3D Boom!
No prizes for guessing what's up NVIDIA's sleeves this Computex.
It's fast becoming a cliche, but 3D really is the rage now. And we are here in Taipei, Taiwan where graphics powerhouse NVIDIA has constructed an elaborate “3D Experience Centre” right in the heart of Taipei's financial district, to attend their special press conference, held in conjunction with Computex.
At the press conference, NVIDIA CEO, President, and co-founder, Jen-Hsun Huang spoke at length about NVIDIA's forays into the world of 3D. The driving theme behind Jen-Hsun's message to the press was, having enjoyed Avatar in 3D at the cinemas, how can users recreate that experience in their homes? With that in mind, NVIDIA is determined to make it easy for users to bring 3D content into their living rooms. So together with industry partners, NVIDIA today unveiled a wide range of 3D solutions ranging from desktops to notebooks and nettops that would easily allow users to enjoy 3D in the comfort of their living room.
Here's NVIDIA CEO, President and Co-founder Jen-Hsun Huang talking about how 3D is going to drive the graphics industry.
To drive home the message, much of the presentation was presented with 3D slides! Here's Jen-Hsun and Jerry Shen, CEO of ASUS, on stage talking about ASUS' latest 3D-ready products.
Apart from introducing various NVIDIA-powered 3D solutions, Jen-Hsun also reiterated the prowess of NVIDIA's latest Fermi graphics chips, and how it can, along with the tessellation feature offered by Microsoft's newest DirectX 11 API, change the way we view and play games. In keeping with the 3D theme, Jen-Hsun also showed how the latest Fermi-powered cards can enable 3D Vision Surround, which allows gamers to play their games over three displays in full 3D.
Finally, Jen-Hsun Huang expounded on the tablet PC revolution. He believes that tablets could replace the desktop and become our most “personal” computer – in the literal sense. The form factor, he says, is perfect for media consumption, and NVIDIA is there to help with their Tegra processors, which offers tremendous processing power for only a fraction of the power draw.
Introduction of the 3D PCs
The main highlight of the event was NVIDIA's various 3D solutions. And one of the ways users can enjoy 3D is through a new category of PCs that NVIDIA calls “3D PC”. Now, you might be wondering what exactly constitutes a 3D PC, and according to NVIDIA, a 3D PC is a desktop or notebook that:
- Includes a pair of 3D active-shutter glasses (like the 3D Vision kit from NVIDIA)
- A 120Hz 3D-capable display in the form of a desktop LCD monitor, 3D projector, 3D TV or notebook PC with an integrated 3D-capable display
- A discrete graphics processor (like a GeForce GPU from NVIDIA) that is capable of delivering high definition imagery to the 3D display
Here are some examples of how users can easily enjoy 3D at home with NVIDIA.
This is the ASUS G51Jx-EE, a 3D-compatible notebook that comes with an embedded emitter that works with NVIDIA's 3D Vision shutter glasses.
This Clevo notebook is powered by the mighty GeForce GTX 480M and it too supports NVIDIA 3D Vision.
This ASUS EeeTop AIO is powered by the NVIDIA Ion chipset, which supports NVIDIA 3D Vision.
3D PCs like this one can also be used to drive 3D-compatible TVs, which will become more widespread in the months to come.
Nettops powered by NVIDIA ION, such as his one from Zotac, is an inexpensive way to bring 3D into your homes.
Gaming in 3D on a triple monitor setup was a thrilling experience.
More 3D Content Heading This Way
If you've already got a 3D PC, you can also stream 3D content via the Internet. At the press conference, NVIDIA showed off how 3D content can be streamed live over the Internet using Microsoft's Silverlight web application framework. Using a 3D PC with the Silverlight video player, we were shown the music video “We Are The World” in 3D. Incidentally, this is the first time anywhere in the world the music video was shown in 3D.
While this allows users to easy enjoy 3D content on demand, Microsoft's Silverlight platform also gives content owners a secure method of distributing and monetizing 3D content over the Internet.
Jen-Hsun and a representative from Microsoft share a moment on stage, discussing about the possible implications of streaming 3D over the Internet.
For many, it was touching to see "We Are The World" in 3D.
Another interesting announcement at the press conference, is that Sony is also bringing 3D to their “Alpha” series of DSLRs. Presently, Fujifilm's FinePix Real 3D W1 is the world's only 3D-capable camera. With Sony hopping on board the 3D photography bandwagon, photo enthusiasts will have a wider range of options for taking 3D photographs.
No display unit or prototype was seen at the event, but DSLR quality 3D photographs is an intriguing thought.
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