thanks.... well i just got them today... here's a little review on them
they came this morning, exactly 7 (working) days after ordering, as promised... nice
thumbs up for that
it came in a nice package and everything survived the trip without a hitch, i opened it and found everything in perfect order
in the package i found the glasses themselves, a PC dongle, and the software CD, plus a quick reading on how to setup the thing. i ordered the wired version... the wireless ones come with an additional IR transmitter and batteries.... there were also alternative ear pieces included that you can swap in case you have a big head or something, the regular ones fit me well
the glasses are made of plastic and i found then to be well built, lightweight and comfortable to wear...
the way this thing works is very simple, yet very clever... the lenses are actually 2 LCDs (just like those in a calculator) they can go completely clear or completely black....
the "dongle" thing is an adaptor that connects to the VGA port and to the monitor and glasses.... the software splits the 3d graphics into 2 separate images,with slightly offset viewpoints, and alternates them really fast (120hz by default) the lenses are synchronized with the alternating images, so each eye will only see one of the viewpoints, thus creating a steroscopic image, which is what gives us depth percetion
hardware installation was extremely simple, and their controller software installed itself without any problems.... as soon as i tried it i noticed my frame rate dropped significantly... i searched their knowledge base and they had very useful information about how to fix this...
after updating the video card and the controller drivers, all was working well.... there is still a slight FPS hit, but nothing that would cause any concerns.....
the software sits in your system tray and has many options inside, plus hotkeys that allow you to fine-tune the 3d effect for near and far objects, and after some time fiddling with the controls, i managed to tune it to a natural looking and comfortable setting... the software automatically saves the settings for each game separately and loads it automatically every time you load a game, so you don't have to be always tinkering with the keys... it also has an override key (scroll lock), so that it doesn't interfere with the game controls....
i tried it with many games, some worked , some didn't... it seems older games such as Delta Force Land Warrior are not supported, but newer titles as Joint Operations and FS9 work perfectly... they say their latest drivers support more games, so it's always good to stay updated on that
i tried it with Gmax, unfortunately it didn't work
everytime you load a 3d application, you will hear a voice say "edimensional", letting you know the software recognized it... this doesn't mean the application is supported though... when you hit the enable 3d effect hotkey (F5) and the application IS supported, you will hear the voice say "ED activated" then the screen will split and the glasses will begin to work... on the wireless version you will have to turn them on by pressing a buton the the side... you can turn off the voices in the options menu
there are however, some bugs in the software, for example, sometimes if you quit the game without deactivating the 3d effect first, it may not restore it's default settings, and may cause some wierd distortions and flickers on the desktop, and the only way to fix it is to go back into the game you were playing, and switch it off properly, or by doing a hard boot on the PC (cutting off the power, then on again)... a soft boot wont do the trick since the hardware will still be turned on and the dongle can't be bypassed by simply closing the controller software..... so i advise you to ALWAYS, i mean ALWAYS turn off the 3d device before closing the game....
there's also a decrease in brightness because of the way this thing works, but there is a built in gamma correction slider in the options menu, plus you can always increase the brightness on your monitor
the 3d effect itself is amazing
, the scenery seems to strech out into infinity, and near objects
literally virtually jump out of the screen and many times i found myself waving my hand in front of the monitor in a pointless attempt to touch them... ;D
actually i had so much fun with the thing i spent my entire day playing with it, and didn't even realize i was in front of the computer for 5 hours without a break, i even forgot to eat lunch
all and all, it works really well after you figure out the controls and how to avoid the bugs, it will work even better on a huge projected screen like the one mentioned above
in my opinion, i liked it a lot, and recommend it, the score: 8,5 out of 10
now if you'll excuse me, i've got some gaming to do... IN 3D!!!!!!! ;D
Moach
Posted: Wed Oct 12, 2005 11:32 pm