PHONES AND other mobile products will be able to display images in 3D as early as the first half of next year following the launch of a new computer chip by Irish firm Movidius.
The Myriad 3D, which does not require the use of special glasses to view 3D video, was launched at an event in Japan yesterday.
Movidius says the Myriad 3D platform, which is a combination of silicon and software, can also capture images to display in 3D as well as convert standard 2D content for 3D viewing.
Devices running the chip will have two cameras with the software able to compensate for their positioning so they can be played back at the correct off-set to create a 3D effect.
The company already has “customers committed” who are designing the platform into products that will be available in the first half of 2011, according to chief executive Sean Mitchell.
The technology will probably appear in consumer devices, such as personal video players, he says, as the design of mobile phones takes longer.
The Myriad 3D is based on the auto-stereoscopic 3D methodology, which does not require glasses but displays in 3D when the display is held directly in front of the user at a relatively close range. A slightly different image is displayed to the left and right eye.
Mitchell says Myriad 3D uses a multi-core architecture which is extremely power efficient as different parts of the chip can be switched off when not in use.
In a technology demonstration for The Irish Times, using a pre-production unit, Movidius executives recorded video footage and played it back straight away in 3D. They were also able to demonstrate 2D video being displayed in 3D and toggling between both modes.
Acknowledging the slow take- up of 3D televisions – largely due to the cost of buying a new set and the need to wear expensive glasses – Mitchell says 3D on personal devices does not face the same hurdles.
“Mobile uptake will be much faster because the replacement cycle for phones is much faster,” Mitchell adds. “The TV manufactururers are actually keen to drive 3D mobile to encourage the eco-system and take-up of TVs.”
Movidius says its system will be capable of showing 3D TV content but it will be adapted in real time to make it display appropriately on the smaller screen.
The Myriad 3D will become the name for a family of 3D chips with the first to market the MA1133.
Movidius previously released the MA1100, which enabled real-time video editing on smartphones, and the MA1101, a version of the same product for phones running Google’s Android operating system.
Despite the imminent launch of Sky’s 3D channel in Ireland, the consumer electronics industry is now focusing on mobile possibilities for 3D.
Sharp showed off a 3D mobile phone at the IFA consumer electronics show in Berlin last month, while earlier this week Nintendo confirmed it would launch a 3D- capable version of its DS handheld game console in Japan and the US early next year.
Movidius employs about 60 staff with offices in Ireland, Romania and Hong Kong. It has been backed by venture capital with Celtic House Venture Partners, Capital E, Emertec Gestion, AIB Seed Capital Fund and unnamed angel investors, all contributing to a €6 million second round of funding.
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