Why Did Home 3D Fail To Impress?
Remember when 3D TVs were the big thing in the tech industry? You could barely take a trip to the shops without seeing a billboard or hearing about the latest model on the radio. But then, just as quickly as they stormed onto the scene, 3D TVs were being declared as officially dead. In 2017 both LG and Sony announced that they would stop supporting 3D tech, and that announcement was the end of a confusing, poorly thought out era of disaster.
It is perhaps one of the biggest failures the tech industry has ever endured, and it is no exaggeration to say that the blunder nearly destroyed some pretty big companies.
Why Did It Fail?
Rather than asking why it failed, it is better to guess why anyone ever though it would succeed. To answer this question, we need not look further than a movie called Avatar, releasing in 2009. To call the movie a mega-hit is an understatement, with an estimated $2.79 billion being raked in around the world.
With that the tech world suddenly saw big, juicy dollar signs, and, always desperate for the next big thing, several major companies threw themselves into making 3D home TVs.
Though, what these companies seemed to not fully grasp was that when someone wants to check out real money pokies at home, 3D is the last thing they are really interested in.
Sony Bet Big
In 2009 Sony boldly announced that they were striking out on their own, having been stuck in a situation where they were buying TV displays from Samsung. Sony executive deputy president Hiroshi Yoshioka explained that the company would look into making their own displays, which would in turn open up a new era for the company.
In 2011 and 2012 the company leaned heavily into 3D , pouring a fortune into creating their own 3D based displays. We all know how this turned out; near bankruptcy for one of the biggest tech giants in the world. Thankfully for Sony, their PlayStation console was a gigantic success, and probably acted as saving grace in an otherwise catastrophic era.
We Just Don’t Need It
Today the next big thing is 4K resolution, or UHD, and 3D is long forgotten. 4K is not necessarily flying off the shelves, but it is something that most can get behind. Pictures are clearer, which is fine, and 4K doesn’t require that you wear glasses.
But after 4K, one can only assume that tech companies will once again flounder, and perhaps start suggesting that 8K is necessary. The secret is that tech giants are fighting a constant battle to remain relevant, and the additional secret is that ‘the next big thing’ has always mostly been a redundant statement. If consumers were really interested in a next big thing, VR probably wouldn’t already be slowly sinking into a grave of its own. We don’t need a next big thing, pure and simple, unless it really is a sensible jump forward.
