3D technology has a long history of striving for greatness and being found wanting. As far back as the early 90’s I remember the promise of science fiction levels of 3D immersion, the stuff we only dreamed about in the distant future or watched on Star Trek. Over the years we’ve seen many iterations of the technology, goggles or glasses in hand, each maker promising the next great 3D experience. Yet, always found wanting.
Acer is boldly heading in a direction few other developers have chosen to explore by asking a simple question, “What if you could get rid of the glasses?”. I recently experienced their answer to that question in the form of the Acer SpatialLabs View gaming monitor. A unique take on the 3D experience, Acer is aiming to bring a whole new level of immersion to your gaming experience without the need for all the headsets and peripherals.
Yet as a long-time critic of the 3D technology experience, I question if it really could be done. Have we finally crossed the threshold from science fiction to pure science? Grab that coffee, kick back and check out our review of the Acer SpatialLabs View Gaming Monitor, graciously provided to us for this review by the good folks at Acer.
Specifications
- Current Price: $1099.99 (Acer)
- Design: SpectralLabs Technology
- Display Size: 15.6” Ultra HD (3840x2160, 2K Per eye in 3D Mode)
- Brightness: 323nits
- Ergonomics: Extendable metal stand (panel Angle 90 to115 degrees)
- Eye Tracking Module: 1280x480 resolution, 60 FPS frame rate
- Lens: 2D/3D Switchable lenticular lens
- Chassis Material: Metal
- Battery: 56 Wh Li-ion battery, (up to 5 Hours battery life)
- Power adaptor: 19V 2.37A 45W
- Inputs: USB Type C x1, USB 3.2 Gen1 up to 5Gbps, HDMI 2.0 port (HDCP 1.4/2.2 compliant)
- Recommended System Requirements:
- Laptop - CPU - Intel Core i7 (or higher), GPU - NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3070ti (or higher)
- Desktop - CPU - Intell Core i7 (or higher), GPU - NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 (or higher)
A Powerhouse of Technology
The Acer SpatialLabs View gaming Monitor is deceptively advanced. On the surface, it looks like a run-of-the-mill high-end portable 15” monitor. It's low-profile bezel and metal chassis feel premium and look great. Powered by either battery or the included AC adaptor, this portable display looks and feels much like the competitor, at least on the aforementioned surface. However, upon closer inspection, it's easy to see that this is where the similarities end.
The SpatialLabs View houses two powerful lenses in the top bezel that works to track eye movement. This allows the stereoscopic display to responsively offset images on the screen based on the viewing position of your eye, constantly tracking and adjusting to your field of view so that no matter what part of the screen you’re viewing, you are being presented with a clean, clear 3D representation of the images.
As mentioned this happens in real time and as such eliminates the need for glasses since the lenses do the work of focusing the image in 3D for you. Rendering of existing game assets in 3D, focus adjustments and constant eye tracking is all handled by the display. The result is a real-time stereoscopic 3D experience with no extra peripherals required.
What makes the View more impressive is that developers do not need to add any special patches or software tweaks to their existing games to make them work. This conversion is handled by the SpatialLabs software. While not every game in existence is supported there is a rather wide range of titles found across many of the major online stores that are currently supported. If you find yourself wondering about one of your existing titles, you can look at their ever-growing list of games on their site.
Editor’s Note, 5/4/23: Acer reached out to us to let us know that they are currently adding 6-8 new games every month. From the point of publication, it is very likely that there are many additional games available, so please take the time to check the current list of supported titles.
All of this is handled with the SpatialLabs TrueGame which is part of the SpatialLabs Experience Center software suite. TrueGame offers two modes for 3D gaming; 3D+ and 3D Ultra. In short, 3D+ leverages the games existing engine to simulate depth of field and generate a convincing 3D experience. 3D Ultra takes it a step further by creating the effect of two cameras capturing a game and presenting this new catered image back to the viewer. This essentially creates a more realistic and vibrant 3D experience. While not every game on the aforementioned list supports 3D Ultra, most new AAA titles will have support out of the box while other titles can still enjoy the solid 3D+ experience.
While all of what I have mentioned does sound pretty amazing, Acer didn’t stop there. The SpatialLabs View also comes equipped with SpatialLabs Go. This software allows for the fully automatic conversion of 2D content to be rendered in 3D. In layman’s terms, you can watch or view traditional 2D content in true Stereoscopic 3D. The AI generates new depths of the field on the fly creating a 3D experience for video and images. This results in a truly unique 3D viewing experience without the need for additional peripherals, special versions of a video or additional technology.
Another feature of the View is its ability to real-time render 3D models into specific applications allowing for full rotation of the object in 3D. Essentially it allows you to look around the object in a 3D space adding a level of depth and perspective that would otherwise be unobtainable.
Power At Your Fingertips
While this all sounds great on paper, experiencing it in real-time is a truly unique and enjoyable experience. Acer sent along a Predator Triton 500 SE gaming laptop to power (more on this later) the SpatialLabs View which came loaded with a bunch of great titles and the aforementioned SpatialLabs Experience Center software. The SpatialLabs Experience Center hosts the software needed to get the 3D experience up and running for both gaming and viewing other content.
TrueGame handles everything as it relates to gaming and offers a one-click 3D gaming experience. Once installed you simply open the software and locate the supported title on your computer. In my case, I was able to easily point TrueGame at the titles in my Xbox Pass folder as well as Steam. At the time of writing both Epic and GOG are also officially supported. Once TrueGame had a path to the .exe file, I could simply hit the play button and watch the magic happen. No additional configuration is required to get the game running. You can simply start playing the title in all its 3D goodness.
Now that being said TrueGame does come with a host of overlay options that allow you to configure your 3D viewing experience for gaming. Shortcut functions allow you to enable and disable 3D effects on the fly, toggle the on-screen display overlay on and off end increase and decrease both the 3D depth and pop-out. During my playthrough, most newer titles worked incredibly well out of the box. I was able to simply fire them up and play. Some older titles, like Quake, for example, did require some minor adjustments to depth and pop out. Thankfully the software is exceptionally responsive and I was able to make adjustments quickly.
Every game I tested ran smoothly without any issues or crashes. In fact, it was impressive just how well everything ran during playthroughs. I tested everything from FPS to Metroidvania titles and everything quickly adapted and presented a beautifully crisp and clean 3D visual. I did note a minor issue with text not always being as clear and crisp as images on the screen but never to the point that it hindered a playthrough.
The color depth and richness of the images on the screen, much like the 3D effects, were masterfully rendered and presented a beautiful rich gameplay visual. Every title I played offered an excellent 3D gaming experience.
Likewise, SpatialLab Go handled 2D content masterfully. It was a bit odd at first to be able to watch the latest episode of Star Trek Picard in 3D, especially considering that it wasn’t filmed for the medium and I had no peripheral on my head. Yet, despite this, the AI was able to generate some impressive renderings of the show in 3D, in real-time. No buffering or additional work was required. I simply loaded the show up in the browser, switched to full screen and hit the GO icon that was overlaid on the screen. It is really that easy.
The AI and the eye-tracking system really are something out of sci-fi. It is seriously impressive how well the SpatialLabs View can render a 3D image in real-time without lag or delay. The whole experience of setting up and using the system has blown my expectations for 3D technology out of the water. Acer has gone above and beyond to create the most powerful and user-friendly stereoscopic 3D experience there is and it works.
The cost of 3D Power
Well I am seriously impressed with all that the Acer SpatialLabs View has to offer, and I am seriously impressed, the barrier of entry is high. I noted earlier that Acer generously sent along their Predator Triton 500 SE gaming laptop to power the SpatialLabs View. As an aside the Predator Triton 500 SE is an amazing laptop.
The reason for this is because of the raw processing power needed to keep the SpatialLabs View rendering as well as it does. The recommended system requirement for the View is an Intel Core i7 with an RTX 3070 Ti or RTX 2080 (Laptop and desktop respectively). That kind of hardware is going to set you back a bit. While it is seriously impressive tech it is still at a point where it becomes niche simply based on its power requirements. Additionally, based on the screen size, the View only really makes sense in a gaming laptop setting as a traditional desktop setup would use a much larger monitor.
With all that being said this isn’t really so much a critique as it is a statement of fact. The SpatialLabs View is one of the most powerful pieces of 3D technology I’ve ever worked with and what it offers blows everything else I’ve used out of the water. I understand why it needs the power it pulls, but it is worth noting that this makes it just above obtainable for the average gamer.
Despite this, though, it is still an incredibly well-designed and implemented technology that is worth your time if you are intrigued by 3D technology and have the resources to afford it.
Final Thoughts
The Acer SpatialLabs View Gaming Monitor is an amazing piece of technology. Everything from its sleek, non-assuming design to its amazing 3D output put this monitor in a class of its own. Other than a slight blurriness in the text on occasion, everything about the View is excellent. The AI rendering of 2D images in real time, powerful 3D output without the need for special versions of games or additional peripherals and a host of easy-to-use software makes the SpatialLabs view worth looking at if you’re in the market for a 3D monitor. Its power-hungry requirements and price point of $1,099.99, while justified, do mean that it will be out of reach for a lot of gamers. However, if you’re in the market and have the resources I would highly recommend checking out the Acer SpatialLabs View.
The product described in this article was provided by the manufacturer for evaluation purposes.
