Opinion

Op-Ed: Future of television sure to add new dimension to entertainment

Posted on Feb. 20, 2011, at 11:20 p.m.

I’ve never watched 3-D television. Nor did I splurge on seeing “Avatar” or “Alice in Wonderland” in one more dimension than I’m used to when watching movies.

Getting that out of the way, I still believe this new era of 3-D entertainment is not going to be a passing fad like the third dimensions of the past.

For starters, this form of 3-D isn’t just an optical illusion like the red and blue paper glasses we all dreadfully remember. We’re able to see realistic depth in images when our eyes merge each separate image into one.

To replicate this process, the TV has to refresh the image 120 times every second, with alternating frames for each eye. Most companies use an infrared beam that syncs with the high-tech glasses of today.

As for those glasses, don’t expect them to hang around much longer either — that’s good news for someone with four eyes who would rather not trudge up to six. Although no 3-D TV or movie viewing can be done now without the specs, Nintendo is set to release a three-dimensional, hand-held gaming system. It’s just a matter of time.

Television has finally had an advancement in technology after no considerable improvements since high-definition and plasma screens came on the scene about a decade ago. When they were first popping up, HD flat screens only appeared at the best bars and the rich kid’s house.

Now? You’d be hard-pressed to find a house that doesn’t feature some form of flat-screen entertainment.

Just like those high-definition TVs, few people are going to spend more than they did on their first car or a TV. Back when a 32-inch flat screen cost over a grand, few people saw it catching on. They figured their 80-pound hunk of glass and plastic was as good as it was going to get. But over the years, as prices lowered and more networks jumped on the HD bandwagon, you couldn’t not watch the big game in high-definition.

Ten years from now, we’re going to wonder what watching television in only two dimensions was like and how we were able to put up with it.

Being who I am, I’m most giddy about viewing sports in three dimensions from my living room. Imagine watching the baseball literally jump off the bat and into the night sky in a way you’ve never seen it before.

Imagine watching golf — a routinely boring game to view — but being able to see the depth of the course. Having the ability to view the slopes in the green as clean as if you were there will do wonders for the sport. Hockey had a similar boost with the rise of high-definition.
As it clears up the picture and makes it much crisper and more vivid in the process, 3-D will provide a new unique layer in sports viewing. And, above all else, who wouldn’t want to see John Daly in 3-D?

The point is this: Don’t get too sentimental with your 2-D boob tube. The times are a-changin’ so don’t get left behind in another dimension.

Jesse Scardina is a third-year journalism student.

This entry was posted on Sunday, February 20th, 2011, 11:20 pm. You can follow any responses to this article through the RSS feed.