10 Reasons Why People Won't Watch 3D TV

tvpredictions.com ^ | July 6, 2011 | Phillip Swann

[The KG9 Kid]

3DTV is not the landmark milestone change that it's been made out to be by people who hope you buy into the technology, where they maintain the difference is akin to how television made the golden age of radio entertainment go away. At least right now it's now.

It's not as distinct as the old time radio greats not even knowing what hit them when television became mainstream, and transitioning their radio shows (Jack Benny Show, etc.) to television just didn't translate well at all and ended their careers.

Now, video games... Oh, 3DTV will own that market sure as hell.

[TomGuy]

1. 3D TV Interrupts Your Viewing Experience You can't watch 3D TV for more than a minute without finding your eye focusing on individual elements of the screen rather than the picture as a whole.

Too bad film makers don't realize that the same is true whenever they add a signficant amount of 'subtitles' to a movie or TV program. One can watch the action or one can read the scripting.

[Ken H]

I also look at today's computer graphic special effects in movies, and think they look so fake as to be unreal.

I so agree. I'll take it a step further and say it's a deal killer. I completely lose interest in a film once the gaudy computer generated special effects appear. I still think the best special effects I've seen in a SF movie were in Forbidden Planet (1956).

[rlmorel]

I don’t know, folks. I just convinced my wife to get a real tv (hadn’t had one for about six or seven years, and I stopped watching network television around 1998-1998)

I wanted a television to watch movies on, because I still enjoy movies (Favorite movie: “The Best Years of Our Lives”)

Anyway, we got one of the new Samsung 55” series 8000 LEDs, and...I think the 3D looks pretty good and doesn’t hurt my eyes. Granted, I have only seen one of the Shrek ones (I think the second...and they aren’t THAT great in and of themselves) but...all three of us who watched thought it looked really REALLY good. I guess we didn’t expect much,and were surprised.

I was kind of hoping to be able to watch NFL in 3-D someday...:(

[rlmorel]

We got two pairs with the television, and with the 3-D starter kit offered by Amazon we got a samsung Blu Ray player, five movies and two more pairs of glasses for free.

I guess they are really trying to push it.

[savedbygrace]

It was a take-off on an old joke.

[TomGuy]

I remember it from movie and TV attempts decades ago.

It had too much red and blue to ‘distort’ the image into the appearance of 3D. So, even regular ‘color’ was washed out. In the early days, even a black&white screen was easier to watch.

[rlmorel]

I have a very bad astigmatism in my left eye, but I didn’t notice that.

Could it be that the Samsungs are qualitatively different than the other manufacturers? I haven’t researched them a lot, but you have to put batteries in them (two out of the four pairs are USB rechargeable)

I agree with the points that most people make (instead of focusing on a quality movie, they are trying to make a 3D production) though I think Pixar did a fine job with 3D in the Toy Story 3 feature, that is, it doesn’t distract from the movie. They aren’t trying to use it in the one I saw to make you jump in your seat or anything.

[Jonty30]

I know it was an old joke.

Mine just made it new, all over again. :)

[savedbygrace]

I was kind of hoping to be able to watch NFL in 3-D someday...:(

So, you're wishing you were looking at life through Rozelle-colored glasses, huh?

(Rather than Goodell-colored.)

[savedbygrace]

Ha!

[rlmorel]

"...So, you're wishing you were looking at life through Rozelle-colored glasses..."

EXCELLENT!

THAT post is one of the reasons I hang out at FR...:)

[dangerdoc]

I only see two major problems.

1. The sets are too small. 3D on a home projector does not look the same as on a 42 inch set at Best Buy.

2. The engineers need to learn what they are doing. I saw in interview the other day, the people looked like moving cardboard cut outs set with the room behind them also completely flat appearing to be about 2 feet behind the people.

[LibertarianLiz]

I use MUTE ALL the time.

Ditto! Otherwise I'd have to actually listen to Juan Williams and Alan Colmes.

Also, I don't listen to tv ads.

[catfish1957]

Got one, and only used the 3-D function on blue ray movies twice. Really neat for about 10 minutes till you get tired of those heavy glasses.

[sportutegrl]

“the mute button” <— author implied it ain’t used much.

A better analogy would have been, . . . "used as often as a V Chip."

I'm still trying to figure out where mine is and how it works.

[steveo]

2. It Makes You Sick Doctors have estimated that up to 20 percent of the population will get headaches, dizziness or even nausea while watching 3D.

I get that way watching television in the first place. Have you seen Fran Drescher's new show? *barf*

[Bubba Ho-Tep]

We have been shunning the 3 D option and going with the regular version as too many 3 D films have NOT been improved by the 3 D-in fact, many seemed too darkly lit(hard to see what’s going on onscreen)

The current 3D technology inherently darkens the image because of the lens. What's apparently happening now is that the theater owners, to save money, aren't swapping out the 3D lenses for 2D lenses when showing 2D movies, darkening those as well.

Lens-Gate: Exhibitors' Failure To Swap Out 3D Filters Casting Theaters In Poor Light

[Ladysmith]

11. 3D tv’s and movies are hell to watch for one-eyed jacks and jackies.

[madamemayhem]

the only 3D movie I have ever seen was Jaws3D. It was horrible. I had a headache from Hades after 10 minutes. Of course that could also be attributed to the utter stupidity of the story also.