Items tagged with 3D
Most everyone knows the original, incredibly angular Lara Croft of the incredibly popular Tomb Raider series. Since its release nearly 25 years ago, human 3D models and animations have improved vastly. We may be on the cusp of the next step up in human 3D models and animation once more, though, as Epic Games has unveiled a project called MetaHumans using its Unreal Engine. Earlier today, we saw a wild sneak peek into what MetaHumans are on the Unreal Engine website and YouTube channel. The store page for the project samples claims that it can create “high-fidelity digital humans generated by the MetaHuman Creator for use in Unreal Engine.” You can watch the video below to see...
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We could all use more cute animals in our lives, especially during a year like 2020. Google has just released fifty new AR animals that are discoverable through Google search. The new animals range from house pets like cocker spaniels to more exotic creatures like zebras. The AR animals can be viewed on a device with Android 7 and up installed or an iPhone 6s or later device with iOS 11 and up. Unfortunately, this feature is not available on PC or Google devices like Nest Hub. Android users will need to go to google.com or open their Google app, while iPhone users should open Safari, Chrome, or the Google app. Users should then search for an animal and tap “View in 3D” if a 3D model...
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Remember when glass-free 3D felt like the endgame scenario for consumer displays and electronics? Efforts were made to go in that direction, like the legendary Nintendo 3DS, but it never quite took hold. It did not completely die, either. Proof that it did not resides in Sony's new Spatial Reality Display aimed at creators and 3D designers. Sony calls the Spatial Reality Display a "groundbreaking new product," and it was initially shown off at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) earlier this year. Using the company's Eye-Sensing Light Field Display (EFLD) technology, it is able to present a glass-free, high-resolution 3D modeling and visualization experience. "We're excited to bring the world's...
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SnapChat has once again redesigned its Spectacles, both in form and function. The newly announced Spectacles 3 feature a sleeker and more stylish look than either of the two previous generation models, also up the ante with dual high definition cameras to "capture depth and dimension the way our eyes do," in three dimensions. "Spectacles 3 are equipped with two HD cameras to capture Snaps in 3D and transform them with 3D Effects, inspiring creativity like never before," SnapChat says. There are two versions of the new Spectacles. The Carbon version features a monochromatic black with a semi-matte finish and glossy details, while the Mineral model (shown in the image at the top of this article)...
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Intel held an Architecture Day in Los Altos yesterday, where it disclosed a number of details regarding next-generation CPU and GPU architectures and manufacturing process technologies. In addition to the technical disclosures divulged to an exclusive group of attendees, Intel also talked about a shift in the company’s design and engineering model based on six strategic pillars -- Process, Architecture, Memory, Interconnect, Security, and Software – which it hopes will allow it to better address the needs of the current computing landscape moving forward. In addition to the architecture and roadmap news, Intel also talked about a new, very interesting 3D packaging technology it is...
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Intel has announced that it has begun shipping a pair of new RealSense D400 Depth Cameras. The new cameras are from the next-gen Intel RealSense D400 family and include the D415 and the D435. Intel claims that the cameras have 3D capabilities that make them ideal for OEM prototype development or as an end-user-ready device. The cameras are also aimed directly at makers and educators for hardware prototyping and software development. The new 3D cameras are both designed to need minimal connection to a computer making them easier to use, all that is needed is a USB cable for connectivity and power. Intel wrote, "The new depth cameras come in a ready-to-use, USB-powered form factor that pair...
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Amazon has announced a new service that is meant to enable developers to build VR, AR, and 3D applications for what it calls "popular hardware" platforms. The preview for the new service, called Amazon Sumerian, starts today. Sumerian allows developers to build realistic virtual environments and then populate them with 3D objects and animated characters. Amazon writes, "With Amazon Sumerian’s editor, developers can build realistic virtual environments, populate them with 3D objects and animated characters, and script how they interact with each other and the application’s users. VR and AR apps created in Amazon Sumerian will run in any browser that supports WebGL or WebVR graphics...
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We are on the precipice of some exciting things thanks to the introduction of virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality into the mainstream. Much of the attention early on has been focused on gaming, with the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive stealing the limelight, along with breakout hits such as Pokemon Go. But gaming is not the only segment that stands to benefit. There is a big opportunity in education, one that Microsoft hopes to pioneer. To that end, Microsoft announced a new strategic partnership with Pearson, one of the biggest education companies in the world that also happens to be working to integrate 3D and mixed reality into high school and college curriculum. Pearson is making...
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Samsung, Microsoft, and Sony have all jumped on the VR bandwagon. So where is Nintendo? Nintendo of America CEO Reggie Fils-Aime is a little reluctant to jump into the VR market. He stated that the company will not adopt VR until it can be readily available for the mass market. Fils-Aime thinks that the VR technology is too expensive and the audience for the device is too limited at this point in time. He would also like to see VR mass market applications and applications that consumers can invest a lot of time in. At the moment, most VR experiences are “short snacks of time”. Essentially, Nintendo will not jump into the VR fray until it is obvious that consumers are demanding more VR options....
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The early focus on emerging virtual reality, augmented reality, and mixed reality technologies is on gaming, but there are many other potential applications for this stuff. One of them is simple remote communication, which Microsoft demonstrated through holoportation, a neat new technology that allows people in remote locations to interact with one another as if they're in the same room. It's video conferencing on steroids. "Holoportation is a new type of 3D capture technology that allows high-quality 3D models of people to be reconstructed, compressed and transmitted anywhere in the world in real time. When combined with mixed reality displays such as HoloLens, this technology allows users to...
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There are few platforms in the emulation realm that are as well taken care of as the original Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). Over the years, there have been a countless number of NES emulators that have come out, with some targeting different platforms or different goals -- some aim for accuracy, while some treat performance as the most important feature. Some simply try to go above and beyond by offering people a better-looking or easier-to-use UI. All of that is good, but none of the releases seem to do anything really interesting - until now, that is. Enter 3DNES. With this coming out at around the same time that VR is hitting the market in a big way, we couldn't fault you if you...
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Intel is very much an active participant in the immersive 3D category with its RealSense technology, though it has bigger and more ambitious plans. To put those plans in motion, Intel today announced that it's acquiring Replay Technologies, an Israeli startup that specializes in sports replay technologies that allows viewers to re-watch highlights in 360 degrees. If you watched the NBA All-Star Weekend festivities last month, then you would have caught a glimpse of the company's proprietary "free dimensional" or "freeD" video technology. It was mostly utilized during the slam dunk contest. During replays of spectacular throw downs, TNT would pause the action to seemingly rotate the feed, giving...
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Google's making a push for 360-degree videos on its YouTube service with GoPro as a key partner. You might recall that GoPro was present at Google I/O where it unveiled a contraption of GoPro Hero cameras arranged in a circle. That contraption is now called Odyssey and it's being made available in limited quantity. Odyssey is an array of 16 Hero4 black cameras, each fully loaded with custom firmware. It offers features such as genlock camera synchronization and multi-camera control, and has "extended battery life," GoPro says. It's designed to work with Google's 3D, 360-degree virtual reality program called Jump. "Virtual reality is a promising new innovation with incredible potential for commercial...
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Virtual reality has captured the hearts and minds of consumers and developers alike with systems like Oculus Rift and Samsung's Gear VR, but what if you want to capture your own VR content? Nokia has you covered. The company announced a funky looking camera with an equally funky name -- OZO. While it looks like one of the orbs that shot energy bolts at a blindfolded Luke Skywalker during his Jedi training, it's actually a purpose-built camera designed for professional content creators. OZO came out of the minds of Nokia's R&D facilities in Tampere, Finland. It's a work in progress, though it's close to being finished -- Nokia says it will conduct final testing and refinements to OZO in partnership...
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At Google's I/O conference, held late this week, Qualcomm announced that the next-generation Project Tango platform is going to sport its Snapdragon 810 processor, which packs in the very capable Adreno 430 GPU. As we've covered before, Project Tango is Google's upcoming smartphone and tablet platform that revolves around using the device for 3D purposes. With it, you could capture and turn the environment around you into a 3D model, something that multiple cameras and infrared sensors would help with. With its Snapdragon 810 processor, Qualcomm says that it will allow Project Tango to deliver great real-world 3D gaming experiences, indoor navigation (this one in particular seems hugely interesting),...
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Intel gathered a number of software developer and hardware manufacturing partners together this week in New York to showcase the latest technologies and innovations that Intel's RealSense 3D camera technology can enable. From new interactive gaming experiences to collaboration, 3D mapping and gesture control, the technology holds promise that could someday reinvent how we interact with PCs. The camera technology itself integrates a depth sensor and a full color 1080p HD camera together with standard technologies like dual array mics, but with an SDK, processing engine and 3rd party software that can allow the camera module to sense environmental variables, more like humans do. The Intel RealSense...
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HP announced two new updates to its ZBook Mobile Workstation line at CES today. The PC maker’s new ZBook 14 G2 and ZBook 15u G2 are both workstation ultrabooks that support 3D graphics and undergo HP’s heavy testing process for enterprise devices. The HP ZBook 14 G2 runs on Core i5 or i7 processors with 16GB of memory, as well as AMD FirePro 3D graphics. Storage space is even more important for workstations than consumer systems, so the ZBook includes 1.25TB, through a combination of hard drives and SSDs. Business laptops have been getting classier in recent years, and the ZBook 14 G2 sticks to the trend with a reasonably-stylish chassis and a slim design (for a mobile workstation, that is)....
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There hasn't been a whole lot going on in the 3D display camp as of late, and that's probably because the industry found itself distracted by two other emerging technologies -- virtual reality headsets like the Oculus Rift, and 4K Ultra HD displays. Toshiba didn't get those memos, however, and is still hard at work on a glasses-free 3D viewing technology that it plans to incorporate into a 15-inch 4K LCD panel. As Toshiba explains it, this is a new technology that uses a low-crosstalk, high-definition LCD GRIN lens, or "gradient-index lens." In a GRIN lens, the refractive-index distribution is formed by applying a voltage to the liquid crystal cell. The display in question can switch between...
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Your PlayStation 4 console supports 3D Blu-ray playback, though before that functionality becomes available, you need to install the latest firmware update, version 1.75. Sony has begun rolling out the update to PS4 users, giving them bragging rights over Xbox One owners, at least for the time being (Microsoft will roll out 3D Blu-ray support to the Xbox One in August). There are a few other goodies included in the update, though mostly minor from here on out. They include improved sound quality during 1.5x playback with Blu-ray and DVD videos, the relocation of system messages to the top-left corner (previously display on the top-right corner), and Featured Content added to the Settings >...
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Here's some great news for creative types who are into 3D rendering -- Pixar is getting ready to offer up a completely free version of its RenderMan 3D software for non-commercial use. This will be a fully functional release with no watermarking, time restrictions, or gimped features. Pixar intends for the software to be used by students, institutions, researchers, developers, and all-around personal use. In addition, Pixar slashed the price of its RenderMan software for commercial use to $495 per license. Pixar developed its RenderMan 3D software more than 25 years ago and then used it for movies such as Toy Story and Monsters Inc, among several others. In addition to using RenderMan for its...
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Perhaps it was inevitable, but Google’s Project Tango team has expanded its device experimentation beyond smartphones into tablets. The tablet will, like the Project Tango smartphone, provide real-time 3D mapping overlays of real environments using cameras and sensors. According to the Wall Street Journal’s sources, Google is planning to pump out some 4,000 tablets from its ATAP division to seed to developers. As we said when covering the Project Tango smartphone, the key to this technology is very much whatever devs can dream up. Project Tango smartphone The WSJ stated that the Project Tango tablet will be a 7-inch device with two rear cameras and infrared depth sensors that will...
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The latest off-the-wall endeavor from Google is called “Project Tango”, and it’s a smartphone equipped with technology that can 3D map any environment you find yourself in--in real time. A product of Google’s ATAP (Advanced Technology And Projects) group, Project Tango takes a quarter million measurements every second to create a living, breathing 3D model of wherever you are. If you’re not immediately visualizing killer uses for this technology, you’re not alone--but that’s because the technology itself will require the creativity of software developers to come up with compelling uses for it. The ATAP team offers a few ideas, such as gaming overlays...
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