Avatar - IMAX 3D vs Digital 3D?

[Scouzer]

What's the difference:

http://www.cineplex.com/Theatres/TheatreDetails/8B551CEE/Scotiabank_Theatre_West_Edmonton_Mall.aspx?

What's better? The theatre is offering both but I don't know what the difference is, other than IMAX vs regular sized theatre of course. Is Digital 3D better?

Do both need glasses?

 

[Shawn]

digital 3d is smaller screen i think

 

[mesthead21]

I saw both and I would say that imax was worth it. The theatre i went to it was only a buck more for Imax, so i would do that

 

[Caesar]

I think Digital 3D is the same theatre screen with 3D glasses. IMAX3D is the IMAX screen with 3D glasses. So year digital is smaller screen.

 

[soulcougher73]

I dont know which 3D Avatar i saw, but i dont like how everything in the background is blurry in 3D. It hurts my eyes.

 

[Mide]

I dont know which 3D Avatar i saw, but i dont like how everything in the background is blurry in 3D. It hurts my eyes.

Ditto, I went and saw Avatar in Digital 3D and my eyes hurt for 2 days afterwards. No more of that for me.

 

[ivan2]

just saw the non imax 3D, not too impressed, might as well save money to watch non 3D version.

 

[Cattlegod]

I saw IMAX 3D and it rocked!

 

[InverseOfNeo]

I'll let you all know later. I've seen it already in the "RealD 3D" and I'm seeing it later today in IMAX. I've heard its a lot better in IMAX. OTOH, 3D vs 2D... I couldn't imagine this movie in 2D. The 3D is totally worth it.

 

[T9D]

...

 

[Mrvile]

Do they offer Imax 2D anywhere? The OP's apparently doesn't, and I don't think our theater does either...

 

[Kev]

I saw it in 3D IMAX and thought it was pretty pointless. Most of the scenes had either no 3D effects, or stupid 3D effects like subtitles.

The best 3D I saw was in the previews, for alice in wonderland and the hubble IMAX thing.

 

[mesthead21]

I saw it in 3D IMAX and thought it was pretty pointless. Most of the scenes had either no 3D effects, or stupid 3D effects like subtitles.

The best 3D I saw was in the previews, for alice in wonderland and the hubble IMAX thing.

Are you serious? I would say 80% of the movie utilizes 3d, they just did it in a subtle way to enhance the experience and not a gimmick like most 3D movies. I thought they did it well and there wasn't any "HEY LOOK WE CAN DO 3D!!! OMGZORS"

 

[tyler811]

I saw it in 3D IMAX and loved it. The background was crystal clear and the colors stood out. The IMAX is HUGE and you do get more involved in the story because it is right there in your face.

 

[TecHNooB]

Which one is the blurry 3D? The one I saw had like two images that meshed together when you put the glasses on but blurred whenever the screen panned.

 

[SKORPI0]

I dont know which 3D Avatar i saw, but i dont like how everything in the background is blurry in 3D. It hurts my eyes.

Ditto, I went and saw Avatar in Digital 3D and my eyes hurt for 2 days afterwards. No more of that for me.

I don't know about you guys, but everything was crystal clear to me and my eyes did not hurt at all.

Perhaps you forgot to wear these....

 

[destrekor]

So, so far the only thing people are saying is the screen size difference?

Here in town, the National Amusements theater has a couple huge theaters (400+) that also have massive screens.
I've been to two different imax theaters (one in a National Amusements theater, one in an AMC theater), and while the NA theater had a larger imax screen than the AMC theater, the AMC theater didn't seem much bigger than a standard theater screen.
They seated less and had nicer seating in general, but you can get the same large screens at NA theaters, they just have more seats in them.

 

[ra990]

From what I've read and seen the order of preference is:

1) Dolby 3D
2) RealD 3D
3) IMAX 3D

Yes, IMAX 3D being the lowest preference because the picture appears blurry whenever there are pans in the movie. Dolby 3D and RealD 3D do not have this problem due to the single projector and extremely fast refresh rates they employ.

 

[hans030390]

The glasses at IMAX sucked. They were extremely uncomfortable and hurt my ears. To top that off, if the glasses aren't "parallel" with the screen, you'll notice the images separating.

Still, it was enjoyable. I walked away without my eyes or head hurting, which I can't say about other 3D movies.

 

[Cattykit]

IMAX is much better for it uses two sets of films and projectors. Also, brightness level as well as color accuracy and detail is superior than the others. How about aspect ratio? Only IMAX projects intended aspect ratio. The only draw back is when reading subtitles.


EDIT: One more things.
There're 4 types of 3D projectors: IMAX DMR 3D, DIGITAL 3D, NESTRI 3D, and Dolby 3D. I don't know which one you're talking about when you mentioned digital 3D but I can tell you IMAX is the best out of all.

 

[Synomenon]

I don't know about you guys, but everything was crystal clear to me and my eyes did not hurt at all.

Perhaps you forgot to wear these....

The Rave Theater I went to is RealD 3D and we had to use those glasses. Some people in the theater didn't get them for some reason when picking up their tickets. I guess they didn't know about the glasses and they were complaining through the whole movie that the screen was blurry. I went to see it in an IMAX as well. The screen was huge.

The only drawback was that it was so big that you'd miss some things if you didn't turn your head quick enough to follow.

 

[Kev]

Are you serious? I would say 80% of the movie utilizes 3d, they just did it in a subtle way to enhance the experience and not a gimmick like most 3D movies. I thought they did it well and there wasn't any "HEY LOOK WE CAN DO 3D!!! OMGZORS"

I was expecting more I guess. The scene where they wake up from cryostasis was amazing, but nothing even came close to that for the rest of the movie.

 

[mesthead21]

I was expecting more I guess. The scene where they wake up from cryostasis was amazing, but nothing even came close to that for the rest of the movie.

Some parts they did it well though, like when he first ran as the avatar and the ashes falling from the sky.

 

[InverseOfNeo]

Ok so I finally saw it in IMAX last night. I have also seen it in RealD 3D. I have to say I was expecting more from IMAX. There was no noticable difference in the picture, or the 3D effects. Of course, the IMAX screen was bigger so you're immersed more in the movie. I think if I had seen IMAX first then the RealD 3D, I would have been more impressed with the RealD but since I saw the RealD first, I don't think one is superior.

However, the previews of the Hubble 3D movie made it worth it. I cannot wait for this to come out. It is a MUST see for any space enthusiast. I almost felt like I was in space. /me goes to find out when it's being released. The other 3D previews in IMAX were pretty good too (i.e. Alice in Wonderland).

 

[Gooberlx2]

My understanding is that the IMAX is linear 3D, so adjusting your head position will fuck with the 3D effect. RealD 3D is polarized or something and allows you to move your head around without losing the 3D effect.

I only saw the RealD 3D, but my friend saw both forms and said the claims were true.

I did notice skipping objects in panning shots with the RealD 3D. Someone mentioned in another thread that it's because the frame rates currently used for films are insufficient for optimal 3D effect. It certainly was the most immersive 3D film I've seen yet....but definitely had it shortcomings. Maybe increasing the fps would indeed help.

There were parts that tripped me up though. I found myself trying to blow phantom fuzzies (like dandelion seeds or something) out of my face a couple times.