Samsung expects to be able to sell a total of nine to ten million 3D TVs this year. That would be a fivefold increase compared to 2010. The company also defended its choice to use active 3D glasses to journalists.
Last year, Samsung sold about two million 3D TVs. For 2011, the Korean company expects to increase this number to nine to ten million read at Associated Press. The expected increase is mainly due to the higher number of cheaper devices in the new 2011 line-up, which will be equipped with 3D support, as announced at the CES 2011 trade show in January. Samsung’s sales forecast is double what LG expects to sell 3D TVs this year, though the latter company has not disclosed 3D TV sales for 2010. Sales of 3D TVs in 2010 were slightly below expectations for all manufacturers.
LG is betting on two horses this year. The new high-end devices use active shutter technology, while the Cinema 3D line uses passive 3D technology. LG has developed a special film layer for this purpose, Film Patterned Retarder, which reverses the polarization of the light per image line, so that each eye receives the correct image information through the passive 3D glasses. The advantage is that crosstalk is minimized and the color difference between 2d and 3d is minimal, while the light intensity is also largely preserved. However, the vertical resolution is halved.
Yoon Boo-geun, head of Samsung’s display division, defends Samsung’s choice for active 3D technology. “There is no technological advantage to the passive 3D technology,” said Yoon Boo-geun. According to the CEO, the foundation for LG’s FPR technology is several decades old and the market will determine which technology is the most successful. “At the end of the year we will have more clarity,” said Yoon Boo-geun.
The new Samsung D7000 and D8000 series are characterized by very thin bezels. Its thickness is only half a centimeter. The new TV line is also equipped with an updated online TV platform and Samsung has developed a new remote with touchscreen.