Today is an interesting “updates day” for everyone into stereo 3D as Sony has officially released a new version 3.50 firmware for all PlayStation 3 users that brings the much anticipated Blu-ray 3D support to the game console. This is actually the second 3D related firmware update that Sony is releasing after the addition of stereoscopic 3D gaming support in firmware 3.30, so the PS3 is now more functional and can not only be used to play games in stereo 3D mode (still just a few titles), but can also replace the need for a standalone Blu-ray 3D player. So go and update your console to firmware 3.50 if you still haven’t done so, you should however be aware that there are some limitations to what features the PS3 supports in terms of Blu-ray 3D movies…

Limitations on Blu-ray 3D disc playback

- The 3D display of some elements such as menus and subtitles may be different on the PS3 system than on other 3D playback devices (appear in 2D instead of 3D).
- Depending on the content, some BD-J (Blu-ray Disc Java) features such as BONUSVIEW and BD-Live may not play in 3D or may not function properly on the PS3 system.
- When Dolby TrueHD is selected as the audio format, audio will be output in Dolby Digital during playback of Blu-ray 3D content.
- When DTS-HD is selected as the audio format, audio will be output in DTS during playback of Blu-ray 3D content.

On a side note, as I get a lot of questions if any of the 3D DLP projectors can be used together with a PS3 console to output games or movies in stereo 3D, the answer to this question is NO. The reason for that is due to the fact that the PS3′s S3D support relies on the stereoscopic 3D specifications defined in the HDMI 1.4 standard, so the output from the console is based on the frame packing format at 60Hz defined in that standard and on the other hand the format used by 3D DLP projectors is frame sequential at 120Hz. So unless somebody releases an adapter box that converts from one to the other format or builds a 3D DLP projector with such capabilities you will not be able to use your PlayStation 3 for stereoscopic 3D output. This means that you will be either sticking to Sony’s 3D Bravia HDTVs or actually any other brand that has 3D-capable HDTVs using HDMI 1.4(a) as input format for 3D video content input. An alternative would be a 3D DLP HDTV from Mitsubishi and/or maybe Samsung along with a special adapters that are already available that will convert the frame packed content coming from the PS3 to the DLP checkerboard format used by these TVs. So PS3 in stereo 3D and a 3D projectors are still a no go!

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Crytek has just announced some very interesting news. It seems that the company is planning to show their CryENGINE 3 in stereoscopic 3D (S-3D) at this year’s GDC expo in San Francisco (11–13 March). It is interesting to note that this actually appears to be the first announcement about something S-3D to be showcased during GDC this year, as I was beginning to wonder if suddenly everyone forgot about Stereoscopic 3D. Lets hope that there will be much more to be seen during GDC in terms of Stereo 3D support, after all the developers need to be aware of the advantages that S-3D can bring into gaming along with how to properly implement game graphics and effects.

But back to the CryENGINE 3, one of the key features of the new engine is the “LiveCreate” feature, which will also be showcased at GDC, and what it does is to allow designers to work with a single editor, but see and play the results in real-time on the PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. With CryENGINE 3, scalability across multiple platforms is a revolutionary development to enable the creation of truly great-looking games – regardless of the target platform. Hopefully this will help a lot to stop seeing some crappy port of a game for one or another platform, especially if other developers adopt similar approach to their game engines.

“After the successful introduction of CryENGINE 3 at last year’s GDC, we are really excited to show the latest version of our all-in-one game development solution this year in stereoscopic 3D. Over the past few years, S-3D technology has emerged as one of the key trends both in movies and games. With CryENGINE 3, developers will have the ability to create their content in 3D on all platforms. There are basically no longer any limits to a designer’s creativity. CryENGINE 3 features many innovations to accelerate development, cut production costs and ensure teams are able to maximize their own creativity without delays,” says Carl Jones, Director of Global Business Development CryENGINE.

It is worth to note that CryENGINE 3 seems to support Stereoscopic 3D natively and does not require additional drivers, or at least that is what Crytek demonstrated during Siggraph 2009 with the engine. And then again even before Siggraph, during GDC 2009, Cytek has also demonstrated working Stereoscopic 3D support with CryENGINE 2 on iZ3D display. Maybe it is about time for Crytek to become a bit more serious and active about S-3D and join an organization like The S3DGA, as there are still not a lot of game engines designed to support stereo 3D gaming. And while the Stereoscopic 3D support in CryENGINE 3 seems to be for PC only at the moment, with PS3 going to be 3D-ready soon and because of the LiveCreate feature of the engine we might see console S3D support too, and not only limited to PS3, but on Xbox 360 too. Still nothing official about stereoscopic 3D support for consoles coming from Crytek…

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• Interview with Jens Schöbel from Crytek Talking about Stereoscopic 3D (0)
• Crytek adds Stereoscopic 3D Support and Tools to CryENGINE 3.2 (5)
• The Latest Unreal Engine 3 Will Have Official 3D Vision Support (5)
• Stereo 3D Covered at FMX 2010 in Germany and GDC Canada 2010 (0)
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It seems that Sony is planing to include the much anticipated 3D support for their PlayStation 3 console in the upcoming firmware update version 3.20. Or at least there are such hints coming from from some leaked pictures of the 3.20 firmware that seems to be already in the hands of some developers. The current firmware version for PlayStation 3 is at 3.15 with still no official release date of the anticipated version 3.20, but it is expected this to happen before the official summer release of the first 3D-ready HDTVs from Sony. Prior to having a compatible 3D-ready high-refresh rate HDTV, along with the required active shutter glasses (the preferred tech for all upcoming 3D TVs) there is no point in having this feature available on the console. Also, it seems that the much anticipated Blu-ray 3D support for the PS3 console will require an additional firmware update that is supposed to be available at a later time, after the summer release of the firmware with 3D gaming capabilities, but most likely before the end of the year.

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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.

- For more information about the HDMI 1.4 Standard and the Stereoscopic 3D Support…

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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…

- For more information about the HDMI 1.4 specifications and features…

Related posts you might be interested in:

• CES News: Interview with Steve Venuti, the President of HDMI Licensing (0)
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Nowadays it is quite normal that the introduction of a new entertainment device is linked with the establishment of a new format for distributing and enjoying video, games or something else. In this respect, the PlayStation consoles have all played a serious role in each of the three generations Sony has released so far. The first generation PlayStation proved to be a great CD player and some audiophiles still use these, whereas PS2′s DVD playback capabilities provided a major boost for sales of this format when it was first introduced. And now PlayStation 3 already has played a big role in the establishment of Blu-ray Disc as the next generation High Definition successor to DVD for Video and Games, but now it seems this might not be the only achievement of the third gen PlayStation console…

You can say that the first two generation PlayStation consoles were a part of the kids bedroom or elsewhere away from the main living room with the general idea for the devices to provide entertainment for the kids while playing games on them. The PlayStation 3 on the other hand has been designed from the start with the idea to be something more than just a gaming console – a home entertainment hub, sitting beneath the TV set in the living room and doing a lot more than running games. And the next big feature coming from Sony Computer Entertainment for the PS3 is the release of a free firmware upgrade for the console, which will enable it to playback games in Stereoscopic 3D mode with the added perception of true depth. But that might not be the only thing, as with the 3D Blu-Ray standard almost finalized and with the expected availability of HD movies on Blu-ray sometime next year, the PlayStation 3 could also become a great Stereoscopic 3D movie player.

Not a long time ago at a special briefing Sony has announced that it will be releasing stereoscopic 3D game titles for PS3 in conjunction with Sony’s 3D TV launch timing next year (Bravia 3D TV anyone?). The company explained that it will also actively support software developers and publishers, providing technological information to develop stereoscopic 3D games and content. Furthermore, all the existing PlayStation 3 consoles will be made stereoscopic 3D compatible through the system software update. This is possible because PS3 comes with an HDMI video output as a standard right from its launch (unlike Microsoft’s Xbox 360) and also because the system integrates the quite powerful and versatile Cell processor.

The firmware update with the new features will be freely available to be downloaded by everyone, without the need to purchase something to enable the Stereoscopic 3D support for the console, but you’ll still have to wait some time before it is made available. The technology that will be used is active shutter glasses along with a TV set capable of providing true 200/240 Hz refresh rate – being able to accept input of up to 200/240 fps. This is what the new Bravia 3D TV sets should be capable of, unlike the currently available generation that just take up to 60Hz input, but are able to increase internally the framerate for video to make it appear more smooth and clear with the use of specialized algorithms. Aside from Sony’s new Bravia TVs that will probably premiere with the console update in 2010 (hopefully by the summer) other companies are also going to release more 3D TVs that might be compatible with the PS3′s new functionality.

One interesting question that arises is if the PS3 will be able to also work on 100/120Hz TV sets and maybe even computer monitors that do have an HDMI input, or will it require specifically the higher refresh rate models. Speaking especially for the use of 120Hz computer monitors there might be another issue for lets say the owners of Nvidia’s 3D Vision and this is related to the synchronization of the glasses. 3D Vision is not compatible with PS3 and you cannot have the glasses sync up to something from the monitor – they need the IR transmitter and it does not support the console, so 3D Vision is a no go. Unless of course you kind of do a Frankenstein and use the IR transmitter on a PC, just to send the needed signal to the glasses in order for you to play on the console… this might do the trick. But there is also another question regarding the sync rate of the 3D Vision shutter glasses, currently they work on either 100, 110 and 120 Hz refresh rate meaning that each of them “flashes” 60 to 60 times per second, but with a true 200/240Hz the sync rate should be doubled. Of course the 3D Vision should be able to sync up with the higher refresh… in theory, but we still need to wait and see if that will work on practice.

Anyway, one thing can be for sure and that is when Sony provides the free upgrade to all its lets say over 30 million existing PS3 consoles this will for sure result in serious increase of the interest for Stereoscopic 3D content. And this will also result in serious demand for 3D capable TV sets and this is also probably what Sony is hoping for in order to quickly push their upcoming Bravia 3D TVs. Of course the game developers should also start preparing for the demand for good stereoscopic 3D games, although one thing is still not very clear – will all the old games be playable in stereoscopic 3D or not. In theory it should not be too hard to do something like what the 3D Vision drivers are doing on the PC, but for the PS3, but here the issue might lay elsewhere and actually be related to Sony not willing to do that in order to open the demand for new games. But if you have a S3D capable console and TV set would you be willing to wait for months for each and every game title that will come out with Stereoscopic 3D support… probably not!

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