Aiptek, based in Irvine, CA, is now offering a consumer-grade camcorder, the i2 3D-HD, which captures both 2-D and 3-D images at 720p HD resolution. It features a pair of 5-megapixel HD sensors and side-by-side technology to capture two different viewing positions. The camcorder merges each half size of the left and right image to equal one final image. The company said it also could be used to capture 3-D stills.
The company said its 3-D-HD camcorder uses “parallax barrier” technology on its LCD preview screen so users can see a live 3-D view during recording. A parallax barrier basically takes the polarized glasses that one would wear in the movie theater and embeds them into the screen, so 3-D video can be seen without the need for glasses. Files are stored in the MP4 format, which is compatible with most 3-D TV sets on the market today.
There’s also a built-in USB connection and special software that allows shooters to use standard anaglyph glasses to view video on any regular computer monitor. A removable SD memory card provides storage of up to 32GB.
