Last week at the O2 arena (it doesn't matter why I was there) I visited a virtual living room that Sky had set up, complete with a 52" telly hooked up to Sky 3D. They had a promo video about 3 minutes long showing off the technology that will be coming to living rooms of the better off than me later this year.
It started off with some arty shots of dancing and of course the obligatory slow motion wildlife footage...then the sport kicked in. First they tease you with a glimpse of teams walking out at the Emirates (United v Arsenal from this year) until the backing track reaches crescendo and they throw down 4 Aces...
To say it is impressive is to say Kevin-Prince Boateng is off Michael Ballack's Christmas card list. It was absolutely stunning; completely and utterly mind-blowing. The illusion of depth that is created adds so much to the overall picture of the game it's untrue; and the colour/picture is so immersive it makes Pandora look like that bit of Croydon once you go past Forbidden Planet. For any non-Croydon based readers, I think the word is 'shit'.
They had a few neat tricks, such as tennis serves that kick up right out of the screen and a rugby ball tossed down in celebration that pings up into your face; and these were all very cool and novel - but it was the overall level to which it improved the viewing experience which blew me away.
When you go to a live match and sit towards the centre of the pitch, particularly if you are quite high up, it always strikes me how much better you can see the game unfolding than when sat behind a goal or right at ground level. Unfortunately with Saints this often means spotting a pass that our player will never see, or (more often) identifying the player who is about to score against you eons before any of our defenders will ever cotton on.
To me, this 3D viewing did exactly that - and made normal terrestrial football coverage like sitting in Row 1, behind the goal, embracing a pillar.
I am sceptical as to whether it will truly catch on in pubs, as surely the viewing angle and glare on screens etc will take away from it; but as far as home viewing goes, this is absolutely where the future is.
I am sure that I'll be watching Brazil 2014 on my 3D telly...I wonder if a quarter final defeat on penalties will hurt less in 3 dimensions?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
What amazed me more than anything, was that there's a shop that soley sells eggs next door to the train station?
ReplyDelete