Neil Schneider from MTBS3D.com is at CES 2010 and is already providing us with some very interesting information, even before CES 2010 has officially started. In the video above Neil interviews Steve Venuti, the President of HDMI Licensing with the main focus being the Stereoscopic 3D features and use of the new HDMI 1.4 specifications. There is also some very interesting information regarding the PlayStation 3 game console and its upcoming S3D support that should be added later this year with a firmware update. It seems that this software upgrade for the console will allow it to achieve some of the HDMI 1.4 functionality like stereoscopic 3D support, but the console will not have all of the new 1.4 specifications available, because the Ethernet Channel for instance requires not only new software, but also new hardware. Still we now know that Sony will be adding stereoscopic 3D support by software upgrading its HDMI to 1.4, so when buying a new 3D TV for PS3 you should also look for HDMI 1.4 support available on the TV. What is not yet clear however is if the PS3 will be able to provide 1080p stereoscopic 3D support or it will stock to 720p when playing in S3D mode, but we might as well very soon find out if Sony is going to announce more details about that on CES.
The HDMI 1.4 specifications were introduced earlier this year, but we are yet to see devices using the new standard and taking advantage of the new features that were introduced, one of which is the official stereoscopic 3D support. Aside from that HDMI 1.4 increases the maximum supported resolution to 4K (4096×2160 pixels), new HDMI Ethernet Channel with speed of up to 100 Mbps, Audio Return Channel, new Micro HDMI Connector, expanded support for different color spaces and an Automotive Connection System.
Of course the thing you are probably most interested in is the stereoscopic 3D support that is expected to be the key factor into making the 3D support widely available on TV sets and other consumer electronic devices, including game consoles. The HDMI 1.4 specifications support wide range of 3D display formats at up to 1080p resolution, including: frame, line, or field alternative methods; side by side methods (full and half) and 2D plus depth methods. And as 3D video requires substantial data throughput, you’ll have to use a High Speed HDMI cable that can be even an HDMI 1.3 compatible, although with such you’ll not be able to use the new Ethernet Connection feature.
Here comes an interesting question that is related to PlayStation 3 – how will Sony add stereoscopic 3D support for the console that only supports HDMI 1.3? The truth is that even HDMI 1.3 is capable to provide enough bandwidth for 120Hz video output even at 1080p resolution, but the actual problem might be in the console not being capable to support 120 frames per second in Full HD resolution. So it is most likely that stereoscopic 3D gaming on PS3 will start of at 720p resolution, especially if Sony will want their consoles to be able to work on 200/240Hz displays providing enough fps for good experience. Anyway these are still some thoughts about the issue and are not based on official information coming from Sony, so we should still wait a bit more to see what will actually happen. It is also quite possible that the firmware update fore the PS3 that will add the S3D support won’t add support for gaming in stereoscopic 3D for all the already released games and we’ll have to wait for new titles. Another thing that is also still not quite clear regarding the PlayStation 3 is the support for the recently finalized Blu-ray 3D specifications and the upcoming Full HD movies on Blu-ray next year. The PS3 should also be able to play 1080p videos in 3D, but we are yet to see how thing will turn out…
It seems that Nvidia has done a bit of a silent update to the requirements for using GeForce 3D Vision for some tasks. Of course for gaming and 3D applications such as CoolIris you still need to have a high end GPU, but if you plan to primarily play 3D Stereo images or 3D Stereo movies on your 3D Vision you can now go for a low end GeForce 8 or 9-series video card and you should not have any problems. This is a good news for Nvidia ION-based solutions that come with GeForce 9400M video, which along with their smaller sizes and low power consumption makes them a great addition to 3D Vision for watching 3D pictures and movies. The only problem you might face with these ION-based systems is the lack of DVI output for connecting directly to a Samsung 2233RZ (if you have bigger 3D-ready TV you might be Ok) and using an adapter to convert form one type of digital output to another still might bring problems. And I’m talking about having problems with all of the first ION-based PCs such as Acer Apsire Revo R3600, AsRock ION 330 or even the very slim and tiny Pegatron Cape 7. They all have HDMI outputs which you can easily convert to DVI with the help of a special conversion adapter, but the result will not be what you expect. By using the conversion adapter from HDMI to DVI you won’t be able to set the Samsung 2233RZ display to work with more than 60 Hz refresh rate and you still need at least 100 Hz. So before thinking of some great idea combining ION system with 3D Vision for viewing 3D Stereo movies and images you better check things a bit and then decide it if is going to be Ok.
