3D presentations to wow viewers

While large LCD and plasma screens and theatre-class movie projectors have become quite common both at home and in business applications, 3D viewing technology still remains relatively obscure.

Three-dimensional presentations may go a long way in enhancing and enlivening business meetings, but imagine how silly corporate head honchos would look wearing those special glasses that are required to view 3D visuals.

Now, however, electronics company Philips has solved that problem – at a price of course.

Their 3D WOWzone, priced at Dh853,000, is a 132in multi-screen 3D display wall, where you can see 3D images without having to wear the special glasses.

The 3D WOWzone is the latest addition to Philips' professional 3D display range based on the WOWvx technology. A new generation of 3D content creation tools for WOWzone applications enables multimedia creators to express their creativity in true 3D on the WOWzone. What's more, the fully automated dual mode allows the user to display 3D content as well as 2D high-definition content.

Rob de Vogel, senior director for business creation marketing and sales at Philips' 3D Solutions, told Emirates Business: "In today's competitive world, where consumers are spoilt for choice, brands need to set themselves apart from the crowd and need to use innovative tools to enhance their communications and marketing skills.

"Keeping this in mind, Philips has introduced the 3D WOWzone, a 132in multi-screen 3D wall, designed to grab people's attention with stunning 3D multimedia presentations. Marketing professionals can use this to make their presentations more powerful and also increase brand and product awareness in larger public spaces such as events, exhibitions, reception areas and theme parks.

"This is because out-of-screen 3D effects fascinate viewers and hold their attention for longer than standard 2D images, thereby making 3D a valuable marketing tool. And the best part is that no glasses are needed to view the Philips 3D WOWzone and it gives marketeers an element of surprise that leaves their target audience with an amazing and entertaining 3D multimedia experience."

So how does it work, without the use of the special glasses? To see 3D images each eye needs to see a slightly different image, just like in real life. With 3D glasses this is done using colour filters or polarisers. However, the 3DWOWzone does away with the need for the glasses as it comes with lenticular lenses assembled on top of the LCD panel, to project a different image to the left and right eyes. Using both images, your brain then creates the 3D experience.

The WOWvx technology also has multiview, which gives a large number of viewers the freedom of seeing it from a distance and also from any position they want – for example, sideways, just like in real life.

De Vogel said: "The inspiration behind this product, as in all our 3D display products, is our brand statement: 'Simplicity is seeing the world as it really is'."

The 3D WOWzone also allows you to see 3D movies at home, or play games for that matter, as much of the content created these days already uses a 3D dataset. For example, animations, games and other 3D applications can be shown in 3D and also stereo-filmed video. Several tools are available to support this, such as plug-ins for popular 3D animation packages and OpenGL tools to visualise your interactive content. Furthermore, for film, real-time stereo to 3D and post-production conversion tools are available to create 3D video out of 2D.