Easy listening and watching on the Sony Glasstron

January 27, 2000
Web posted at: 1:01 PM EST (1801 GMT)

(CNN) -- This past Christmas, Sony has brought to life one of a device straight out of the futuristic Jetsons cartoon: a big-screen TV the size of a pair of glasses. The Sony Glasstron Personal LCD Monitor (PLM-A35) is a pint-sized device that claims to be able to display a 52" color TV screen, as it would be seen at a distance of six feet. This portable little wonder fits like a pair of glasses, and provides impressive video and sound quality.

On the inside of the glasses, are two concave mirrors that reflect the tiny LCD picture to each eye and using the wonders of binocular vision, combines the two pictures into a single visual image. Looking into the device gives the feeling of being in a movie theater. A friend jokingly said that they expected three heads to pop up in the front and start give running comedic commentary on the show, a la "Mystery Science Theater 3000."

When Sony said that it appears the same size as a 52" TV at a distance of six feet, they hit it right on the spot. It is just shy of twice the size of my 27" inch Sony Trinitron TV at the same distance. The picture appears clear and flat. However, it does share another common problem with most big-screen projection televisions: if you look carefully, you can make out lines between the pixels in the screen.

Colors are very rich. Black looks deep enough to be considered black, rather than a dark shade of gray. The reception, of course, is only as good as your TV signals. Thus if you get grainy picture on some channels, you will notice the same problems with this device. The best picture comes from a digital source like a digital satellite system or a DVD player.

The sound through the small earphones on the device is simply amazing. I have been known to listen to Metallica and Tchaikovsky loud enough to peel paint off the ceiling, but I had to keep the volume between two and four on these tiny little speakers to avoid hurting my ears. They give a resounding bass line as well as performing nicely in the mid- to high-ranges. The headphones are unfortunately only stereo. You would need to connect to an appropriate Hi-Fi receiver for surround sound.

The device is light, at a third of a pound, but weight isn't the problem when it comes to wearing it. I don't consider my head too abnormally big-I have an average sized head for my 5' 11" height--but even when adjusted at the maximum size, the arms of the Glasstron would press tightly against the sides of my head. The nose guard intended to balance the unit's weight, and keep the oils on your skin away from the screen, also pushes tight. Eventually these plastic and rubber units will loosen up and wear down after months of use but it isn't all that comfortable in the beginning.

The other inconvenience is the wires to the control box, to the TV signal output, and the power box. You can swap the power box for a battery and ease this tangle. However, the six to eight feet long cable that goes from the control box to my VCR limits the range from which I can sit and watch TV. My couch itself is about seven feet away and this almost stretches the cable to the limit.

The control box has RCA style audio and video connectors that can plug into a VCR or Digital Satellite System receiver. It also has an S-VHS connector for higher quality signals. However, you cannot plug the output of your cable TV wall socket or Cable box-typically a screw-on coaxial RG-58 connector with a thick wire at the center-directly into the control box because of incompatible connectors.

Movement doesn't go very well with the Glasstron. Due to motion sickness, you should avoid using this on a turbulent airplane, while riding in the car, or even walking around the house. In general, you shouldn't use the Glasstron if you are in any position other than sitting down quietly. It also doesn't work as well as one might hope with a video game. The average person's head and body tends to move about too much when playing a game. Playing something like Turok 3 on the Nintendo 64 will probably leave you totally disoriented after a few minutes.

The Glasstron will automatically shut off after three hours of display in order to prevent eyestrain. This is a safety precaution built into the device and cannot be altered. It doesn't surprise me since this is a projection system that goes directly into your eyes. Just imagine your parents telling you not to sit too close to this TV.

It is great for use with other devices like a portable DVD player. Although it provides the standard 4:3 aspect ratio of a television rather than the 16:9 capability of DVD movies, you can still watch a full-length movie using the device. The Glasstron can also work with laptop computers that offer S-VHS output and audio connections, some of which also sport DVD players. Sony has a separate product that works with PCs and displays an SVGA monitor at 800 x 600 pixels. This product, the PLM-S700, shows a 30" screen projected virtually at six feet. Unfortunately, due to the higher requirements of computers, this other model comes at a whopping $2599.

The Glasstron PLM-A35 is a great little device for personal entertainment although Sony could do with a number of small improvements to it, particularly for comfort. The low street price of $499 makes it affordable to those who really enjoy personal time. A real 51" projection TV would start at over $1500, making this a good deal for an individual. Now you can really lay back on the couch and enjoy your TV shows all to yourself.