What happened to 3D?

[Barry]

 What happened to 3D?
 
Last night I saw Doctor Strange in 3D and enjoyed it.
 
Why is it no longer in new TVs, especially 4k.  is there a technical reason this format has been abandoned?  It was so popular a decade ago.
 
I honestly was hoping 4K TVs would increase the sharpness of 3D put I see that only projectors now have it.  I am guessing that the answer is economic, but I don’t know.

[David Vaughn]

 What happened to 3D?
 
Last night I saw Doctor Strange in 3D and enjoyed it.
 
Why is it no longer in new TVs, especially 4k.  is there a technical reason this format has been abandoned?  It was so popular a decade ago.
 
I honestly was hoping 4K TVs would increase the sharpness of 3D put I see that only projectors now have it.  I am guessing that the answer is economic, but I don’t know.

Barry, it wasn't very popular. According to my contact at Disney, less than 5% of disc sales were for 3D versions versus the non-3D physical copy. Ask Bud Light how well catering to a small (but vocal) audience worked out for them  

[Barry]

Barry, it wasn't very popular. According to my contact at Disney, less than 5% of disc sales were for 3D versions versus the non-3D physical copy. Ask Bud Light how well catering to a small (but vocal) audience worked out for them

I] just miss it, I even saw the last Spider-man and Avitar in 3D in the theatre. It’s not for every movie, but some are fun.

[bmoney]

Always loved 3D. That is until 4k came along. 

[David Vaughn]

Always loved 3D. That is until 4k came along.

I'm trying to decide which version of Avatar to buy...I have the 4K on Kaleidescape (which I have on loan until the end of the year), but I'm really tempted to go for the 3D because I'm sure it will look fabulous. 

[Paul Heroy]

3D was great but just too much of a hassle for everyday, non-hardcore AV folks. You needed a big TV or projection to get the benefit. The glasses weren't completely standardized. Some displays were too dim with 3D. Glasses are annoying for some people to wear, especially those already wearing glasses. We are too busy for these inconveniences, dammit! 

So it never even made it to the 4K standard, which is sad that the option isn't there. Even for HD Blu-ray, as David's Disney contact alluded to, the US market was less enthusiastic then others. I picked up several of my 3D release from Amazon UK (or even 1-2 other European Amazon stores) b/c the 3D releases just weren't made available in the US for those titles.

As others, I've continued to see a few releases in 3D at the theater. But in my own, 4K has become the choice if there is one.

[tripplej]

In the end, it all comes down to money.

Per variety,

"Box office revenues for 3D films in the U.S. and Canada fell 18% in 2017 to $1.3 billion, according to a new report by the Motion Picture Association of America. That’s the worst showing in eight years, and a steep drop off from the $2.2 billion in revenues generated by 3D films in 2010, the year when “Avatar” generated a substantial amount of its box office grosses and helped kick off a revival of the format."

also, per thenationalnews,

By 2021’s Theme report, the global 3D box office made up only 6 per cent of the previous year’s receipts. Of course, 2020 wasn’t a regular year, but in 2019, the last year when cinemas were operating normally pre-Covid, the figure was already down to 15 per cent. In 2019, 3D receipts of $6.5 billion, meanwhile, were below 2010 levels, despite a trend through most of the last decade of more 3D versions of films being released, more 3D screens opening up, and overall box office receipts rising.

More here as well.  also, more details here why 3d tv died.

Now, what could be the next thing is VR.. Of course that would be a single person experience but potential is there to make it extra entertaining!

[AVSCraig]

I never had any interest in 3D. I wear contacts so I don't have to wear glasses - I'm not putting on clunky glasses in my theater. Also, folks would spill their wine wearing 3D glasses. Hard pass from me starting day one. May 3D rest in peace - finally. 

[bmoney]

I had so many 3D discs. Now none. I even sold my JVC transmitter  glasses. So def no going back lol

[Paul Heroy]

I had so many 3D discs. Now none. I even sold my JVC transmitter  glasses. So def no going back lol

Oh man, after buying my first JVC I bought a bunch of the Xpand ones right before 3D really declined.  I had hosted a few large groups (6 - 8 folks) for 3D movies and wanted to be able to do that, and never did.

I had several on hand that didn't work when I switched to JVC b/c I have a screen that retains polarity. And now the new JVC has flipped again so they don't even work! This is one of the issues that I alluded to, it's like a damn Star Trek episode. "Scotty, why isn't the blasted screen showing up again in 3D?!" "Cap'n, they reversed the polarity on the transmission, we have to use the old glasses!" :-X:-X

[DLCPhoto]

Oh man, after buying my first JVC I bought a bunch of the Xpand ones right before 3D really declined.  I had hosted a few large groups (6 - 8 folks) for 3D movies and wanted to be able to do that, and never did.

I had several on hand that didn't work when I switched to JVC b/c I have a screen that retains polarity. And now the new JVC has flipped again so they don't even work! This is one of the issues that I alluded to, it's like a damn Star Trek episode. "Scotty, why isn't the blasted screen showing up again in 3D?!" "Cap'n, they reversed the polarity on the transmission, we have to use the old glasses!" :-X:-X

3D can be frustrating, and while I don't watch a lot of it anymore, I do find it an enjoyable experience (even over my regular glasses).

On the screen polarization thing - your glasses "should" work with the new JVC's. Reversing the polarization would make your original glasses, assuming they had the 'conventional' polarization direction, a bit brighter. If they're not working, perhaps something else is going on.

[bmoney]

weird my glasses were RF based...never had that issue.  granted this was with my rs400 before i upgrade to the rs600

[Paul Heroy]

On the screen polarization thing - your glasses "should" work with the new JVC's. Reversing the polarization would make your original glasses, assuming they had the 'conventional' polarization direction, a bit brighter. If they're not working, perhaps something else is going on.

If I rotate them 90 degrees, yes they work. I have a SI Black Diamond screen. When I got my first JVC I had the same issue with the 3Active and Samsung glasses I had (with a Sony projector) - the screen went black unless you turned them vertical. Works ok if you're watching while lying on your side lol. I spent time (and then money) on the old forum figuring out that it was a screen specific type problem.

[Barry]

I see why 3D was not put into new 4K TVs.  Too many people found it hard to use or just didn;t lioke it. They did not have a markeet big enough to ddesign for 4K.  Except my current and last JVC prjectors, 3000 and 4100 have it.  I won;t buy any new ones, but I still have a few 3D discs from about 2010- 2019.

[JOE-C]

I used to really enjoy 3D and own probably 150 3D movies but ever since 4K came along I quit watching in 3D.
When I owned the RS500 it was a nice upgrade in light output from my previous RS4910 so 3D looked great and the ghosting was much improved.
I went from the 500 to the RS4500 and 3D had much more ghosting on it for some reason so I switched to 4K and didn’t look back.
Now I have the 4100 which has much better 3D but at this point it’s hard to find 3D movies and 4K looks amazing on it so I doubt I will continue to look for more 3D movies going forward.
I did purchase the new Avatar in 3D along with 4K but unfortunately not together.
Zavvi.com is a good source for 3D movies  from the UK for those looking to buy some.