From X-bit Labs: Despite of being extremely more capable than current-generation game consoles, Microsoft Xbox One and Sony PlayStation 4 will not support playback of Blu-ray 3D discs at launch. While this may disappoint some technology enthusiasts that are early adopters of most innovations, this proves that BD-3D has failed to become popular among the masses.
Technically, both Microsoft Xbox One and Sony PlayStation 4 should be capable of playing back and displaying stereo-3D content from Blu-ray 3D media. Two key things that are required are MPEG4-MVC decoder as well as 2x Blu-ray disc drive. Both consoles support all current and several future codecs and feature 6x BD drives. The two consoles also have custom HDMI connectors that were designed to support 4K video output, therefore they can perfectly output S3D content as well.
Microsoft and Sony have confirmed that their new consoles will not support playback of Blu-ray 3D at launch, but both implied that they can support such playback later on with the firmware update. Sony also stressed that while PS4 fully supports stereo-3D rendering for video games, no launch titles support S3D technology.
The exact reasons why neither of the next-gen gaming systems support BD-3D are unclear, but they should be fixable by software and/or firmware update. One thing is more or less obvious: should Blu-ray 3D be popular among the end-users, Microsoft and Sony would have supported it at launch.
Given the fact that the new era of ultra-high-definition – 3840*2160 – video is incoming, it is unlikely that existing stereo-3D technology, which relies on 1920*1080 resolution, will gain further popularity among content makers and consumers.
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