Acer is one of the few brands that believe in the potential of glasses-free 3D viewing: we’ve tried their SpatialLabs gear at COMPUTEX 2023, and while we had mixed thoughts, we saw the potential of 3D viewing. Ahead of COMPUTEX 2024, Acer is taking glasses-free 3D viewing up a notch with the SpatialLabs Eyes Stereo Camera.
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While earlier iterations of SpatialLabs focused on 3D gaming and viewing CAD models rendered in 3D, the idea behind the Eyes Stereo Camera is to help users create 3D content at the comfort of their own work setup. We’re talking 3D livestreams and video calls, with Acer adding that it will bring a unique 3D video calling experience on Teams, Zoom, and Google Meet. We honestly don’t know if people will like their video calls to be in 3D, but Acer might be creating a new category that consumers might like in the future.
At the core of the Eyes Stereo Camera are two cameras that have an 8-megapixel sensor to produce stereoscopic images, a built-in selfie mirror to guide you with the proper framing, and a weatherproof exterior. Both cameras have autofocus and touch focus capabilities, along with EIS for stable footage–because no one would like to view 3D video that’s shaky.
The module has a 1500mAh battery inside and a MicroSD card slot for storage expansion–the latter being important because 3D videos are huge.
The current iteration of the Eyes Stereo Camera allows 1080p videos calls on Google Meet and Microsoft Teams (720p for Zoom) and a real-time 3D live streaming experience on YouTube and other platforms through Acer’s SpatialLabs Player 3.0. The native resolution is 8.3k (3840×2160) and can shoot at up to 60FPS (30FPS if HDR is enabled).
Acer is asking $549(~Php 33k) for the SpatialLabs Eyes Stereo Camera, and it will be available starting the 3rd quarter of 2024. We still don’t know if there’s a market for 3D livestreams and video calls, but it’s nice that Acer is taking a risk on creating a new segment of webcams.
