EXCELLENT!
THAT post is one of the reasons I hang out at FR...:)
Posted on 07/07/2011 1:11:41 PM PDT by Las Vegas Dave
Washington, D.C. (July 6, 2011) -- Editor's Note: To celebrate the 10th anniversary of TVPredictions.com, I am publishing a series of features honoring what I think represents the '10 Best' in the field of TV technologies.
(And in some cases, '10 Worst' articles will expose companies and people who I think are failing to strive toward excellence, or, in some cases, not even making a serious effort to satisfy their customers.)
Today, I present the '10 Reasons Why People Won't Watch 3D TV'
Despite persistent promotion from TV makers and the Hollywood studios, sales of 3D TVs have been remarkably low over the last 18 months. Last year, the Consumer Electronics Association says only about 1.1 million 3D TV sets were sold. And this month, the research firm SNL Kagan estimated that even fewer will be sold in 2011, although the company is more optimistic about future years.
Why aren't Americans buying the new sets?
I present, 'The 10 Reasons Why People Won't Watch 3D TV!'
1. 3D TV Interrupts Your Viewing Experience You can't watch 3D TV for more than a minute without finding your eye focusing on individual elements of the screen rather than the picture as a whole. For example, if you're watching a 3D presentation of a college football game, you find yourself watching the player whose display best showcases the 3D effect. It's natural; you know you're watching 3D so your mind and eye tend to focus exclusively on the strongest 3D elements of the picture.
That makes for an interesting minute or two, but it's not why people watch television. They want to take in the entire picture; to be absorbed by it; to let it take over their entire thinking process so they can relax and lose themselves in what they are watching. 3D doesn't allow for that; it constantly interrupts you to check out some 3D effect. After awhile, you almost forget what's happening on the field or in a movie. If you're a Chicago Cubs fan, that could be a plus. But for most viewers, it's a strong negative.
2. It Makes You Sick Doctors have estimated that up to 20 percent of the population will get headaches, dizziness or even nausea while watching 3D.
Steven Nusinowitz, an associate professor of ophthalmology at the Jules Stein Eye Institute in Los Angeles, tells CNN that 3D glasses have a polarized filter that separate two images, thereby enabling the 3D effect. However, the doctor adds that the separation occurs so quickly that your brain may have difficulty accepting it.
"The movie is telling you 'Hey, I'm moving around in this scene,' but your vestibular system is telling you, 'I'm not moving anywhere,' and that disconnect will make you feel sick, for some people," Nusinowitz said.
TV makers even warn consumers in their 3D TV manuals that they could get sick while watching 3D; they advise that you should take off the glasses every 15 minutes or so.
How many consumer products have ever been successful with the masses if their makers had to tell you they might make you sick?
3. Millions of People Just Bought New TVs Because of the federally mandated Digital TV transition in 2009, millions of Americans bought a new TV to ensure they could continue watching when their local stations switched from analog to digital. Even in good times, people tend not to buy a new TV every few years or so; they buy one with the intention of keeping it for years.
And we're now in an economic morass; will people sacrifice the rent money for a 3D TV? When they probably have a TV in their living rooms that's not even three years old?
4. There's Not Much 3D to Watch On My Cable or Satellite DIRECTV is arguably the leader in providing 3D programming -- and the satcaster offers all of four 3D channels! Are you going to buy a new 3D TV for four channels?
There's talk that CBS might launch a new 3D channel, but for now, it's just talk. Generally, the networks have shown little enthusiasm for investing in a technology that doesn't seem to be exciting the masses.
5. There's Not Much 3D to Watch On Blu-ray The studios have rolled out some titles in 3D Blu-ray, most notably Avatar. But the percentage of 3D movies compared to 2D movies is miniscule. And the majority of 3D movies on Blu-ray are animated films targeted to kids; that's nice for the kids, but what about Mommy and Daddy who pay for the sets?
3D apologists say more 3D movies will be coming soon to home video. But there's actually evidence that fewer may be coming in the next year or so. Other than Avatar and Transformers 3, the 2D versions of 3D films are generating more revenue than the 3D editions. If that continues in the second half of 2011, it's not hard to envision the studios pulling the reins on future 3D productions. Seriously, if they don't bring in extra revenue, why spend the extra dollars to make them?
6. People Hate the 3D Glasses Just about every objective consumer study has found that people hate wearing those 3D goggles while watching 3D TV. It's an uncomfortable experience, particularly if you wear prescription glasses or contact lenses with different prescriptions for each eye. The 3D apologists say that 3D sans the glasses is in the works, but most analysts say it will take years before the technology is ready
7. The Glasses Are Too Expensive For a Family Some TV makers bundled one free pair of 3D glasses with each 3D TV purchase. But what about a family of four? Or, a family of six? Or, a family of eight. Large families do exist, you know. (Just watch any Discovery channel documentary if you don't believe me.) With the glasses costing up to $150 a pop, how can even a mid-sized family afford one for everyone? Answer: They can't. And if an entire family can't watch something at the same time, chances aren't good that they will watch it at all.
8. 3D TV Is Not HDTV The 3D apologists like to say that High-Definition TV had a slow ramp-up to success. Well, that's true. But people didn't buy HDTVs in the early days because the sets were cost-prohibitive, with some medium-sized ones costing up to $10,000.
In contrast, the cost of a 3D TVs is just slightly more than a comparably-sized 2D HDTV. People aren't buying them because they cost too much; they aren't buying them because they don't want them.
In addition, when someone saw a HDTV in person, he wanted it, at least eventually when the price came down. The picture added to your viewing enjoyment because it made you feel like you're were there; the picture was that realistic. But 3D is the antithesis of realism; it's a tech trick designed to jolt a response from the viewer. But the response doesn't last long and it's ultimately unsatisfying. Unlike HDTV, watching 3D TV is not relaxing; it's jarring.
9. 3D TV Is Not Easy to Use The 3D goggles are uncomfortable to wear -- and, again, if your entire family wants to watch the show, you have to get goggles for everybody.
Also, many people have trouble actually seeing the 3D effect because of various vision issues; some people have different prescriptions for each eye, etc.
And finally, you have to sit in a certain spot in the room to get the best experience from watching 3D. Sure, every TV has an optimal place to watch from, but 3D requires an even more rigid position.
Hassles, hassles, hassles. Who wants to pay more for a TV that gives you more hassles.
10. 3D TV Has Lost the Culture War When I first voiced my doubts about 3D TV more than three years ago, I was nearly alone. Most tech writers said it could revolutionize the industry and mainstream journalists were equally as excited. But since then, things have changed. Even tech journalists who normally gush over a new gizmo have openly mocked the failures of 3D TV. Well-respected movie critics and pundits such as Roger Ebert have predicted it will go the way of the pet rock and CueCat.
In short, 3D TV is not cool; it won't give you status symbol points in the neighborhood. If anything, buying it might get you laughed at.
Few tech products become successful if they don't first win the culture war; to win over the masses, you have to create an aura that buying the gizmo will make you cool.
But 3D TV is definitely not cool in the culture.
Since the ballyhooed introduction of 3D TV in late 2009, CE officials have tried to downplay expectations by saying it will just be a "feature" in a 2D set and not the main reason why people will buy one. With that in mind, research firms have projected that millions of '3D TVs' will find their way into people's homes over the next several years.
That may be true, but even if people have a TV that can display 3D, that doesn't mean they will watch anything in 3D. In fact, for all the reasons listed above, chances are they won't.
The 3D 'feature' may be used as often as such TV features as the Closed Caption button or the Mute button.
That is, if the studios and networks actually continue producing programs in 3D.
It's not as distinct as the old time radio greats not even knowing what hit them when television became mainstream, and transitioning their radio shows (Jack Benny Show, etc.) to television just didn't translate well at all and ended their careers.
Now, video games... Oh, 3DTV will own that market sure as hell.
I so agree. I'll take it a step further and say it's a deal killer. I completely lose interest in a film once the gaudy computer generated special effects appear. I still think the best special effects I've seen in a SF movie were in Forbidden Planet (1956).
I don’t know, folks. I just convinced my wife to get a real tv (hadn’t had one for about six or seven years, and I stopped watching network television around 1998-1998)
I wanted a television to watch movies on, because I still enjoy movies (Favorite movie: “The Best Years of Our Lives”)
Anyway, we got one of the new Samsung 55” series 8000 LEDs, and...I think the 3D looks pretty good and doesn’t hurt my eyes. Granted, I have only seen one of the Shrek ones (I think the second...and they aren’t THAT great in and of themselves) but...all three of us who watched thought it looked really REALLY good. I guess we didn’t expect much,and were surprised.
I was kind of hoping to be able to watch NFL in 3-D someday...:(
We got two pairs with the television, and with the 3-D starter kit offered by Amazon we got a samsung Blu Ray player, five movies and two more pairs of glasses for free.
I guess they are really trying to push it.
It was a take-off on an old joke.
I remember it from movie and TV attempts decades ago.
It had too much red and blue to ‘distort’ the image into the appearance of 3D. So, even regular ‘color’ was washed out. In the early days, even a black&white screen was easier to watch.
I have a very bad astigmatism in my left eye, but I didn’t notice that.
Could it be that the Samsungs are qualitatively different than the other manufacturers? I haven’t researched them a lot, but you have to put batteries in them (two out of the four pairs are USB rechargeable)
I agree with the points that most people make (instead of focusing on a quality movie, they are trying to make a 3D production) though I think Pixar did a fine job with 3D in the Toy Story 3 feature, that is, it doesn’t distract from the movie. They aren’t trying to use it in the one I saw to make you jump in your seat or anything.
I know it was an old joke.
Mine just made it new, all over again. :)
So, you're wishing you were looking at life through Rozelle-colored glasses, huh?
(Rather than Goodell-colored.)
Ha!
EXCELLENT!
THAT post is one of the reasons I hang out at FR...:)
I only see two major problems.
1. The sets are too small. 3D on a home projector does not look the same as on a 42 inch set at Best Buy.
2. The engineers need to learn what they are doing. I saw in interview the other day, the people looked like moving cardboard cut outs set with the room behind them also completely flat appearing to be about 2 feet behind the people.
Ditto! Otherwise I'd have to actually listen to Juan Williams and Alan Colmes.
Also, I don't listen to tv ads.
Got one, and only used the 3-D function on blue ray movies twice. Really neat for about 10 minutes till you get tired of those heavy glasses.
A better analogy would have been, . . . "used as often as a V Chip."
I'm still trying to figure out where mine is and how it works.
I get that way watching television in the first place. Have you seen Fran Drescher's new show? *barf*
The current 3D technology inherently darkens the image because of the lens. What's apparently happening now is that the theater owners, to save money, aren't swapping out the 3D lenses for 2D lenses when showing 2D movies, darkening those as well.
Lens-Gate: Exhibitors' Failure To Swap Out 3D Filters Casting Theaters In Poor Light
11. 3D tv’s and movies are hell to watch for one-eyed jacks and jackies.
the only 3D movie I have ever seen was Jaws3D. It was horrible. I had a headache from Hades after 10 minutes. Of course that could also be attributed to the utter stupidity of the story also.
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