Panasonic offers a 50" 3D Plasma HDTV
October 13, 2009

Have fond memories of watching 3D movies in the theater? Now you can renew the experience with a Panasonic 3D TV at home.

Per a recent article published in CEPro, "Panasonic wants to be synonymous with 3D TV". The consumer electronics giant intends to lead the 3D movement, from start to finish: production, relationships with Hollywood, standards, rendering technology, and finally TVs and sources.

While Panasonic demonstrated a 100-inch Full HD 3D plasma TV at CES in January 2009, the company now touts its development of a more realistic 50-inch 3D display.
Like its 2x counterpart, the 50-inch plasma features full HD, with alternating 1080p images for the left and right eyes.

The 50-inch screen is presently the smallest size available so far. That's a claim that few vendors seek, but this 50-inch TV represents a more mainstream implementation of 3D technology. Larger 3D TV screens are easier to make due to inherently higher 3D depth quality. But the 50-inch Panasonic screen overcomes complications to deliver real deep black and unsaturated brightness.

New phosphors and high-speed impulse control from Panasonic enhance its plasma 3D images, according to Hiroshi Miyai, director, High Quality AV Development Center for Panasonic. The company's active shutter glasses also impact the experience, minimizing cross-talk that results in dual images.

With this advance in technology one might think the cost will double that of a traditional 50" plasma HDTV. Not so as Miyai added, "We'll be slightly in the middle of lines," meaning Panasonic's lower-end and higher-end TV lines pricing.

Going beyond the design and manufacturing of the 3D TV, Panasonic claims to be behind many of the specifications proposed/adopted for 3D over HDMI and 3D for Blu-ray. Even while standards were being debated, however, Panasonic established the Hollywood Authoring Center in February of this year to support Hollywood studios in developing 3D Blu-ray titles. This center made Panasonic the first to make full-fledged efforts in 3D program production. As Mayuki Kozuka, GM of Panasonic's Storage Devices Business Strategy Office, says, "We've been working with directors from the very beginning. … 3D requires different types of shooting".

Perhaps Panasonic's biggest 3D endeavor to date is its collaboration with Twentieth Century Fox on the forthcoming 3D movie Avatar, directed by James Cameron. The movie is expected to be released Dec. 18, 2009.

That movie alone, "will accelerate the proliferation of 3D" in the home, says Kozuka, echoing the sentiment of several Panasonic executives.

To view the complete CEPro article click here.