14 DAY TRIAL // While 3D may not have reached the same degree of popularity in all regions of the globe, Japan seems to have seen it progress quite quickly, to the point where 3D Blu-ray units account for more than half of all Blu-ray products sold last month.
Japan has always been known as the country where hardware and consumer electronics, and technology in general, evolves at a high speed.
This has been proven yet again, or so it seems, as revealed by a report published by CrunchGear, which deals with the evolution of 3D.
One may say that 3D has grown in popularity the fastest in this country, exhibit A being the situation on the Blu-ray 3D market.
Even though most 3D-capable Blu-ray players and recorders were only released last year, consumer preference is already predominantly for them.
For those that want numbers, 56.8% of all sold Blu-ray recorders over the past month (in Japan) were 3D-compatible, according to research firm BCN [JP].
The number is quite massive in itself, but becomes even more telling once one realizes that, in September, such units accounted for only 6.7%.
As if to enforce how widely-accepted 3D is, BCN also looked at the state of the LCD TV market, finding another case of booming sales.
While, back in August, the sold 3D-capable 40-inch or larger TVs accounted for just 3% of the total 3D TV market, the percentage grew to 24% in December.
Granted, 3D TVs make up just 5% of all sold TVs in Japan, but the percentage still says much about the current trend.
The main elements that enabled such a popularity rise were periodical improvements in image quality and, most importantly, price cuts.
What remains to be seen is if the market share of 3D consumer electronics keeps growing and, if so, for how long the current adoption rate persists.