Sony has just announced its plans to have 3D-capable VAIO laptops available early next year with actual working 16-inch prototypes being available on display during the IFA 2010 trade show that will be open for visitors from September 3rd to 8th in Berlin, Germany. Apparently Sony plans to follow the lead of other companies like Acer, Asus, HP, Toshiba and others that are already offering or plan to also soon introduce mobile 3D-capable solutions with the 3D VAIOs probably available as early as the spring next year. Of course like most other such solutions the 3D VAIO laptops are also using frame sequential high refresh rate LCD screen with LED backlight and a pair of shutter glasses, like the ones available for the 3D BRAVIA Sony HDTVs. The specifications and details are quite vague for the moment, especially considering the fact that we are still talking about a prototype and that the final product may or may not be using different hardware. According to Sony these 3D VAIO laptops are using “200Hz high frame rate technology and LED backlight”, however this does not make it completely clear if the LCD display can actually function at 200Hz (240Hz) refresh rate or it is at 100Hz (120Hz) like on the 3D TVs, but also uses some sort of internal algorithm to interpolate the frames to achieve smoother movement. Apparently Sony is only demonstrating 3D video content and not 3D gaming and this raises a big question, because if this is a completely sony based solution they will also need some sort of additional software in order to convert the 3D games for PC into stereoscopic 3D just like Nvidia does with the 3D Vision, iZ3D’s Driver or the DDD’s TriDef Ignition. But more details will probably become available as we are getting closer to the actual release of the products on the market…
Another interesting 3D-capable product that Sony has announced is a 3D home projector, the Sony VPL-VW90ES, which is capable of projecting Full HD video with a 1080p resolution. Unlike most other projectors that are using DLP technology, this one is using Sony’s Silicon X-tal Reflective Display (SXRD) panel that is also used int he professional 2K and 4K 3D-capable Sony projectors used in movie theaters for example. Details about the projector’s specifications are still not very clear, besides the fact that it will be 1920×1080 native resolution, will offer 150000:1 dynamic contrast, will be also capable of taking 2D video and simulating 3D images (2D to 3D conversion), and very silent with a cooling fan noise of up to 22 Db. It is interesting to also note the fact that the projector will also be using the same active shutter glasses that Sony uses in its line of 3D-capable Bravia HDTVs, so you will have some interoperability if you get a 3D Vaio, 3D Bravia and VPL-VW90ES 3D projector. We can also pretty much assume that this projector will be equipped with HDMI 1.4(a) input, so you will most likely be able to also connect the Sony PS3 and play games in stereo 3D mode. But then again the PC gaming part in stereo 3D leaves a lot of questions, however maybe Nvidia’s 3DTV Play software can be the right answer for people willing to play PC games in stereo 3D with these new 3D-capable Sony products. There is still no word on pricing, but projector should be available in November 2010.
Other things that Sony has announced regarding their 3D-capable products are for example that the firmware update bringing Blu-ray 3D Movie playback to the PlayStation 3 consoles should be available in October, and not in September as previously expected. An upcoming Blu-ray 3D movie release scheduled for international release on September 25th and called “Lang Lang live in Vienna” featuring music by Beethoven, Prokofiev, Albeniz and Chopin played by the world renowned pianist Lang Lang. As well as the fact that Sony is planning to launch a 24/7 3D TV channel in USA early next year showing different 3D content in the form of movies, natural history, children’s programming, space, science, technology etc. As well as the fact that Sony Pictures is working on several 3D movies with “Resident Evil Afterlife” expected to hit the movie theaters very soon with an official premiere in most countries planned for September 10th.
