Samsung 3D TV vs Sony 3D TV

[Suave]

As you may know I recently attended the Salon Son & Image AV show in Montreal. Below I'd like to share with you my comparison of the Samsung 3D TV and the Sony 3D TV that were demonstrated at the show.

"My exploration of the show floor began with the rooms close to the CANADA HiFi booth and it just so happened that we are very close to were Samsung and Sony are demonstrating their new 3D TVs. Samsung is displaying its 55-inch LCD LED edge backlit 3D TV, model UN55C8000 which just began hitting store shelves for $3999. Providing the 3D picture is the Samsung BD-C6900 which is also now available for $399. I watched a few minutes of Monsters vs. Aliens, the first 3D Blu-ray released and currently the only one available. I must admit that the 3D picture was very immersive and entertaining – I found it to have great three-dimensional picture depth, very good overall picture sharpness and a respectable black level. I noticed only slight image ghosting in some scenes (something which all 3D displays suffer from). The only major shortcoming is the inconsistency of the LED backlight. When the TV is switched from 2D to 3D, some dozen bright hotspots appear on the screen. This is the worst backlight inconsistency I’ve ever seen. I didn’t see how severe this problem is which watching 2D material. All of Samsung’s 3D displays are capable of converting 2D content to 3D, although this was not shown during the demo. The 3D shutter glasses are light weight and actually pretty comfortable to wear. A built in battery provided about 30 hours of use after a 2 hour charge via a USB port on the Blu-ray player. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed Samsung’s 3D capabilities and will definitely be considering picking up a 3D set later this year.

On display in a close by room, was Sony’s 52-inch BRAVIA LX900 3D LCD TV as well as the first Sony 3D Blu-ray player, the BDP-S470. Like the Samsung, this TV also uses an edge-lit backlight behind the screen. The demo material in this room included clips from Wheel Of Fortune, Fifa soccer footage, nature scenes and video game cut scenes (Motostorm, Wipeout HD and a baseball game). Sadly this demo wasn’t nearly as impressive as the one from Samsung. Although the picture had good three-dimensional depth, it suffered from substantial ghosting (many images appeared with a faint double next to it). I also noticed that the black level wasn’t as deep as it was on the Samsung. This TV is however still a pre-production model so hopefully these shortfalls will be addressed before the line-up begins shipping this June. To me, the most impressive aspect of this demo was the promise of 3D gaming. Cut scenes from Motostorm looked stunning – I cannot wait to play this game in 3D. Although no announcements have been made as to when we can expect to see PS3 games released in 3D, I’m hoping that we’ll see something by the end of this year. Sony’s 3D shutter glasses also very not very impressive. They are large, heavy and very uncomfortable to wear. The demo glasses used a non rechargeable battery that you typically find in a watch, which provides about 30 hours of use. Later versions of the glasses are expected to use a rechargeable battery. Overall, I wasn’t sold by Sony’s 3D quality and think that they jumped ahead of themselves showing something that isn’t ready for the market just yet."

[SoundGame]

Interesting review Suave.

I believe you used the word I was referring to when I mentioned my experience with 3D in the theatre. I believe "ghosting" is the effect I've perceived, which I interpreted as blurring. Sound like the Samsung is the winner of the two at this point in the race.

Your comment about hotspots with the Samsung has got me puzzled. If it is an edge lit TV, it would use edge lighting with a light diffuser panel to spread the light. I could imaging that there may be variation in brightness as you move from the perimeter of the screen towards the centre - either gradually increasing or decreasing but I'm confused how hot spots could be created, since there is no lighting directly behind the screen - since it's edge lit. Have you got any thoughts on what might have been the cause?

I'm happy I own a PS3 and look forward to Sony providing a firmware upgrade to get it up to 3D - let the games begin!

[Suave]

Your comment about hotspots with the Samsung has got me puzzled. If it is an edge lit TV, it would use edge lighting with a light diffuser panel to spread the light. I could imaging that there may be variation in brightness as you move from the perimeter of the screen towards the centre - either gradually increasing or decreasing but I'm confused how hot spots could be created, since there is no lighting directly behind the screen - since it's edge lit. Have you got any thoughts on what might have been the cause?

You're not the only one that's puzzled by this - I also can't think of the reasons why the hotspots are appearing all over the screen. Samsung is sending us one of these TVs for review (hopefully next week) so I will try to get an answer to this question as the review comes together.

[SoundGame]

I'll wait to see the review or possibly a pre-review update on this thread...LOL.

In thinking further about it, it could possibly be that they have not perfected the diffuser panel and there are some inconsistencies in the material density / clarity or possibly in the texture. Look forward to hearing your impressions.

Cheers.

[Mike Osadciw]

I looked at Samasung's model at Best Buy on Thursday. Is the electronics industry mad? Is this a rush to the market for a technology that's still in development? I don't understand how the product could be released with the ghosting on the image. As soon as I put the glasses on I saw it immediately. Not only do I see the constructed image, but the two images that make up the single image on the left and right of it (when viewed with the glasses off) also come through the glasses, just slightly reduced. I wasn't aware of this problem prior to putting the glasses on but it jumped out at me immediately.

I think this is unacceptable and I'm assuming this effect is going to be accross all brands?? I cannot recall seeing this at Panasonic HL in '08 (I don't even things the glasses were the same). I could not enjoy the video seeing three images of everything.

[Suave]

If these are your thoughts about the Samsung demo Mike, you would have been terrified by the Sony demo. I'm also starting to wonder if the 3D tech was too rushed to the market.

The fact is that every 3D demo I've seen so far (LCD and plasma) has shown ghosting. The Panasonic demo has the least amount of ghosting from what I recall. Then came the Samsung LCD and then Sony LCD.

We're getting the Samsung 3D LCD TV tomorrow so we'll finally get a chance to play around with it on our own terms. I wonder if there are some kind of settings/adjustments that could possible correct this image convergence.

Stay tuned for some first impressions this coming weekend.

[Suave]

A couple more points that I wanted to add to this discussion. Here are some things to consider when talking about whether 3D TVs will suceed or not, in the home environment.

1. History has shown that the average consumer doesn't care very much about picture quality. Case in point: when the TV industry when "flat panel", the picture quality suffered significanlty. Pioneer was arguably the only company to achieve CRT picture quality and they gave up on TVs. Larger, flat panel screens won the hearts of the average consumer, over picture quality.

2. LCD TVs out-sell plasma TVs by a large margin - further proof that most people don't care about picture quality.

Based on these two arguments, 3D TV may have a shot at suceeding even if the picture quality isn't as good as we've be able to achieve so far from flat panel TVs. While 3D TV isn't for everyone, as long as enough consumers are "wowed" by it, it just may catch on.

For us, audio/video enthusiasts, the arguments are of course different. I would never give up my Pioneer KURO plasma for a 3D TV which delivers a far inferior picture quality. The various 3D picture artefacts (especially ghosting) would upset me but I could probably look beyond this and enjoy the added benefit of picture depth. In other words, while I won't replace my current TV with a 3D TV, I may consider getting a 3D TV for a different room.

[Freetoojazz]

I went to a mass market store downtown. They made some demo with Samsung 3D TV with Sony Blu-Ray 3D. They had some problem with one of the two pairs of glasses. For a unknow reason, it was difficult to put the on/off on the glasses. Mine works, but not the one my girlfriend had. In a marketing way, it's not a good think to sell the idea to my girlfriend of buying this kind of product when something go wrong at the start.

The demo movie was Toys Story. Some parts of the movie was 2D and others parts in 3D. Ìt was not bad, but I think that this kind of technology is still youth. Time will improve this products.

[Suave]

The lack of a proper demonstration will definitely be a large stumbing block for 3D TVs. I've heard reports (and have seen this myself) that many stores showing 3D TVs have glasses that are not functioning properly (either not charged or broken). Most recently, my local Futureshop, which has the Samsung 3D TV on demo, does not have 3D glasses at all. Perhaps you have to ask them to show you a demo for them to pull out the glasses. Either way, I surprised and dissappointed with the poor roll out of 3D TVs in general.