52-inch glasses-free 3DTV arrives

Mainstream glasses-free 3D may not be as far away as we’ve been lead to believe.

Engadget reports that Nissho Electronics has launched a 52-inch glasses-free 3D LCD in Japan. It displays a full 1080p 3D image, boasts an 8ms response time and 60Hz refresh rate. On-board software will also convert 2D images to 3D on-the-fly.

It does, however, cost a whopping $20,800.

Glasses-free sets actually made it to market last year, though Toshiba’s 20-inch and 12-inch screens were too small to be considered serious market contenders.

The arguments about the possible impedimentary effect of the need to wear glasses to view current 3D tech has been raging for some time now.

Some, like major 3D advocate Sony, have argued that it’s not a problem. Others have said that 3D screen technology will not go mainstream until it ditches the specs.