All about 3D: choosing the right glasses | Price comparison e-Catalog

You can independently select and buy 3D glasses in the full catalog. Well, below we will talk about what is important to pay attention to when choosing a device.

First of all, you should pay attention to the fact that all 3D glasses on the market are divided into two large categories — active and passive types. Each is based on completely different technologies, but in both cases the action comes down to the same thing: deceiving our binocular vision. As you know, for shooting stereo films, two cameras are used at once, which shoot the same scene from different angles. The effect of a "three-dimensional image" is created due to the fact that during viewing, each user's eyes are shown their own picture. This distribution is what glasses do.

Not so long ago, we already made a detailed excursion into the world of modern 3D TVs (the material can be read here). Usually, manufacturers of such equipment without fail complete their products with glasses necessary for viewing. In some cases, you can find 4-6 pcs in a box at once, if we are talking about relatively cheap passive technology. But there are times when glasses for some reason do not fit or are simply lost / broken.

How passive 3D glasses work

Which 3D glasses to choose: usually, passive (polarized) 3D technology is more often used in modern cinemas

In modern cinemas, IMAX 3D is most often used
passive technology

Passive glasses transmit images to both eyes at the same time. At the same time, two pictures taken by different cameras are displayed on the TV screen. Each of the polarized lenses of the glasses passes only one of them, with its own polarization, in other words: the left glass passes the image intended for the left eye, and the right one — for the right.

Depending on the type of filter installed, the polarization can be linear or circular. Linear involves the arrangement of filters to each other at a right angle, and with a circular filter they are located in different directions. When watching a movie with linear polarized glasses, any tilt of the user's head causes a slight but noticeable reduction in the stereo effect and ghosting of the picture, and therefore this option is rarely used today. In a more modern method of circular polarization, this effect is reduced to zero, most often this solution is used in modern IMAX.

The advantage of passive type glasses is simplicity and accessibility. From them there is less strain on the eyes, but the quality of the resulting image is noticeably lower than in the case of active models. Usually, they are used without any problems together with ordinary glasses with diopters, which allows the viewer with poor eyesight to avoid having to wear lenses specifically for watching a movie. When it is very inconvenient to wear separate active models over ordinary glasses.

Do not forget that buying such glasses is not enough. Passive 3D technology must also be supported by the TV on which the user is going to watch movies. In the catalog of LCD TVs — these are the models, and among the plasma — these are. As for projectors, they overwhelmingly use active technology (there are only a few devices on the market with passive 3D, for example, Epson EB-W16SK).

Interesting. The passive type also includes anaglyph glasses with multi-coloured glasses (usually blue and red). These models were used in the earliest 3D cinemas. They are very simple and cheap, if desired, they can even be assembled with your own hands, from a piece of cardboard and two pieces of coloured film. But they are not able to provide more or less acceptable quality.

How active 3D glasses work

Which 3D glasses to choose: a schematic representation of the principle of operation of active 3D technology

Schematic principle of operation of active 3D glasses

But this is a more complex technology. Active glasses(or, as they are also called, shutter-type glasses) have glasses based on liquid crystals, which alternately close one or the other eye. At the same time, the projector or TV, working in sync with the glasses, reproduces the image at a double frequency (at least 60 Hz for each eye). And when the picture for the right eye is displayed on the screen, the glasses cover the left one, and vice versa. Since all this happens at a very high speed, the vast majority of people simply do not notice the “deception”. However, this is a purely individual matter — some people do not notice the flickering of the picture even at a frame rate of 25 Hz, others notice (or just say so) at 60 Hz.

Shutter glasses transmit the image one by one, and in order for the procedure to proceed correctly, they are synchronized with the TV via wire, IR signal or Bluetooth. Accordingly, for the glasses to work correctly, it is necessary to use special LCD TVs or plasma panels with support for active 3D. As for projectors, almost all models in our catalog use active technology. The situation is similar with monitors — most 3D monitors use active technology and are compatible with nVIDIA 3D Vision Wired Glasses, there are only a few passive models — pay attention to the description of the 3D technology used in the card of each product.

Active 3D provides higher image quality, but the cost of glasses required for it is much higher due to the complexity of the design. In addition, such glasses require an additional power source (except for models that use a wire for synchronization) and require a higher brightness from the image than in the case of passive glasses.

But the main problem with shutter glasses is more strain on the eyes. Some users complain that they experience dizziness, headaches or eye pain when viewing active 3D. In the case of passive technology, such problems do not arise. And although manufacturers are trying to eliminate this problem, it has not yet been possible to cope with it to the end.

Criticism. There are enough complaints about 3D glasses of any type. Some people just find it inconvenient to watch movies with this accessory, which still needs to be corrected from time to time. Those who are already forced to wear glasses with diopters are not always even able to put on another one on top, although manufacturers have already taken this slip into account and are releasing models that can be used with ordinary glasses. But even in this case, there is often an additional load on the eyes caused by glare, which inevitably arises in such a "sandwich" of glasses.

How to choose the right 3D glasses

Which 3D glasses to choose: compact active 3D glasses designed by Sony engineers

Modern active-type 3D glasses are also quite compact, but
need a power source. Pictured Sony TDG-BR250B

There is nothing difficult in choosing. It's best to simply purchase the model recommended by the manufacturer of your TV, monitor, or projector. To do this, you can use the appropriate directory, as well as our search (it is located here). In the latter case, it is enough to choose the manufacturer and model of your TV or projector, and the filter will independently select the glasses suitable for it. But before making a purchase, we still strongly recommend that you check the compatibility of the equipment directly with the store manager.

By the way, attempts were made to produce passive 3D glasses by fashion brands such as Gucci. From a technical point of view, of course, there was nothing special about them. But the manufacturer used expensive materials, gave the glasses elegant shapes, and the very “loud” name mattered.