14 DAY TRIAL // Just a day after launching its first commercially available glasses-free 3DTVs, Toshiba promised that it would follow with a bigger screen version of these sets in 2011 and the company kept to its word as it just unveiled, at CES 2011, a 56-inch prototype 4K HDTV.
Just like the previous Regza models, this too uses a lenticular lens setup that is made from an array of magnifying lenses designed so that, when viewed from slightly different angles, they give the user a perception of depth.
Although this technology eliminates the need for polarizing or active shutter glasses it does have its drawbacks, the prototype forcing the user to stay in one of three viewing positions spaced in front of the set to get a sensation of depth.
However, when standing in one of these spots, the “quality was surprisingly given the prototype status of the panel,” according to the SlashGear website.
In addition, the technology is going to improve until the first such 3DTVs hit retail, Toshiba's engineers being hard at work refining the system.
In December of last year, Toshiba started selling two glasses-free 3D Regza models in Japan, the 12GL1 and the 20GL1.
Boasting a 12-inch diagonal, the 12GL1 sports a 466x350 resolution and a 4:3 aspect ratio while the its older brother, the 20GL1, is equipped with a 20-inch LED backlit 1280x768 resolution panel that features a 550:1 contrast ratio.
Although an industry first, these TVs are too small for users that spend a few thousand dollars on HDTVs, so Toshiba promised that it would develop a bigger set, and this prototype seems to fit the bill.
Unfortunately, Toshiba hasn't said anything regarding the HDTV's market availability, but a previous report stated that the TV was expected to go on sale in Japan in the company's 2011 fiscal year, which begins in April.