Sony: 3D visor to "revolutionise" games

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 23 September, 2011

Uncharted 3 will "take advantage" of viewer.

Sony has talked up its Personal 3D Viewer, saying it will "revolutionise games forever".

The HMZ-T1 Personal 3D Viewer is a 3D-capable head mounted display that launches in Japan this November.

The device crams two 720p OLED screens in front of gamers' eyeballs, capable of both 2D and 3D output. Sony expects the device to sell for 60,000 yen (£480).

"Picture the scene," begins Sony's latest pitch. "You're sharing your television with friends, and while they watch the latest blockbuster movie, you decide you'd rather get a high speed kick from Gran Turismo 5.

"Normally, short of grabbing the TV remote and upsetting your mates, there'd be little to do except sit and quietly imagine the thrill of the Nurburgring at 200 miles per hour, while waiting for the movie's credits to roll...

"The Personal 3D Viewer is about to change all that, however, as you'll soon be able to immerse yourself completely in a private world of entertainment. Slipping the straps of the device around your head, you'll feel as though you're sat in your own personal cinema - complete with a dazzling 3D display and dynamic, 5.1 virtual surround sound.

"Jump behind the wheel of the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG in Gran Turismo 5, and you'll be treated to some of the best racing action on PlayStation 3, amplified by incredibly crisp High Definition and 3D visuals. Two crystal clear OLED screens - the same technology that provides the spectacular display on the PlayStation Vita system - can be adjusted to suit your viewing preference, so you can watch and play in absolute comfort.

"Scenery whips past you, rival cars appear to roar out of the display at you and, in first person view, you can almost feel the steering wheel through your driving gloves. And with the high contrast TruBlack display providing you with a vivid, rich picture, you'll be speeding over the deep black tarmac of Gran Turismo 5, racing against incredibly detailed rival cars with no motion blur.

"Dive into the breathless firefights of Killzone 3, and you'll see those twin OLED screens comfortably keep up with all the action as it intensifies to give you a flicker-free image, whether it's of mushrooming explosions or onrushing enemies.

"A wide viewing angle is designed to draw you fully into the world in front of you, while all-encompassing sound lets you hear footsteps approaching you from behind, or gunfire blasting from all sides, thanks to three-dimensional Virtual Phone Technology."

So, how will you use the 3D headset?

"Plugging right into 3D games and movies couldn't be simpler," Sony explains. "Use an HDMI cable to connect the Personal 3D Viewer to your PS3 system and you're ready to go. Built-in controls let you adjust the volume and change settings, giving you complete flexibility to tailor your own experience.

"Get right into the heart of cutting-edge entertainment with a High Definition, 3D picture and 5.1 virtual surround sound and take centre stage in your favourite games and movies."

Sony today released new images of the headset. They're below.

Aesthetically it's similar to Nintendo's failed Virtual Boy, which never saw release in Europe after its less-than stellar 1995 Japanese launch.

In June Sony Worldwide Studios exec Mick Hocking predicted virtual reality gaming would return to popularity - powered by the company's new headset.

"So we have our new HMD - or head-mounted display - which was announced at CES earlier this year, and you can see that we can now get back to where we really wanted to get with virtual reality in the '80s.

"Being in a virtual world where I can see my virtual hands or a virtual gun with all the things we can do in the gaming world is going to be absolutely amazing," he added.

Sony said "exciting titles like Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception" will take advantage of the headset's unique capabilities.

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

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Comments (119) Latest comment 7 months ago

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  • Donaldthescotishtwin #1 8 months ago

    Intresting I'm still waiting for the 3DTV that will make anything on the screen 3D

  • oupe #2 8 months ago

    I want this! It will probably fail like my Kinect and 3ds but still :)

  • Vice.Destroyer #3 8 months ago

    Deja vu. I'm sure I have seen this before. I want this to succeed, but that price is just eye-watering. A peripheral that costs twice as much as the host console? Someone is very brave.

  • shinesevens #4 8 months ago

    I'm interested in this, but I will need to try it to see if it's any good. Two small concerns also:

    1) Will it be comfortable for extended gaming sessions

    2) Will there be any motion sickness / dizziness.

    Any UK launch info?

  • DoctorFouad #5 8 months ago

    I prefer waiting for 3D without glasses instead

  • Daeltaja #6 8 months ago

    I can imagine this fucking my eyes up.

    Then there's the price..

  • HyperTails #7 8 months ago

    Honestly, I believe that 3D is the future. I love it, personally, and think its great. People say crap like 'it failed in the 50's, it'll fail now'. It did fail, but technology has advanced MASSIVELY since then, hell, they didn't even have colour TV's in the 50's.

    This is just planting the seeds of VR, and this is going to usher in a new way to play games. More immersive experience will just add to what's great games.

  • technotica #8 8 months ago

    Hmm, Augemented reality with headsets! Imagine connecting it to your Vita and actually seeing the dinos walking before you! (and not just on the small vita screen)
    Edited by technotica at 23/09/11 @ 12:36

  • RodHull #9 8 months ago

    3D visor to revolutionise the art of looking like a tit in your own room.

  • Bahumet #10 8 months ago

    Is very much like this to be cool and affordable.

  • MiniAmin #11 8 months ago

    I am all over this. Anything which enables me to continue playing the likes of Gears and Uncharted while the significant other watches "Don't tell the bride" and "four weddings" is absolutely, nothing short of revolutionary.

  • SteelPriest #12 8 months ago

    I reckon half the problem with current 3d is that the image doesn't extend beyond the edge of the screen, meaning it's pretty hard to suspend disbelief and make it 'work'.

    If these 2 screens are big enough for you not not see any edge, it could be really good. Unfortunately, for that money i doubt i'll ever be able to justify buying it.

  • joelstinton #13 8 months ago

    So you have to plug it in using a hdmi cable, could be awkward.. have to turn the ps3 round, buy a long cable.. .still though if i had the money... i would.

  • TeeHee #14 8 months ago

    The funny thing is this that you can achieve the same effect with 4 of those 3d glasses you get from the cinema (a pack of 5 will set you back about 6£.)

    still don't see the point in 3d tv though

  • Cadence #15 8 months ago

    Not sure that's going to be so comfortable if you already wear glasses.

  • Armoured_Gideon #16 8 months ago

    Sony has talked up its Personal 3D Viewer, saying it will "revolutionise games forever".

    Hi, just to save us all a lot of disappointment later, no it won't. I mean, it might be good, but it won't revolutionise games forever.

  • Rrralphster #17 8 months ago

    PC compatible, or no buy
    (probably no buy...knowing Sony)

    That is a bit harsh, but yeah, I would like one of those for PC.

  • Skooch #18 8 months ago

    Many people can't be bothered with 3D that require glasses, let alone an entire headset. This is heading the wrong way.

  • theonlyix #19 8 months ago

    Looks really nice,at that price, im pretty sure it will end up with beta-max though....

  • andijames #20 8 months ago

    Geordi La Forge called he want's his visor back! :)

  • slippysloppy #21 8 months ago

    Sony: 3D visor to "revolutionise" pornography

  • Snufkin #22 8 months ago

    I'd love this - but at that price its pretty hard to justify considering only one person at a time can enjoy it. The wife would not be happy.
    Can it be plugged in to anything with an HDMI output I wonder?

  • Toothball #23 8 months ago

    This looks neat and I'm already a 3D convert, but I'm still working on getting a 3DTV first before looking into a headset like this.

  • joelstinton #24 8 months ago

    Problem is there is isn't much original 3d content made for 3d. Its all 2D films retro fitted after wards. Its shite. And killing any chance that 3D had. But when the films are designed around the tech : i.e Wener herzog Cave of forgotten dreams, and Wim Wenders Pina its actually really good.

  • ZizouFC #25 8 months ago

    That last picture is ridiculous.

  • Khosrau #26 8 months ago

    Honestly, this sounds seriously cool.

  • GAmbrose #27 8 months ago

    Picture the scene," begins Sony's latest pitch. "You're sharing your television with friends, and while they watch the latest blockbuster movie, you decide you'd rather get a high speed kick from Gran Turismo 5


    Yes I often think to myself whilst socialising with people, If only I could block out their inane ramblings with a £500 headset that lets me faff about on a game...

  • WiseGuy #28 8 months ago

    Id feel a tad self concious if I was to wear this and there were other people around. Presumably you wouldnt see anything other than the game and nor would you hear anything. Aside from the threat of being attacked at will by 'mates' I also imagine my girlfriend would not be turned on by the kind of faces id be pulling as im running backwards and firing directly up to the sky in Killzone!

    P.S. Despite this tho im very interested.

    P.P.S Just remembered about 7 years ago i watched Kill Bill on a pair of cinema specs. It was pretty intense but after 5 mins i felt my eyes were about to bleed. Would hope it would be far better than this!

  • GamesProgrammer Verified Games Team Programmer, Eutechnyx Ltd. #29 8 months ago

    Does this count as glasses free 3D?

  • login_name #30 8 months ago

    Use an HDMI cable to connect the Personal 3D Viewer to your PS3 system and you're ready to go.

    Hang on a minute, you want me to connect my head to my console via a cable stretching across the living room? The same living room you expect other folk to be going about their usual business? While completely blind (and presumably deaf) to all around you? Erm..no. For the bedroom or the man cave, sure, but for the living room? No chance. Not unless you want to sit on the floor next to your PS3.

    There's a cable coming from the side of the headset in one of the pictures so I'm assuming this is what he means. Is it not possible to send the signal wirelessly?

  • geeza2020 #31 8 months ago

    Cant stand to look at your friends disgusting faces, or listen to their inane dribblings? Cant even be bothered to tell them to get them to go home, or at least get the fuck off your sofa? Well, now you can tell them to go fuck themselves in style! (£500 worth of style to be precise!) Just slip on your headset, padlock the back, and start playing!!! Your friends will be proper pissed off!! They'll think "OOooo thats a nice shiny headset he's just put on while I was trying to tell him my wife has cancer, I wish I had one of those. Although, I dont think i want to be his friend anymore...."

    Brilliant! Revolutionising contempt for those close to you!!!

    :p

  • el_pollo_diablo #32 8 months ago

    If I was sharing my television with friends, and while they watch the latest blockbuster movie I decide I'd rather get a high speed kick from Gran Turismo 5, I'd hope my friends would tell me in no uncertain terms to stop being a ponce and a tit.
    Edited by el_pollo_diablo at 23/09/11 @ 12:56

  • Architect_z #33 8 months ago

    I'm not even gonna play games on it,i'm just gonna wear it in the clubs, dance around with it. I'll be the coolest guy in town. ^_^

  • mooton #34 8 months ago

    May as well call it the sony motion sickness generator.

  • gamerBOB #35 8 months ago

    I was looking into a pair of these but I don't know what the quality is like...need to find reviews

  • Whitster #36 8 months ago

    My group of friends already has one member that get on peoples tits by being permenantly glued to his iPad/Phone programming music all the time. Anyone who pulled one of these out in a social situation doesn't really deserve their friends anyway.

  • RoOhDaMite #37 8 months ago

    @SteelPriest
    "I reckon half the problem with current 3d is that the image doesn't extend beyond the edge of the screen, meaning it's pretty hard to suspend disbelief and make it 'work'. "

    Having the screen covering your entire view will cause another problem: Framerate-dizziness.
    Your eyes are very sensitive to low frequence images at the edges. Fast edge-perception allows us to react quick if something is sneaking up on us from the side. You can experience this effect when you are standing next to a 50 Hz TV staring at the wall beside the screen.
    Thus, they will need to heighten the framerate significantly to make this work.

    Edited by RoOhDaMite at 23/09/11 @ 13:09

  • MattEdWithCheese #38 8 months ago

    Who wouldn't want Drake to take advantage of them? *blush*

  • RedPanda #39 8 months ago

    Post deleted at 14:31:59 28-01-2012

  • RoOhDaMite #40 8 months ago

    @GamesProgrammer
    "Does this count as glasses free 3D?"

    No, it is TV free 3D.

  • M4RKYB #41 8 months ago

    I had some very similar ones about 10 years ago made by Olympus called Eye-Trek. They were being talked up as the next big thing back then by the Olympus rep who came to see me (I was a buyer at an electronics store and I got a good discount). They were flawed because it was early days of LCD and the resolution and refresh rate were very poor (and obviously not 3D), but they had their moments where they impressed during gameplay, my mate still claims to this day that playing V-Rally with them on was his greatest experience of a driving game ever. I got bored of them quite quickly though and sold them for a profit, and the units themselves bombed at retail (a warning to Sony perhaps). To those asking if they hurt your eyes I honestly cant remember, so I assume not.

  • el_pollo_diablo #42 8 months ago

    V-Rally was impossible. Those cars flipped over just like *that*.

  • Nazo #43 8 months ago

    This does sound pretty cool but they need to update the spiel so it doesn't sound like it's aimed at anti-social tits.

    Regarding the price, 60,000 yen was less than £300 a few years ago, the weak pound hurts :

  • Malek86 #44 8 months ago

    "Picture the scene," begins Sony's latest pitch. "You're sharing your television with friends, and while they watch the latest blockbuster movie, you decide you'd rather get a high speed kick from Gran Turismo 5."

    Wasn't this the premise of the Wii U?

    Frankly, both devices would probably make you look like a little bit of an ass. But I guess the Wii U at least doesn't make you look *too* ridiculous. They seriously need to change their advertising to something more like "it makes your games more fun", or at least something that doesn't sound like an ad for people who don't give a crap about socializing.
    Edited by Malek86 at 23/09/11 @ 13:24

  • university_zippy #45 8 months ago

    Sony has talked up its Personal 3D Viewer, saying it will "revolutionise games forever".

    Like the virtual boy then?

  • koshien #46 8 months ago

    No cross-talk.
    No barrier between eye and display (no parallax barrier like the 3DS and no 3D glasses that make the image darker and with slightly different colours).
    No need to change my 3 years old 2D tv.
    Oled quality.
    If it costs 480£ (549 euros) or not more than 599 euros, I'm sold!

  • Zozzilla #47 8 months ago

    Being someone who wears glasses and has horrible eyesight...if I want 3D I'll wait for a glasses-free TV, thanks. Wearing those oversized sunglasses type things in the cinema makes my eyes burn.

  • Malek86 #48 8 months ago

    Oh, and it's also worth noting that, if your friends are "watching the latest blockbuster" on Blu-ray (or video on demand) with the PS3, good luck playing GT5.
    Edited by Malek86 at 23/09/11 @ 13:26

  • theiceman #49 8 months ago

    I want one!! No more sharing tv with wifey. Sweet! Already got a 3DTV , so this will be perfect for me :)

    /Smashes piggy bank

  • vizzini #50 8 months ago

    This has already joined my list of wanted items, but it will all come down to price from online electrical retailers.

    If then can get it below the £300 mark this side of Christmas in the UK then I'm quite sure I am going to buy it.

    It would be nice if the headsets can be daisy chained for split screen multiplayer or if there is four hdmi outs on the HMD receiver unit.

    But personally they should consider adding an slightly uprated GPU in the HMD receiver to bypass the RSX(in the PS3) or add another Cell with rambus memory, so first party 3D games like GT5 can run full framerate and without any tearing.
    Edited by vizzini at 23/09/11 @ 13:33

  • AcidSnake #51 8 months ago

    Sure the Virtual Boy didn't launch in Europe? I remember finding them on sale in Switzerland some years ago...

  • mr_bez #52 8 months ago

    £480 to shut out my wife and play PS3 while she watches telly... cheaper than a divorce! Buying one would probably result in the other fairly quickly though.

  • KopparbergDave #53 8 months ago

    I'm sorry, but I'd only ever use this in private when I know no one's home, not in front of mates or my gf. It's bad enough when I'm playing GT5 with headphones on and she scares the bejeesus out of me, I don't fancy my mates all standing round making (understandable) 'wanker' gestures and so on and so forth.

    Would want one for a better 3D playing experience, but never use it in front of other people, lol.

  • JonFE #54 8 months ago

    Wishful thinking, me thinks!

    Seriously though, how does it cope with 2d content?
    Edited by JonFE at 23/09/11 @ 13:43

  • TonyHarrison #55 8 months ago

    It really does look like a modern day version of the Virtual Boy headset. Will it be more successful (which wouldn't be that difficult)? We shall see.

  • tinyspark #56 8 months ago

    I recently bought a 32" Sony tv for the bedroom which happened to be 3D compatible, so i bought a pair of glasses to try it out and it was the worst 3D effect I've ever seen. Cross talk all over the place. Wipeout in 3D was an absolute unplayable mess. If Sony, the self appointed experts in 3D, can't even get their tellys to work in 3D then my expections for this is low. Yet i still kinda want one. Wait for the reviews I guess.

  • Der_tolle_Emil #57 8 months ago

    The device crams two 720p OLED screens in front of gamers' eyeballs, capable of both 2D and 3D output.

    Uhm, why would the two screens be 3d compatible? Just in case for the super humans who have 2 pupils per eyeball?

  • Fidjit #58 8 months ago

    Awesome, but no mention of gyros/sensors to allow headtracking...

  • koopa #59 8 months ago

    Yeah, I would love to be blind around my drunk friends...

    But seriously, this could be cool to use in private.
    Edited by koopa at 23/09/11 @ 13:57

  • Kami #60 8 months ago

    Indeed, when I saw this my first thought was "Didn't we do this with the Virtual Boy? And didn't we all complain of headaches, motion sickness and general clumsiness with it?"

    Sony are milking this 3D thing whilst it can. I doubt this will be any better than the Virtual Boy - visually, it'll be fine yes. But you're likely to get the same side effects because you're undergoing what is, ostensibly, sensory deprevation. And it still won't fix the issue that a very LARGE portion (over 10%) of people can't SEE 3D. Unless they have brand spanking new, not-at-all-old-but-we've-made-it-new 3D tech to unveil, in which case you'd expect a much larger song and dance about it.

    It'll be a wonderful gadget to have, of course. But you'll look like a tit, and I doubt it'll be sub-£500 (edit; by that I mean us in the UK. We usually pay a chunk more than a direct monetary conversion, and if past form is anything to go by - £599.99 wouldn't shock or surprise me). A fool and his money, they say...
    Edited by Kami at 23/09/11 @ 14:02

  • Ryze #61 8 months ago

    (Ideally) Needs:

    - WirelessHD support
    - Gyroscopes for head tracking
    - Official integration with PS4, and multi-game support
    - a light battery giving 3 hours + of usage on a single charge.
    - PSVita compatibility and support


    Issues:

    Social - if you're with friends, and decide to forgo the movie to play GT5, then a couple of things are likely to happen:

    - With female friends: They'll call you out for being anti-social. I was berated by a female friend 5 years ago, simply for playing Burnout Legends on my PSP in a friend's living room after a night out.

    - With male friends: They'll find a way to distract or make fun of you while you can't see them. I can see it now. In a room with 4 men, if one of them puts a headset on then starts concentrating on a game, the other 3 will spend the whole movie trying out different and more creative methods of pestering and distracting him.

    Best for solo play, and on aircraft, really.

  • FireMonkey #62 8 months ago

    ""You're sharing your television with friends, and while they watch the latest blockbuster movie, you decide you'd rather get a high speed kick from Gran Turismo 5."

    Yeah that's a great way of keeping friend. Ignorant bastard!

  • FireMonkey #63 8 months ago

    I'd be interested when it does head-tracking. Till then, nope!

  • orangpelupa #64 8 months ago

    if this thing have

    - dual camera (like 3ds)
    - gyro
    - accelero
    - wireless connection

    it will be awesome making game in Augmented Reality..

    but i fear that will enable japan making Eroge that.... ugh i cant find the english word :(

    just imagine Bravely Default AR demo but with this thing. And the girl there is interactive.

  • ronuds #65 8 months ago

    How come this didn't revolutionize gaming the first time around?

  • FireMonkey #66 8 months ago

    "I am all over this. Anything which enables me to continue playing the likes of Gears and Uncharted while the significant other watches "Don't tell the bride" and "four weddings" is absolutely, nothing short of revolutionary."

    It's called another TV in a different room. Bring on the Revolution!!!

  • midnight_walker #67 8 months ago

    Please tell me this headset won't be wired to the PS3, because I can't see anything that tells me it won't be. And that's just fucking stupid.

  • benfresh76 #68 8 months ago

    Depressing shit. After years of trying to dispel the image of the dysfunctional, unsociable, masturbating teenage gaming nerd sitting in their darkened bedroom, we now have this revolutionary way to utterly isolate yourself from the people around you. Much as I didn't care too much for the content on the Wii and kinect, at least their heart was in the right place.

  • Clive_Dunn #69 8 months ago

    And not one Geordi LaForge comment yet ? Call yourself nerds.

  • retr0gamer #70 8 months ago

    Sorry sony but I'm perfectly happy with my virtual boy.
    Edited by retr0gamer at 23/09/11 @ 14:23

  • RodHull #71 8 months ago

    This really should've been wireless like the PS3 controller, meaning that I could sit in the cellar and play my Josef Fritzl RPG's in peace.

  • Stubie_2011 #72 8 months ago

    "So we have our new HMD - or head-mounted display - which was announced at CES earlier this year, and you can see that we can now get back to where we really wanted to get with virtual reality in the '80s. "

    No it won't. I'm not saying that this won't be a fun piece of kit, and maybe enhance the gameplay, but one thing it certainly won't do, unless I've missed something glaringly obvious, is immerse you in a virtual world. For that to work surely there will need to be head tracking too. I've not seen anything about gyroscopes or motion sensors, so all you will be getting is the ability to play games wtihout distractions. Like wives. Or fires. Or wives on fire.

  • M4RKYB #73 8 months ago

    Clive_Dunn.
    May I point you towards comment #21.

  • obscured021 #74 8 months ago

    They said that about my Frote VFX1 back in the day

  • Widge #75 8 months ago

    I can't wait to trawl an hdmi cable across my front room.

  • Alcock #76 8 months ago

    Imagine playing some horror game with the goggles and someone comes and taps you on the shoulder.

  • RGroenen #77 8 months ago

    It can be preordered on the Dutch Sony webshop. It costs 799 euro available mid December. That’s quite a lot…http://www.sony.nl/product/head-mounted-...

  • Xardan #78 8 months ago

    pfffffffff

  • Walkerj #79 8 months ago

    Sony: "try 3d, youll love it, 1/4 pound glasses for only $100!"

    Customers: "3d glasses are too heady for my nose, and they cost way too much! $70-200 a pair! WTF!"

    Sony: "Here is a 25 pound headset for $500 dollars"

    Customers: "Do you take souls or just money?"

    Sony: "please hold, PSN is down"

    I love playing my ps3 in 3d, but even at 6 feet you get a headache eventually, id rather not experience it at 1 inch.
    Edited by Walkerj at 23/09/11 @ 16:10

  • Snake_2011 #80 8 months ago

    star trek style would try it.

  • Octoroc #81 8 months ago

    I tried one of these out at IFA a few weeks ago. The picture was very stable and sharp- once I'd adjusted the distance between the two screens to suit my eyes. I felt no discomfort whatsoever. The trouble was that I could see the interior of the rounded housing. It felt very much like watching TV through a pair of binoculars. I wouldn't dismiss the thing entirely, but obviously at that price you'd be mad if you didn't "try before you buy".

  • SvennoJ #82 8 months ago

    Looks good, comfortably laying down while playing a game without having to mount the tv on the ceiling.
    I hope racing games will support this device with head tracking through kinect or ps eye. It should be easy to accurately track a bright white shape with a blue light in the middle.

  • SteveHolt #83 8 months ago

    For that price, I'd rather buy a second TV + headphones but hey, whatever floats your boat.

  • mukki #84 8 months ago

    Failed virtual gameboy... Now wait a minute that is a classic... Right up there with failed vectrex, But ya possibly not the seller it was hoped it would be.

  • smelly #85 8 months ago

    >I prefer waiting for 3D without glasses instead

    Why wait? 3ds is out now? (confoosed)

  • Machiavellian #86 8 months ago

    Hmm, Augemented reality with headsets! Imagine connecting it to your Vita and actually seeing the dinos walking before you! (and not just on the small vita screen)

    Actually with Kinect, this visor and Augmented reality games, could end of being the next system of the future.

  • smelly #87 8 months ago

    >2) Will there be any motion sickness / dizziness.

    The motion sickness/dizziness from oldschool vr helmets was mainly due to the head tracking not being able to keep up with your movements.

    This isn't VR, there's no headtracking - it's merely displaying the video in front of your eyes. For 2D this will be no problem at all, but with 3d, you'll still get the eye strain issues you have using glasses in the cinema (if you get that problem, i never do)....

    I personally think this will be ace, i hope they update it to include head tracking - and full 180 degree surround visuals...

    My only problem is the damn price.

  • smelly #88 8 months ago

    >Seriously though, how does it cope with 2d content?

    The same as it deals with 3d content? But instead of a different image on each eye - both eyes will get the same image?

    What makes you think it wouldnt work in 2d? (confused by this comment)

  • smelly #89 8 months ago

    >Actually with Kinect...

    Erm, it'll be full of more shovelware and even fewer titles than the wii?

  • smelly #90 8 months ago

    >On the plus side, it truly is glasses-free 3D!

    Wow.. in that case i had glasses-free 3D back in the 80s with my muppet viewfinder/viewmaster thingy...

  • Canyarion #91 8 months ago

    Did you guys ever see the Sony Trini....something aroud 10-12 years ago? It was basically the same thing, but I don't thinkt it supported 3D.

    I'm trying to remember the exact name. Sony Trinitron? Maybe it didn't even start with Trini.
    Anyway, I guess it was ahead of its time. It never got off the ground.

  • smelly #92 8 months ago

    >It never got off the ground.

    These things have been tried numerous times before.. but they're always too expensive to be mainstream.

    And this doesnt look like it'll change that pattern.

  • Chufty #93 8 months ago

    You will suffer from dizziness and headaches using this visor if you get a similar problem with other 3D solutions such as shutter glasses or 3DS-style screens. It's nothing to do with the screen or the glasses, it's the false 3D effect that causes your headaches.

    Unfortunately this limits the market for this and other types of 3D, which is a shame because 3D gaming is awesome.

    I may get one of these... ¬_¬

  • steviepunk #94 8 months ago

    And I thought Virtual Reality died in the early 90s!

    Aside from the price, this could be quite cool to use - though unless it has gyroscopic tracking for head movement, it could be very disorientating if you can't look around by turning your head (limited use in Uncharted, but would be great in GT5).

    having the LCD screens that close would be like having a 70" TV (or bigger?), though with a bit more eye strain..

  • silentbob #95 8 months ago

    "I prefer waiting for 3D without glasses instead"

    It is, by definition, without the glasses y'dumb shit!

  • silentbob #96 8 months ago

    Also, want!

  • KayTannee #97 8 months ago

    Get it to supply 3D with Nvidia Vision on PC. And make sure it has motion tracking built into the unit. And I'll be sold.

  • smelly #98 8 months ago

    >Get it to supply 3D with Nvidia Vision on PC.

    Eh??!?!?

  • stormbringer_2011 #99 8 months ago

    I can't watch anything in 3D unfortunately. Still, it'll be fun smacking people round the back of the head when they're wearing one.

  • IvorB #100 8 months ago

    "Slipping the straps of the device around your head, you'll feel as though you're sat in your own personal cinem"

    "you're sitting" not "you're sat". For f**K's sake. Get an education.

    As much as this appeals to the techie in me I'm not sure I want to be that immersed in my personal world of entertainment. I have a pretty great home cinema/gaming rig and don't fancy being cut off from the outside world. And if my friends are bothering me I would ask them to leave. Seriously Sony, that's a freaking lame example.

  • man.the.king #101 8 months ago

    Slipping the straps of the device around your head, you'll feel as though you're sat in your own personal cinema - complete with a dazzling 3D display and dynamic, 5.1 virtual surround sound.

    Unless the device comes with a PS3 of its own, all you will see is blackness, all you will hear is silence :)

    I guess you will be able to put these on and say "Ah! Now I know how Helen Keller felt!"
    Edited by man.the.king at 23/09/11 @ 20:28

  • Lucodeath #102 8 months ago

    Ill have to sell my ps3 an games to buy that sucker.

  • Sid-Nice #103 8 months ago

    The 60,000 yen will translate to more like £550 if it is ever released in the UK and Europe. Connecting the 3D Visor via HDMI could be inconvenient and possibly dangerous; also the cost of a HDMI cable with a suitable length from the PS3 will be astronomical. This devise is more suited for the bedroom or study (where no-one will walk past and trip over the HDMI lead) not the living room or lounge.

    Anyone who is willing to pay 60,000 yen on a peripheral for a device that is in its twilight years; needs their head examined. Great idea, but is more suited to the PS4 with wireless connectivity.

  • trubadman #104 8 months ago

    Maybe I will invest in this rather than a 3d tv, It would be easier to move around with this rather than taking a tv from house to house. Will have to try it first though. If it works would be awesome for games obviously but also other things like blu-rays. Bit expensive though

  • alcides #105 8 months ago

    how about no.

  • Collymilad #106 8 months ago

    Seriously, I don't know if stuff like this is a good thing for humanity :p

  • Daikon #107 8 months ago

    They make it sound as if the headsets have motion tracking. But they don't, do they?

  • PuppyFiddler #108 8 months ago

    Judging by people's reactions to it at the expo on youtube it's a brilliant device. Shame it's only 720p and doesn't have motion sensing to look around in gvames but hopefully they'll work it in somehow. I'll be placing a preorder as soon as they set a European date for it, can't wait. Should be a big hit for Sony I can see people raiding their bank accounts for it.

  • Daikon #109 8 months ago

    "Use an HDMI cable to connect the Personal 3D Viewer to your PS3 system and you're ready to go.

    Or you could plug it into an iPhone with an HDMI adapter and actually watch movies on the go...

  • giddydrunk #110 8 months ago

    I'm actually really interested in this but how well will they fit over existing glasses. Is there a focus so i don't need to wear glasses?

  • spamjavelins #111 8 months ago

    I'd rather spend the money on a 3dtv, and not look as big a tool*

  • Rack #112 8 months ago

    If someone actually did put on a visor to play a single player game while his mates were roud I'm SURE they wouldn't take advantage of his blindness and deafness for a practical joke.

  • Mister_G #113 8 months ago

    I can see some people getting so immersed in games that in normal life they may do things by mistake, like hitting people, because they've done it so many times in "Tekken 3D" ;)

    Edit: It needs an HDMI cable? Power cable too? That might put some people off.
    Edited by Mister_G at 24/09/11 @ 12:52

  • drumbaby #114 8 months ago

    The high price is the only thing that isn't exciting about this product. Shame really.

  • vizzini #115 8 months ago

    It is amazing how many people commenting have not given any thought about the technical issues when saying this headset should be wireless.

    Fast wireless networking eg wireless 802.11N is ~250Mbps, and yet hdmi operates a it most basic specification ~5Gbps (a twenty times more) and the ps3 being hdmi 1.3b/1.4 operates at nearly 3x times that bandwidth for stereoscopic 3D & 7.1 Audio.

    So how on earth do people expect it to be wireless?

    Not to mention that wireless bandwidths of those levels would have some major (SAR) health and safety risks for radiation wirelessly; especially with the device being so near the brain.

    One aspect that doesn't appear to be mentioned in this article, that is mentioned in slanted cnet review; is that the headset attaches to a small receiver unit, which then connects to the Playstation 3, and a TV(or presumable an Amplifier receiver).

    So Switching PS3 -> headset, or PS3 -> TV/AMP is convenient. Particularly when someone wants to watch TV independent of someone else using the PS3 with the headset. It is a simple button press on a remote.

    The headset is also very low latency being measured at less than 1/100th of a second (delay), which even the most expensive TVs with game modes would struggle to match.

    But given the vast 14Gbps bandwidth delivered via the PS3's hdmi connector to the headset's (powered switching) unit, which talks directly to the elemental interconnect bus (EiB in the PS3), it is quite conceivable that Sony will include an extra Cell BE processor & Rambus memory in the switching unit.

    Last year Eurogamer did an article on a Sony patient for an add on box with SPUs/Ram, so it will be interesting if this is headset's switching box has actually done it.

    edit: typos
    Edited by vizzini at 24/09/11 @ 15:28

  • 32768Colours #116 8 months ago

    I like the idea of this kind of thing in principle, but as someone who wears glasses, my first thought would simply be this: will the headset allow me to adjust the screens' focus? If the answer is yes, then great, I can take my specs of and view the thing nicely. If the answer is no, this headset will be horribly uncomfortable and more likely completely useless to all but people with 20/20 vision.

  • Turfschipper #117 8 months ago

    Picture this: your friends will think you are an idiot.

  • Enaksan #118 8 months ago

    Gotta say, the appeal here is being able to continue playing when the misses gets home and wants to watch whatever rubbish TV is on. Though, my consoles, like most peoples I would think, are under my TV a good 8ft away. Gonna need a super extended HDMI cable!
    Will definitely be keeping an eye on this, though the price may be a tad too high.

  • todoso #119 7 months ago

    Just checked Sony's website for spec's and confirmed no gyros/head tracking. In this case it is still an order of magnitude from revolutionary. Personally, I think that the most immersive style of gaming possible will be from a kit like this...provided that when you turn your head the world turns with it. True 360 degree immersion!