Sony says it will start selling a head mounted display that provides a 3-D theater of music videos, movies and games, targeting people who prefer solitary entertainment rather than sitting in front of a TV with family or friends.
Sony Corp. said Wednesday that the 60,000 yen ($800) “HMZ personal 3-D viewer” is set to go on sale Nov. 11 in Japan, and is planned for the U.S. and Europe, perhaps in time for Christmas, although dates have not yet been set.
Resembling a futuristic visor, HMZ, which stands for “head mounted display,” is worn like chunky goggles-and-earphones in one.
The footage before the viewer — a music video of a Japanese singer in the demonstration for reporters in Tokyo — is crystal-clear and feels like peering into a dolls house in which a real-life tiny singer is moving.
It seems unlikely that most people — or even technology enthusiasts — will want to buy a product that involves sitting alone and wearing a little helmet. The HMZ might not be Sony’s long awaited answer to Apple’s iPod or iPad but just another quirky device packed with cutting-edge technology that is headed for a limited niche following.
A 3-D wearable gaming machine Virtual Boy from Nintendo Co., which went on sale in the 1990s, bombed, partly because of the bulky headgear required as well as the image being all red.
Sony’s latest product is far more sophisticated. Sony officials said the gadget delivers the immersive experience of a home-theater, or the equivalent of sitting in one of the best seats of a movie theater.
The machine, which hooks up to Blu-ray disc players and game machines, is targeting people who want to enjoy movies or games alone.
It is not recommended for people 15 years old and younger because some experts believe overly stimulating imagery is not good for teenagers whose brains are still developing, according to Shigeru Kato, a Sony VP.
On the plus side, consumers are growing more accustomed to 3-D these days, with the arrival of 3-D TVs and game machines. Kato noted the most popular movies last year, including “Avatar” and “Toy Story 3,” were 3-D.
HMZ uses Sony’s own OLED screen, a relatively new kind of display that relays superb image quality and color, compared to the more prevalent liquid crystal and plasma displays used in laptops and flat-panel TVs.
Kato said the major challenge had been making a very small display without compromising image quality.
Apple and Google Face UK Investigation Into Mobile Browser Dominance
Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers, a British watchdog said Friday in a report that recommends they face an investigation under new U.K. digital rules taking effect next year.
The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker's tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. Apple does this by restricting progressive web apps, which don't need to be downloaded from an app store and aren't subject to app store commissions, the report said.
"This technology is not able to fully take off on iOS devices," the watchdog said in a provisional report on its investigation into mobile browsers that it opened after an initial study concluded that Apple and Google effectively have a chokehold on "mobile ecosystems."
The CMA's report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers "the clearest or easiest option."
And it said that the a revenue-sharing deal between the two U.S. Big Tech companies "significantly reduces their financial incentives" to compete in mobile browsers on Apple's iOS operating system for iPhones.
Both companies said they will "engage constructively" with the CMA.
Apple said it disagreed with the findings and said it was concerned that the recommendations would undermine user privacy and security.
Google said the openness of its Android mobile operating system "has helped to expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps" and that it's "committed to open platforms that empower consumers."
It's the latest move by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to crack down on the... Read More