New 3D television technology does away with glasses

(Courtesy of Toshiba Corp.)

With demand for three-dimension visual technology continuing to grow, Toshiba Corp. appears to have stolen a march on its rivals by announcing the world's first LCD televisions that are fully 3D capable but do not need a viewer to wear special glasses to see the images.

Toshiba unveiled its glasses-less 3D Regza GL1 series shortly ahead of the opening of the CEATEC Japan 2010 exhibition. The annual technology show is the largest of its kind in Asia and organizers are hoping 200,000 people will attend this year.

CEATEC stands for Combined Exhibition of Advanced Technologies and the title of the event this year is "Digital Harmony: Technologies for Comfortable and Eco Living," although much attention is sure to be focused on the latest advances in audio-visual technology for the home.

Toshiba's two new televisions will be available in Japan from the end of December and come with either a 20-inch or 12-inch screen.

The new televisions do not require a viewer to wear glasses as they employ an integral imaging system and a perpendicular lenticular sheet to display smooth, natural images and make use of Toshiba's image-processing technology to create nine parallax images from the original content to produce the 3D images, the company said.

Toshiba confirmed that it plans to make versions with larger screens that provide the same stunning image depth and high visual quality.

Technology that does away with the need for glasses gives Toshiba a major advantage over other companies that are investing heavily in their ranges of 3D visual products.

Earlier this year, Panasonic Corp. was the first company to release a high-definition television capable of screening 3D images, based on its Viera plasma display panels.

In response, Sony and Sharp moved quickly to release products with similar attributes, with Sony showing 25 matches from this summer's FIFA World Cup in South Africa in three dimensions.

CEATEC,  October 5- 9

Hours: 10 am to 5 pm

Venue: Makuhari Messe International Convention Complex, 2-1 Mikase, Mihama-Ku, Chiba City, 261-0023, Japan. http://www.m-messe.co.jp/en/index.html

Admission: All visitors are required to register, either in advance or on the door. Registering via the www.ceatec.com/ web site provides free entry. On the door, the cost is Y1,000 (€9.29) for an adult and Y500 (€4.65) for a student. Children under the age of 12 are admitted free.

Further information on CEATEC: +81 3 6212 5233 or http://www.ceatec.com/2010/en/index.html