If you've been shopping for a 3D TV in our Buyer's Guide, you might have noticed that Mitsubishi has been selling them since 2007. That's right -- Mitsubishi has had 3D-ready displays for a whole three years while other vendors are only releasing their first 3D TV models this year.
But considering the fact that the latest 3D standards in broadcast and Blu-ray 3D have only been finalized in the past few months, as have the HDMI 1.4 specifications, how will it be possible for current Mitsubishi TV owners to come play at the new improved 3D HDTV party?
To date, Mitsubishi's sets have been limited to mostly PC-based gaming content. "There are over 400 PC game titles that are convertible from 2D to 3D on the fly," says Nick Norton, Mitsubishi's senior marketing manager. To get that content, Mitsubishi 3D DLP TVs use a PC or media server with a special graphics card, as well as active shutter glasses and an IR emitter. Norton says that Mitsubishi 3D TVs use a technology called "checkerboard" to display 3D content in split resolution. This means half of the 1080p signal is dedicated to the right eye, and half to the left eye. It's not as detailed as the new Full HD 3D systems from Panasonic and Samsung, which can support full 1080p resolution to each eye from a compatible source (e.g., Blu-ray 3D), but images on the Mitsubishi 3D-enabled DLP TVs are still crisp and detailed.
The Mitsubishi 3D-ready TV sets also feature "DLP Link," a transmitter which emits through the TV screen and syncs with the 3D glasses. While some glasses require another external emitter, some do not. For instance, the nVidia 3D Vision Kit includes one pair of active LCD shutter glasses and a separate USB controller/IR emitter. Norton says it depends on the manufacturer, but Mitsubishi does not limit itself to one specific brand. "Pretty much all 3D eyewear will work with our 3D TVs," he says.
Samsung reps also told us in a recent press briefing that they expect the Mitsubishi converter box to work with Samsung's own 2008 and 2009 model 3D-ready DLP and plasma TVs, which supported the early 3D content in a similar fashion, though you will need to buy the glasses separately. This has been confirmed, with details on what's necessary, by Gary Merson on HDGURU.COM.
For now, expect the 3DC-1000 adapter to be a major announcement, since it will work with Mitsubishi TVs both past, present and (the forseeable) furture. Despite the new 3D technology sprouting up, Mitsubishi plans to stay strong with the checkerboard. "All the various top/bottom, side by side, and frame packing will be converted to checkerboard for our lineup of 3D DLP Home Cinema TVs to display 3D content," says Norton.
In other words, no 1080p to each eye. "DLP requires checkerboard to display 3D," says Norton. "Over 95 percent of 3D cinemas utilize the same core technology, DLP. There's a reason for that. It's the best technology to display 3-dimensional visuals or content."
Apparently, they know what they're doing. Norton says that the company plans to move about 500,000 3D-ready TVs this year. Those figures include the three new 3D-ready series recently announced by Mitsubishi. Each new DLP will require that adapter, as well as 3D glasses, all of which will be sold separately. The three new TV series, the 638, 738, and Diamond 838 series, comprise a total of ten 3D TVs. All should start selling in May 2010.
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