Our constantly updated list of the best 3D TVs in the world
Slip on a pair of £100 3D glasses, nestle in front of a brand new £2,000 TV and switch on a £350 3D Blu-ray player and you’re unlikely warm to the notion that 3D is merely an illusion.
It’s created by your brain processing two separate images coming to it via your eyes, and while this stereoscopic approach can be done relatively cheaply, the big manufacturers have plumped for a rather expensive format that relies on rather clumsy, heavy glasses.
It’s called Full HD 3D, and, to be fair, it’s the best quality form of 3D currently available.
We’ve seen the demos; Full HD 3D might sound like a very expensive hobby for now, but if it’s movies you’re into then it’s your best hope if you’re at all interested in the third dimension.
Before your scowl at the prospect of your 50-inch plasma being deemed ‘obsolete’, bemoan the lack of 3D content, and balk at the high cost of a new breed of 3DTVs, consider this; our list may concentrate on 3D, but the TVs we’ve gathered here have plenty of other dimensions.
The 3D glasses are optional … and with TV prices being slashed by 25% every year, 3D TVs should be within reach of us all inside the next three years or so.
Samsung C9000 series 3D TVs
Having just released its BD-C6900 3D Blu-ray player for a cool £350, Samsung is about to unleash its huge 3D-ready range of TVs.
The flagship is the C9000 line-up of LED TVs, the 46-inch UE-46C9000 and 55-inch UE-55C9000. Prices are yet to be confirmed, but expect to part with the best part of £2,000 to get your hands on these fully featured screens.
Both are Full HD and come with Freeview HD tuners and 200Hz panels (that’s key – a fast blur-free panel is crucial for 3D to work).
The C9000s use an Edge LED backlight system – that may not be quite as impressive as Full LED tech in terms of achieving deep blacks, but it does ensure the frame has a depth of just 8mm.
It’s not all about the look, either; both models include four HDMI, two USB 2.0 slots (one of which can be used to hook-up a hard drive to add SD and HD recording functions), wireless DLNA networking and Internet@TV (which includes apps for BBC iPlayer, YouTube and Lovefilm).
The C9000s seem a high-end proposition even without 3D (and the largely novelty 2D-to-3D conversion); an iPhone-esque touchscreen remote control lets you watch Freeview channels on a LCD screen while something else is displayed on your TV.
Panasonic VT20 Series 3D TVs
Panasonic isn’t messing around with entry-level and mid-range 3D sets; instead it’s going for the high-end with its two-strong Full HD 3D VT20 plasmas.
A proponent of plasma tech for yonks, the latest Vieras have the same engineering team behind them that produced Pioneer’s now defunct Kuro screens a few years ago.
These 50-inch (TX-P50VT20, £2,000) and 65-inch (TX-P65VT20, £TBC) models feature a 600Hz Sub-field Drive (not that plasma struggles with motion, as LCD/LED screens can – something that may make these screens ones to watch for 3D) alongside Intelligent Frame Creation Pro, Infinite Black Pro (look out for Pioneer’s Kuro legacy here), Viera Cast and a suave metallic design.
Uniquely, the THX Certified VT20 Series include both Freeview HD and Freesat HD tuners, DivX HD from USB sticks, Wireless LAN (via a USB adaptor), and PVR functionality if you attach a hard drive. You’ll also receive two pairs of 3D goggles with each set.
Philips 8000 LED series 3D TVs
Philips’ 8000 Series is 3D-ready in the most basic sense; the Dutch brand will make a 3D upgrade pack available separately – at extra expense.
The pack will include two pairs of Active 3D glasses and a wireless transmitter to allow them to talk to the TV, though extra glasses will also be available.
As such, you might expect the 37-inch, 40-inch, 46-inch and 52-inch models in Philips’ 8000 Series – all of which sport Full LED panels – to be relatively affordable, but that’s rarely the case with Philips.
And for good reason; loaded with Ambilight, above average audio and inky black images, it’s produced some of the finest LED screens in recent years. Will its success translate to 3D? Find out in June when the 8000 Series is scheduled to go on sale.
LG 47-inch LD920 3D TV
LG has been a touch passive aggressive with its 47-inch LD920 screen, but in a good way; this, the only passive 3D screen (read: lighter, more comfortable glasses with no batteries) has been largely designed solely for pubs taking a feed of Sky’s upcoming 3D channel.
Specifically, it’s for watching Premier League matches in a few pubs across the UK and Ireland. Intended for commercial use only, this passive 3D screen can’t display pictures from a 3D Blu-ray player, though its does have a Full HD resolution.
In terms of 3D, it can host only Sky’s 3D service, which may be 3D, but won’t be broadcast in high definition. If you’re one of the 2.1 million Sky+HD homes waiting for the start of Sky’s 3D channel later this year, you’d be much better off settling for an active – and much more versatile – 3D set, though this is the telly you’re likely to get your first glimpse of 3D on.
Samsung C7000 Series 3D TVs
Just launched, we’ve already reviewed the 40-inch from this Series, a 27mm-deep LED screen that lacks the special remote of its C8000 and C9000 siblings, and should be considered a ‘budget’ 3D screen – though at £1,800 for a 40-inch TV, that’s a purely relative term.
Also available in 46-inch (UE46C7000, £2,000) and 55-inch (UE55C7000, £2,800) sizes, the C7000 Series has the same features as the pricier series’ (Full HD, 200Hz, wireless DLNA and Internet@TV), but is stylistically different.
In an attempt to make up for its 27mm ‘bulge’, the C7000 Series sports a ‘Mystic Earth’ textured – and coloured – styling. Identically specified plasma versions that sport an oxymoronic ‘brushed black touch of colour’ will follow in a few months.
Read: Samsung 40C7000 3D TV review
Sony LX900 Signature Series 3D TVs
Sold under the Bravia banner, this three-strong rage counts a 40-inch (KDL-40LX903 £TBC), 52-inch (KDL-52LX903, £TBC) and 60-inch (KDL-60LX903 £TBC) within its ranks.
Representing Sony’s stab at 3D glory, all three are bestowed with the ‘Signature’ moniker and are laden accordingly; don’t expect even the 40-inch to come in at less than £1300.
Inside a ‘monolithic’ design that appears to be based on Bang & Olufsen’s TVs, these Signature sets are built around Edge LED panels and include a Freeview HD tuner, WiFi, Bravia Internet Video (BBC iPlayer and YouTube), DLNA and, crucially for 3D, Motionflow 200Hz PRO and Image Blur Reduction.
Philips 9000 Series & Cinema 21:9 3D TVs
It may have swerved Freeview HD in its latest batch of high-end Ambilight LED TVs, but there was no way Philips could ignore the 3D era.
Not due to hit shops until August, Philips’ 9000 Series comprises 32-inch, 40-inch and 46-inch models that will ostensibly be high-end Ambilight LED TVs with 3D capability thrown in via an upgrade pack.
Details are scant, but Philips has also confirmed that in ‘late summer’ it will also launch the second generation of its 56-inch 56PFL9945H Cinema 21:9 LCD TV, which will be Full HD 3D Ready.
The existing £4,000 version features a 2.39:1 aspect ratio 2560 x 1080 pixel resolution LED screen that apes the dimensions of projection screens found in cinemas. Expect it to be shown at September’s IFA consumer electronics fair in Berlin.
LG LX9900 Series 3D TVs
Get back from a night at the pub watching footie in 3D on its ‘passive’ LD920 screen and you’re going to need the LX9900 – a Full LED 3D Ready TV that comes in two sizes.
Part of LG’s step-up Infinia sub-brand, the LX9900 boasts a 3.16cm depth and a single layer design – the glass across the panel stretches over the frame, something we’ve seen before on LG tellies.
The 47-inch (47LX9900, £TBC) and 55-inch (55LX9900, £TBC) both host Full Led backlighting and TruMotion 400Hz scanning, and these special-sounding sets push the envelope further by building-in Freeview HD, Bluetooth, DLNA, Netcast (YouTube, Accu Weather, Picasa), USB 2.0 (DivX HD).
Unfortunately, the 3D glasses are sold separately.
Samsung C8000 Series 3D TVs
The mid-range of 3D-ready screens from Samsung, its C8000 Series is exclusively LED-based for now.
Plasma variants are likely to appear later in the year, which perfectly demonstrates Samsung’s attitude to the competing screen technologies; it loves plasma, but LED TVs sell better. Much better – and with a metallic silver look and four-pronged silver spider (or ‘quad’) stand, it’s no surprise.
There is a 32-inch version (the UE-32C8000), but that’s not 3D-ready; third dimension seekers should search out the 40-inch (UE-40C8000, £2,000), 46-inch (UE-46C8000, £2,200), 55-inch (UE-55C8000, £3,000) or 65-inch UE-65C8000 (£5,000).
All feature 200Hz, Wireless DLNA, Internet@TV, four HDMI and USB, though there’s no 2D-to-3D converter on board.
The brushed titanium plasma variants will add a square stand, a Real Black Filter, a Motion Judder Canceller and a Cinema Smooth option.
Sony HX900 Cinematic Series 3D TVs
It may lack the silky design and flagship name that its sisters in the ‘Signature Series’ claim, but Sony’s three-strong Cinematic screens are where videophiles ought to head.
For as well as 3D compatibility, these panels are Full LED, which means local dimming – which, in turn, means the best picture quality around (unless you’re in the camp that still thinks, with some justification, that blur-free plasma still rules and could be re-born with 3D).
A 40-inch (KDL-40HX903, £TBC), 46-inch (KDL-46HX903 £2,200) and 52-inch (KDL-52HX903 £2,500) are available under the Cinematic banner, with Freeview HD, Wi-Fi, Bravia Internet Video, Motionflow 200Hz PRO and Image Blur Reduction all present.
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