fad is just a SCAM by the electronics industry to get all of the “suckers” to throw away all of the perfectly fine, BRAND NEW, 1080P,”
You ever seen one?
People that I have talked to who have seen the demonstrations at trade shows say that watching a basketball game on one of these is like being on the court with the players. This is a technology that will prove to be exciting for live events as well as movies.
I predict that this will be well adopted by the geek crowd.
1) You have to wear special glasses to watch it... which glasses? No standard, many people have problems using them... head aches, nausea, etc. People will never buy into the 3D fad for home theater in any great numbers until it can be viewed WITHOUT glasses.
2) You are talking about a 3D demo using a highly controlled A/V path, reality is quite different. Cable, Dish etc is doing a lousy job of just providing 2D "high-def" signals: compressed signal, 720p content, piggy backed signal because they only have so much band width, etc... all resulting in a mediocre "high-def" picture = macro blocking, fuzzy smeared picture, lack of clarity etc. Need proof? Just look at the recent NFL playoffs... shoddy 2D high def at best.
3) The masses around the world just got through upgrading their entire A/V systems and the economy is now in the toilet. The overwhelming majority of people have just gotten through upgrading their entire HT system to upgrade to the 1080p 1.3a HDMI standard. They have spent millions if not billions of dollars doing so. The equipment is excellent; it works perfectly fine and is nearly, if not brand new. They are not going to throw all of that new equipment away just so they can spend thousands upon thousands of dollars that they do not have chasing a never ending, never settled HD format so that they can put on 3 D glasses and watch one or two poor quality 3D programs because there is a world-wide recession going on and everyone is hurting financially. People need bread and milk more than they need 3D. Sure there are a few people out there who are not affected by the economy. Yes they have money to burn on chasing the elusive 3D rabbit, but they represent a very small portion of the public at large. While they are not affected by the economy, everyone else is and they are not going to throw away money that they do not have on a new fad 3D format that is barely in its embryonic state. Don’t believe me? Just ask your friends and neighbors this one question:
“Are you interested/in/willing to throw away/get rid of your new high-def A/V equipment in order to spend more money on new A/V equipment so that you can watch 3D programming using 3D glasses if it becomes available?”
Finally, a positive word. I’m really surprised at the negative vitriol spewed over 3D, even though it’s such an important (if subtle) part of our visual experience. It’s not a scam, it’s the next logical step; all the equipment is in place, we just need to standardize the infrastructure. The whole issue should be a no-brainer: double the framerate, deliver alternating eyes, coordinate shutters/polarizer accordingly, give user a switch to trivially opt for 2D. Sound and color were derided as unnecessary when they were introduced; try getting by without them today (say, Avatar in monochrome accompanied by a player piano).
Insofar as it may turn “scam”, some companies may try to abuse the opportunity and create a format war where none is sensible.