MAIN DISADVANTAGES OF 3D TV

 

Valid disadvantages of current 3D technologies are:

1) Watching 3D content will always result in loss of brightness in some form or another regardless of what 3D technology you are using (e.g. polarized, shutterglass, etc.)

2) The glasses are uncomfortable for people who don't normally wear glasses, because those people are not used to wearing glasses and the novelty of it becomes a point of focus and annoyance

3) The glasses are uncomfortable for people who do normally wear glasses, because the 3D glasses must be worn over those existing glasses (unless 3D clip-on lenses are used)

4) Shutterglass 3D technology requires on-going maintenance (e.g. replacing or charging batteries). Passive 3D technology does not require much maintenance, but it is also rare to find on the consumer market (despite being the most popular choice for commercial theaters in North America).

5) The cost of adding or replacing shutterglasses for consumer 3D TV is expensive (e.g. $150 per pair)

6) For standard Cable TV broadcasts, it is not possible to achieve 1080i High Definition for 3D content using the existing cable TV standards. Instead, 3D content is broadcast in a lower resolution format (still looks good though).

7) 3D content can in some cases cause varying degrees of eye-strain to some viewers, especially after watching for long periods of time.

Part of the technical reason for this is that the 3D imagery tricks your brain into thinking something is in front of the screen when in fact it is not.

When your brain tries to focus on the physical space in front of the screen, there is a conflict because there is nothing physically there for your eyes to focus on, and this conflict can cause some discomfort and eye strain. It's similar to how crossing your eyes for an extended period of time can cause discomfort.

Nowadays, film directors and 3D content producers are more careful and limit the number of pop-out effects (which are often seen as gimmicky anyway). A lot of the 3D effect is pushed into the background behind the scene, and this typically causes less eye-strain for the viewer.