# Query regarding 3D capability



## piyush (Jan 4, 2013)

Hi,friends 
i am about to receive my new *optoma h180x *projector that is why already started to collect 3d content from internet and bluray purchases  
little info about various signal format will be much appreciated 
i have read that there are no of formats like OU,SBS,HSBS,stereoscopic etc(correct me if i am wrong)
1)Can you tell which of the above format is given by 3d bluray dvd?
2)Which format is used in theaters (recently watched gravity ,was blown by the 3d details)?
3)Please tell which 3d signal format gives best performance in terms of picture quality and depth?
4)My optoma be able to play all these formats.??
5)Also does optoma h180x have the ability to convert standard 2D signal to 3D(i am curious about this not for the movies but for the picture.)??
i will be using sainsonic battery powered glasses having contrast ratio of 1200:1


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## mechman (Feb 8, 2007)

I have no idea what you mean by "OU,SBS,HSBS,". Your projector is spec'd to support these 3D formats top and bottom, side by side, frame packing, and HQFS. As to what format the theaters use, it depends upon the theater. They usually state it fairly clearly what technology they use. 



> Please tell which 3d signal format gives best performance in terms of picture quality and depth?


In my opinion, none. 3D is a fad that is fading fast.



> Also does optoma h180x have the ability to convert standard 2D signal to 3D(i am curious about this not for the movies but for the picture.)??


No. This projector costs $500. You won't find a projector at the low end that can do this. I don't even think there's a high end pj that can do this. I've never looked for one though.


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## RBTO (Jan 27, 2010)

The way you _see_ a 3D image on a screen has little to do with the format. That being said, Full HD 3D (frame packed) which is offered by Blu-Ray disks (no standardized DVD 3D) is the best since it gives full resolution in both the horizontal and vertical directions. Side-by-side will reduce the horizontal resolution by half (from 1920 to 960 pixels) and top&bottom will reduce the vertical resolution by half (from 1080 to 540 pixels). Unless someone specifically told you what "format" was being used, you may not be able to tell otherwise.

Theater 3D files are provided on special optical disks so asking for the format is irrelevant. Theater 3D has some similarities and differences compared to home 3D. It uses a time-multiplex method where right and left images are alternately flashed on the screen at a 144 Hz rate and the polarization of the light is alternated correspondingly. This means that your left eye sees 72 images per second interspersed with black intervals. During those black intervals, your right eye is seeing an image (also 72 per second). The lightweight glasses (theater 3D is passive 3D) have opposite polarizing characteristics for each eye to guide the proper images where they need to go (since the projector light is also polarized accordingly). Theater images are 2K or 4K, meaning the horizontal resolution is 2048 or 4096 pixels whereas home theater is 1920 (1080 HD) or 1280 (720 HD - _your projector_) pixels (horizontally). 1920 pixels (in a 1080 system) is pretty close to a 2K theater system in terms of resolution quality.

Two types of home 3D exist, but most are active 3D. In this case, the image on the screen is alternately switched as at a theater (but with a different frequency). No polarization is used, so instead, "shutter glasses" are worn which are timed with the screen image so only the correct image gets to the corresponding eye (each eye plays peek-a-boo with the screen due to the shutter glasses but only one eye see the screen at any given time).

If you're using Blu-Ray disks (BD) for your 3D, your projector will only have to handle full HD 3D formats (which it does). You don't have to worry about any other formats unless you're involved with streaming 3D or computer sourced 3D which use other formats (again, on your screen, the appearance will be only slightly different due to the resolution limitations of those formats).

I have to disagree that 3D is a fad. More movies are being produced in 3D all the time and the money that's being spent to make 3D available wouldn't be invested in a "fad" - it sells. 3D probably won't become the norm for movies and a lot of movies just aren't done justice with it but for some like "Gravity", 3D really makes it a special experience.


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## piyush (Jan 4, 2013)

Thanks for.quick responses


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