Using three projection panels instead of one, 3LCD delivers brilliant pictures with natural image quality, razor-sharp detail and rich olour that is free of olour breakup.
"3LCD is clearly the dominant microdisplay technology worldwide when you look at the total number of customers who have purchased front and rear projection products so far," according to Dr. William Coggshall, Pacific Media Associates.
"Based on our calculations, over nine million projection products using 3LCD technology have been purchased to date, surpassing any other microdisplay technology on the market, and that figure continues to grow at a rapid pace."
As this technology continues to advance and the overall number of 3LCD product offerings continues to expand over the next several years, the 3LCD Group's mission will be to educate consumers and professionals about its benefits through promotional activities, product demonstrations and industry news updates.
Furthermore, it will communicate the features of 3LCD technology that make it unique to other display systems on the market.
"The explosive popularity of high resolution digital video formats such as DVD and HDTV, along with a steady increase in projection-based business applications, have contributed to a massive surge in demand for front projectors and large-screen televisions," said Kazuhiro Kaizaki, president, Hitachi Home Electronics.
"And, as the number of products has increased dramatically, so has a new level of confusion among shoppers and AV professionals who are trying to sort through an overwhelming selection of display technologies. We're very excited to be working with these major manufacturers who share our vision in a unified program that will help the industry better understand the benefits of 3LCD technology and why it serves as the foundation for so many reliable, next-generation, high definition products."
The core benefits of 3LCD products include:
- "No Colour Breakup" - since this technology simultaneously projects three full-time red, green and blue images, there is no colour breakup or "rainbow effect" to potentially cause viewers eyestrain or visual fatigue. Full-time colour along with 12-bit processing also makes some 3LCD products capable of producing up to 68.7 billion colours.
- "Superior Greyscale" - 3LCD products provide a broad range of neutral grey tones. In fact, one of the latest 3LCD-based front projectors on the market produces up to 10 quintillion steps of greyscale gradation.
- "Excellent Contrast" - 3LCD products feature very competitive contrast ratio levels, with dozens of models routinely reaching 1000:1 or more. Most recently, 3LCD technology has been able to achieve up to 6000:1.
- "Brilliant Images" - Many 3LCD business products currently on the market are capable of achieving brightness ratings as high as 5,000 ANSI lumens and above.
Following is a list of statements about the 3LCD Group/technology from some of the participating manufacturers:
"Every major microdisplay technology realises picture quality improvements by employing a three-imager design, said Jim Hall, director, Business Projector Marketing and Product Management, Epson America. "Some technologies reserve this design for only their highest end products, but 3LCD-based display manufacturers ingeniously pack this powerful imaging maxim into every tiny 3LCD projection engine they build."
"As the U.S. market leader in microdisplay televisions, Sony has always been committed to providing consumers with video products that exceed their expectations," said Mike Fidler, senior vice president in Sony Electronics' Home Products Division. "3LCD technology fulfils this role by offering an ideal balance between superior performance, overall reliability and manufacturing efficiency."
"Fujitsu General is very pleased to be a part of the 3LCD Group to educate dealers and end users about the benefits of 3LCD technology," said Tedd Rozylowicz, president and chief operating officer, Fujitsu General America Inc. "Fujitsu General is committed to high-performance home entertainment display technology and our flagship model LPF-D711 which uses full HD (1,920 x 1,080) 3LCD technology will be another great option for our customers who expect the best. We can now leverage our expertise into full HD front projection technology and even larger screen sizes with our new LPF-D711, which also incorporates our new AVM-II digital video processor used in our industry-leading Plasmavision? plasma displays."
Commenting on his company's commitment to 3LCD technology, Dr. Katsumi Terada, senior engineering manager, Projector Business Unit, Sanyo Electric Co., Ltd., said, "From the start of our liquid crystal projector business, we used a 3-panel LCD system, and were soon able to gain the trust of our customers and grow our business. Going forward, we intend to answer the needs of our users by leveraging the benefits of 3LCD to develop a full lineup of projection products, from small to large. We firmly believe it is the best projector technology available on the market today."
