Philips recently unveiled “the world’s first cinema proportioned 3D TV” at the IFA consumer electronics show in Germany. The line will be called Cinema 21:9 Platinum Series TV.
It’s comprised of a 58-inch screen shaped into a super wide 21:9 aspect ratio, which is the same used in most movie theaters. Aside from the big screen, there’s also a built-in “Net TV” feature for watching web video.
It’ll probably be a challenge to make even high-quality web video look good on a screen this wide, but another issue is how standard-definition TV content will fill the screen. According to the product’s web page:
“For 4:3 content we also use highly advanced auto-formatting technology to progressively stretch the 4:3 image out to a 16:9 image. We have chosen not to stretch 4:3 content out to 21:9 as this would result in visible distortion. As a result, for 4:3 content you will see small black bars on the left and right of the screen.”
As for actual 16:9 content, Philips uses “highly advanced auto-formatting technology to stretch the 16:9 content progressively out to fill the 21:9 screen.” So it looks like this set is best suited for 3D movie buffs and those that get most or all of their TV in true 16:9 format.
Oh, and it’s for people with a lot of money, too, as the set will initially be sold in Europe and Brazil this month for just under €4000 ($5129). Additional countries “will follow later this year,” though no pricing’s been announced.
More on Techland: 3D Blu-ray Playback on PS3 Delayed
