Back in April, when Avatar first came out on DVD and Blu-Ray, it was released as a 2d-only version and with no extras whatsoever.
Now the iconic film is being reissued as a three-disc Avatar Extended Collector’s Edition, complete with 16-minutes of added scenes and hours of bonus features. Which sounds great. But the catch is, it’s still not going to be in 3d.
The only way to get hold of a 3d copy of Avatar to watch at home is by buying a Panasonic Blu-Ray 3d player or Panasonic 3dTV, as a specially made Blu-Ray 3d disc is bundled in as a freebie. But this version doesn’t of course include the extra 16 minutes that’s been added to the new Collector’s Edition release, or any of the bonus features.
According to industry website HollwoodInHiDef.com, Panasonic has bought a one-year exclusive window on the Avatar Blu-ray 3d release and is holding fire on its release until the home 3d market “grows big enough to justify it”.
Quite how long the wait will be is anyone’s guess, but the lack of a Blu-Ray 3d of Avatar on retailers’ shelves leading up to Christmas is going to do little to boost the so far very modest sales of Blu-Ray 3d players and/or 3dTVs.
Staff Reporter
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