If you were planning to go for one of the more affordable 3D HDTV series from Sony, namely the Ex720 series that offers 3D-capable TV sets with size of 32, 37, 40, 46, 55 and 60 inches and you want to actively use this television set for 3D, then you better not. I’ve read some people complaining that the 3D effect is really bad on this lower-end series from Sony due to the presence of a lot of crosstalk, but I was not expecting that it is so bad. Recently I’ve played a bit with the 46-inch version of the EX720 (Sony KDL-46EX720) and I was surprised to find that the situation with the level of crosstalk is so bad, it is way more than you would expect to see on a 3D HDTV. It is probably even worse than on the first generation of 3D Vision-ready monitors that came out a few years ago, and you’d probably not expect that from a more recent 3D HDTV (the models from EX720 series were introduced last year), the level of crosstalk you get in 3D mode on the EX720 totally ruins the 3D experience. So my advice would be to stay away from the Sony EX720 series if you are planning on using these in 3D mode, and there is not much reason to buy this model if you are not going to take advantage of its 3D capabilities. If you are looking for another 3D-capable solution in that price range, there are quite a lot of other options that will provide better 3D experience – passive 3D solutions from LG or active from Samsung for example. And if you are already an owner of an EX720 3D HDTV from Sony, you are welcome to share your feedback from how your 3D HDTV works in stereo 3D mode and if you are happy with the result. I’ve spent a few hours trying to tweak the settings of the 46-inch EX720 TV set and as a result got a very slight improvement, but the end results were still very far from satisfactory. There seems to be no new firmware updates addressing the bad 3D performance for the series available yet, and I’m not sure if it would be possible to get better results via a software update only, maybe the LCD panels being used are just not good choice for 3D and that is the cause of the problem. So my advice would be to just stay away from Sony’s EX720 series of 3D HDTVs and instead go for another brand that will provide better 3D experience within the same price range.
At the 2012 CES Sony has announced a new more compact 3D-capable consumer camcorder in the form of Sony HDR-TD20V, a camera apparently based on the last year’s HDR-TD10, but with reduced size in order to make it more compact. According to Sony the new HDR-TD20VE is around 66% of the size of its predecessor, and while it is not bad to have the camera becoming more compact, there is something that suffers from the size reduction. I’m talking about the fact that the interaxial distance of the new model (Sony HDR-TD20V) has been further reduced to about 21 mm, and while this makes it more suitable for shooting closer things in 3D, if you shoot more distant things they will be looking flatter than with the older HDR-TD10.
Sony HDR-TD20V 3D Camcorder Main Features:
- Up to 4hr Full HD 3D on 64GB memory
- Dual 1/3.91 type Exmor R CMOS Sensor and dual BIONZ processor
- Dual G Lens with 10x optical zoom; 12x extended zoom (3D) / 17x extended zoom (2D); 33.4mm wide angle (3D) / 29.8mm (2D)
- Optical SteadyShot with Active Mode
- Up to 20.4 effective megapixel still photo (2D only)
- 5.1ch surround sound with Auto Wind Noise Reduction and Closer Voice
- 8.8cm/3.5″ wide Xtra Fine 3D LCD touchscreen
- Stereo speaker with S-Master Amplifier technology
- Connect and quick charge with built-in USB cable
- GPS with detailed mapping
The new Sony HDR-TD20V apparently is also not capable of recording 3D photos, you can capture only 2D photos with even higher resolution than with the older model (HDR-RD10) that also was not capable of taking 3D photos. The new model HDR-TD20V is also only capable of recording in 50i/60i (depending on region) 3D mode, so still no 24p 3D recording option… or with order words Sony just made the 3D camera more compact and with a bit smaller interaxial, there is not much improvement in the functionality it offers. The Sony HDR-TD20V should be available on the market around the end of March this year with the same price as the Sony HDR-RD10 is currently available at.
Here is the stereo 3D version of the Sony Two Worlds global commercial that you migth’ve already seen in 2D (for the 2D version), and if you are interested in the making of the commercial as it sure if quite interesting to see how it was made as it is pretty much composed of computer generated graphics aside from the two characters. The production is the work of Spy Films according to whom the commercial Sony – Two Worlds was initially inspired by Manoukian’s celebrated short film, Nuit Blanche. The film has won a number of awards for its luscious, slow motion depiction of inspiring love – including the Grand Prize at the LG Film Fest and a Golden Nica at Prix Ars.
