NVIDIA last week organized a big conference about the Vision 3D technology. At first glance, we were not very excited. It has for some time that NVIDIA is trying somehow to promote 3D Vision, probably because the firm has the chameleon much better to put forward at present. However, the vision of the Californian Company goes beyond what one might think at first.

If initially 3D Vision technology has been designed to improve the gaming experience is longer than that. With a humble circumstances, quite rare in green, NVIDIA told us at the outset that 3D was nothing new, and cyclically, a player in the industry was trying to bring up to day. As everyone knows, this has always resulted in failure. One might ask why NVIDIA thinks it hold this time, the right end? As noted in our record on this, the biggest concern for 3D Vision is its impact on performance. NVIDIA knows, and promises a significant improvement at this level with its new architecture, Fermi.

Today, NVIDIA is trying to place 3D Vision not so much as a technology, but rather as a vehicle for the 21st Century 3D. In the coming months, many manufacturers will offer products compatible 3D Vision, while others try to impose their own technologies, but always with the same objective, to blow the penetration of 3D into homes.

3D-BD?

By the end of the year, the Blu-ray Disc Association, which runs the eponymous format, will launch the 3D-BD. Physically speaking, the comics will not change, however, a new encoding can watch movies in 3D (currently only visible to the cinema) in the comfort of your sofa! This format is the AVC-MVC, or Advanced Video Coding Multi-View Codec, in development since July 2006.

One might wonder why the BDA has chosen this particular time of year to make such an announcement. There are two answers to this question, first, very official, it will enable manufacturers to launch products compatible at the opening of CES in early January. The second is less obvious, but important, although it is not known precisely when BD-3D will be unveiled. Even if we're willing to bet that this will happen just after the release of Avatar: The new film by James Cameron. In addition to being an event film for very classic, the reputation of its director, his script, budget, etc.. This film was made entirely in 3D and more importantly, it was intended from the outset. Its success or failure will probably condition the vision of the general public about this technology. After the announcement of the standard, and the first compatible devices, it was not until mid-2010 that the first 3D-BD titles arrive in stores.

2010 pivotal year for 3D

This new standard is a great opportunity for NVIDIA to exit 3D Vision simple props, like a true vital technology to everyone, or almost. NVIDIA is actively working with Corel on a special version of WinDVD that will allow playback of BD-3D relying on the GeForce for the acceleration of the AVC-MVC. Joe Roberts, executive vice president of Corel and believes that "2010 will be a pivotal year for 3D."According to him "Hollywood goes into high gear in the production of 3D content, while manufacturers work hard to bring new solutions to 3D displays on the market." NVIDIA is also working with other industry heavyweights, such as ArcSoft, CyberLink, or Sonic. Eventually, most video players should bear this acceleration. Note, however, only the GeForce GT 220 (€ 69) and GT 240 (89 €), as well as future solutions based on architecture Fermi enable hardware acceleration for AVC-MVC.

Beyond the monitors, it will be recalled that only three are compatible at present, both 22 inches and 24 inches, but soon new devices are expected to benefit from 3D Vision. Acer has launched two projectors, the X1130P (display resolution of 800x600 pixels) sold € 339, the X1261 (1024x768 pixels) sold 539 € and H5360 (1280x720 pixels) sold € 569. First products, primary concerns, none of these references does not support the Full HD (1920x1080 pixels), which is a real disappointment though NVIDIA maintains that the 720p is already very well.

Video games in 3D, 3D videos, we are still missing ... photos in 3D! As can be expected, NVIDIA is working on the subject. The year 2009 was marked by the arrival of a first camera consumer digital can capture images in 3D. The FinePix Real 3D W1 Fujifilm have not been very successful. Without dwelling on his performance which cannot really judge because they have had the camera in hand, he suffered from an obvious defect. Apart from a picture frame sold separately by the company Nippon, there was absolutely no way to take 3D photos taken by the camera. This is where NVIDIA comes to the rescue with its Vision 3D, which allows you to enjoy photos on a much larger screen!

Having reviewed the various technology announcements, time is the verdict. Regarding the game, you will find a comprehensive analysis in our dossier on the subject. We had the opportunity to observe a few minutes sequence from a film studio famous. A silent movie ... the soundtrack is not finalized at our little meeting (this gives an idea of the readiness of 3D-BD). Some sequences are very impressive and very involved. But as for side effects, results may vary depending on the person.

A person not having a sense of depth could not see ... absolutely no difference! The problem is similar to the pictures, it is even amplified because there is no movement ... If one board were to prevail, is that everyone should be his own opinion before investing a considerable sum in this technology, and therein lies the problem of 3D.