Toshiba Unveils Glasses-Free 3D LCD TVs

At CEATEC 2010, Japan's biggest consumer electronics show, Toshiba today announced its first commercially available 3DTVs that can be used without 3D glasses. Two TVs were shown, one with a screen size of 12-inches (30.5 cm) and another with a 20-inch (50.8 cm) screen. The products will be available by the end of December in Japan priced at ¥120,000 (US$1,430) and ¥240,000 (US$2,860), respectively. No information was given regarding launch plans or pricing for markets outside of Japan.

In current 3D TVs images intended for each eye are quickly displayed one after the other. In sync with the TV picture filters in 3D glasses block light alternately so the right eye sees one image and and the left eye sees the next. In its new TVs, Toshiba uses an integral "perpendicular lenticular sheet"--an array of small lenses-- that provides different perspectives (parallaxes) of each single 2D frame directed from the display to nine points in front of the TV; if a viewer is sitting within the optimal viewing zone, the brain integrates these points into a single 3-D image.

The sweet spot is said to be large enough to enable several family members to watch a 3D image at the same time. Suggested viewing distance for the 20-inch model is 35.4 inches (90 cm) and 25.6 inches (65 cm) for the 12-inch size.

Toshiba also showcased a laptop prototype as a proof of concept with a 12-inch (30.5 cm) 3D display without glasses.