Do you remember the days of LD?
Well urm (after i calculated for a bit) if you’re an ’80s (or older) baby, you definitely would have!

LDs were the shiznit back then.

Weekly trips to the LD rental stores were on the same level of anticipation as rollerblading after school.

I remember being told most solemnly how one’s fingers should never touch the LD’s surface, resulting in me stretching my fingers to grasp it as best i could without dropping it as well (cos i thought it too troublesome to use both hands. Kids. Always doing things the more difficult way!)

A few years later came the VCD… which was better and smaller.

Followed by the DVD… which could hold more space, thus avoiding having to change VCDs halfway during the show (Remember that? Super potong stim man! We used to wait and see who would get up first :p)

More recently, we’ve got Blu-ray – sharper detail, better colours, clearer sound + faster clarity of motion – which is also easily available to us on Astro and in stores here.

And… what did you think was coming next?

I think we all know that sooner or later, whether we’re willing or not,
3D will make its way into our homes.

[click for larger view]

The big screen always paves the way to consumers’ desires for what they want at home.
And just like how we clamoured after a great surround sound experience,
or an HD flat screen TV… i think it’d be pretty soon when having the new PS3 is preceded by everyone saying they have a 3D TV at home.

Seriously, just give it a few years!

Already we’re being slowly weaned onto watching movies in 3D,
like The Polar Express,
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs,
Ice Age 3, Coraline (i love Neil Gaiman!),
and more popularly, Avatar.

I recall that watching Avatar in 3D was imperative to the experience of viewing the movie.
i.e.
“Have you watched Avatar already?”
“Yeah!”
“In 3D?”
“… No…”
“Oh cheh. *reacts as if person watched Avatar halfway or something* 3D is so MUCH better, you have to go watch it again.”

Right?!
I heard heaps of people doing that!

James Cameron stated that he put on hold the making of Avatar for years,
till the right technology came along to help create his perfect vision of it.

When it finally happened,
he worked with Panasonic 3D filming technology
to create one of the highest grossing films of all time ($2.7 billion)
and won 3 Academy Awards (Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects and Best Art Direction).

I didn’t know how involved Panasonic was in the film industry…
they even have a Panasonic Hollywood Laboratory (PHL) where Hollywood moviemakers turn to for consultation!

Now this is where it starts to get exciting for us non-Hollywood people.

Panasonic is embarking on a journey to provide people at home with 3D technology!

There are 2 ways in which we can receive 3D entertainment in our homes:
1. 3D broadcasts i.e. Sky 3D TV in UK (we don’t have it yet, but we will in time!)
2. 3D image software i.e. 3D Blu-ray Disc™ (this we can BUY )

Both need 3D Full HD Plasma TV + 3D eyewear

To let us learn more about 3D technology in our everyday lives;
there will be a 3D walkthrough experience event which will be very different and interesting,
as well as give us a thorough understanding of how 3D technology works.

Warning:
There are some terms that sound very zzzzz
but they’re things that we will ALL be familiar with,
so all the better you know some of them now!

Here are some characteristics of the Panasonic 3D Full HD Plasma TV:

Frame Sequential Technology consists of a sequence of alternating frames
- each successive frame carries the image meant for one or the other eye.

This means that if Frame number 1 contains the image for the left eye, then frame number 2 carries the image meant for the right eye, with frame number 3 again carrying the image for the left eye, and so on and so forth. [source]

And of course, the more frames per second, the better the clarity of the 3D Full HD TV.

It’s quite simple yet interesting how it works really!
The active-shutter eyewear used for viewing must sync with the 3D TV set to allow the correct eye to view the correct image at the precise time. [source]
The High-Precision 3D Eyewear operates in synchronisation with the alternating images,
resulting in sharper, crisper 3D moving images.

Crosstalk Reduction Technology shortens the luminescence time between frames
and minimizes double-image (ghosting) that occurs when left- and right-eye images are alternately displayed. [source]

I know right… Blacker Black? What *is* that?
I googled it and actually found forums where some people are OBSESSED with getting blacker blacks for their screens.

Panasonic’s Blacker Black Panel produces a dynamic contrast of 5,000,000:1
for extremely deep, rich blacks and vibrant colours
– even when viewing in brightly lit areas.

Look forward to 30th September 2010,
as Panasonic will be pushing off their 3D Campaign proving Panasonic as the best 3D technology in town.

Heck, Panasonic’s Viera 3D Full HD Plasma TV was already given the 2010 Best of CES Award,
not only as a 3D product, but best product overall!

I’m supposed to end this post but i’ve got really excited with the prospect of 3D now i’ve read up heaps about it online!
Here are a couple of links:
3D – From Hollywood to Home
Why 3D in Home is the natural step