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Sony PlayStation 3D display lets two players see different images on same screen

Sony's new PlayStation 3 monitor will let you get your 3D gaming on, and also allow two players to see different images on the same display, so there'll be no more split screens.

Richard Trenholm Former Movie and TV Senior Editor
Richard Trenholm was CNET's film and TV editor, covering the big screen, small screen and streaming. A member of the Film Critic's Circle, he's covered technology and culture from London's tech scene to Europe's refugee camps to the Sundance film festival.
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Richard Trenholm
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Sony's making a 24-inch 3D monitor for use with the PlayStation 3, so you can get your three-dimensional gaming on without forking out for an expensive 3D telly. The 24-inch monitor can also be used to allow two players to see different images on the same screen.

The 3D monitor will be used in conjunction with active-shutter LCD glasses. If you're not into 3D gaming, though, the display will also offer a cool new twist on multiplayer gaming. When two people don the glasses, each player can see something different on the same screen. That means both players can enjoy full-screen gaming japes, instead of the screen being divided into two.

That sounds pretty nifty to us, although it does mean no more watching your opponent's screen to see where they are, and no more legging it to where they've respawned so you can pop a cap in their avatar before they can grab a decent gun.

The monitor will offer a 5,000:1 contrast ratio, 176-degree viewing angle and 4ms response time. It will be a 1080p, LED-edge-lit LCD screen that boasts two HDMI inputs, stereo speakers and an integrated subwoofer. The glasses will charge via USB.

The final package will comprise the monitor, a pair of glasses, a 1.8m HDMI cable, and retro alien-shooter Resistance 3, one of Sony's first 3D games. Games have to be specially designed for the 3D or glasses-wearing multiplayer modes, so you'll have to stick to regular 2D and split-screen multiplayer when playing existing games.

The monitor package will cost around $500 (£300) when it launches in the US this autumn. Extra pairs of glasses will cost about $70 (£42). UK prices and availability haven't been confirmed yet.

Sony announced the monitor at the E3 gaming conference in LA, where the company also rechristened its next-gen NGP portable console as the PlayStation Vita. For all the latest button-bashing news and previews, our gaming buddies from GameSpot UK are on the ground in LA.