XpanD Says It Sold 50,000 Pairs of Universal 3D Glasses in First Two Weeks

XpanD’s Universal X103 3D glasses, which began shipping two weeks ago with a $129 suggested retail price, will likely be $100 in a year, XpandD Chief Strategy Officer Ami Dror told Consumer Electronics Daily Thursday in New York. “Prices will come down, but slowly,” he said. Economies of scale won’t come into play with 3D glasses as with typical CE products, he said, because of the cost of the two LCDs needed in each set. “The main cost is “in the lenses,” he said, adding that “whether we make five million or 50 million,” manufacturing expenses don’t drop.

Dror said XpanD has sold 50,000 pairs of glasses since launch, 35,000-40,000 of the sales coming from the U.S. Most sales have come online to early adopters “who have been waiting for them,” he said. The company sells through Sears, Fry’s and Nebraska Furniture Mart stores and online through Amazon, Tiger Direct and Newegg, he said. Dror told us it’s important to bring the price down to broaden the market beyond early adopters, but quality must remain high to prevent devaluation of 3D in consumers’ minds. “It’s possible to make cheaper 3D glasses,” Dror said, but then they'll “break faster” and meanwhile won’t deliver a high-quality viewing experience, possibly poisoning consumers’ introduction to 3D. If low-quality glasses displayed images side-by-side instead of the way they're supposed to, he said, “consumers would think 3D sucks.” He said he “wouldn’t be surprised” to see additional higher-end 3D glasses launch over the coming months.

Since the launch, XpanD has received “a lot of questions” from consumers confused about 3D in general, Dror said, and the company has set up a support center to help consumers navigate 3D. Questions have ranged from technical ones about how 3D glasses work to basic ones including “how to put a TV in 3D mode,” he said. He said XpanD wants to fill a void in 3D education that’s not being met at retail. “The chance that consumers have gotten a proper 3D demo at retail is zero,” Dror said. To handle the wide range of 3D questions, XpanD support staff “is well-versed in all 3D products,” he said. “Our goal is for the industry to sell more TVs and DVDs. If someone calls and can’t get 3D because they didn’t press the 3D button, we want to be the ones to sort it out.”

XpanD is setting up a retail program to provide its universal glasses for the sales floor, Dror said without giving details. He'd rather put promotional dollars “in demos versus posters,” he told us. Under such a program, XpanD would get the benefit of exposure regardless of which TV a customer wanted to buy. Retailers, Dror said, would benefit from not having to swap glasses for each 3D TV demo. He said the universal glasses work “with all 3D TVs currently on the market” and said consumers will be able to upgrade the glasses to work with future models. According to the XpanD website, consumers will have that option in February. Upgrades will be available via smartphone apps or PC download, he said.

XpanD fully supports and is “very active” in the CEA effort to create a standard for 3D glasses, Dror said. He expects that by CES “we'll know exactly when there will be a standard.” Meantime, the company is preparing for the standardized future by spreading the word that all 3D glasses aren’t created equal and can differ substantially in terms of physical design, quality of electronics, contrast, off-axis performance, reflectivity and software.