3D

Having two eyes allows us to see in 3D. Depth perception, or the third dimension, is formed when the brain combines the slightly different images seen by each eye into a single image. One of the simplest but most effective demonstrations of stereoscopic imagery is presented by the classic Viewmaster® toy, which has been on the market for many decades.

Traditionally, the 3D camera operated with two lenses to emulate the manner in which our two eyes see in "stereo," and produced two images at slightly different angles to create the 3D illusion. Here is a group of cameras that will give you the ability to create 3D images and videos that you can view on your home HDTV.

Panasonic has added a trio of new guns: a Lumix G 14mm/2.5 ASPH wide-angle, a Lumix G Vario 100-300mm/f4-5.6 OIS super zoom and most intriguing of the three, a "two-eyed" Lumix G 12.5mm/f12.5 3D lens designed to capture 3D imagery when used with Panasonic Lumix G-series cameras.

Digital film making is changing after every new camera hits the marketplace. Instead of winnowing the previous models an entire range of solutions is available to meet every type of production need. But what about getting all the camera manufacturers with all their experts (that they can fit into their travel budget) to converge on one place for a weekend?

The NP Value Series from NEC is a line of attractively priced DLP projectors designed for computer or video use. Two of the three projectors are ready for 3D computer content and the top model contains an Ethernet port.

While Samsung's trio of 3D Blu-ray Disc players awaits your first 3D TV, they connect to the Internet now for streaming loads of entertainment. They play regular Blu-ray discs and CDs, too. Did we mention that when they play your DVDs, they upconvert pictures for the best possible display on your HDTV?

Sony's point-and-shoot cameras are being marshaled to rally 'round the company-wide push for 3D TV with the announcement that two of three new Cyber-shot models will contain 3D Sweep Panorama capability. By shooting a burst of still images while panning the camera horizontally or vertically, the resulting panorama will appear in 3D when viewed through 3D glasses on a Sony or other brand of 3D TV.