The stereo photography community is buzzing about the Lume Pad 2. This autostereo tablet with remarkable 3-D capabilities has garnered excellent reviews since its March 2023 introduction. Thanks to the efforts of GGSS member Jay Kusnetz, Leia, Inc. lent the Golden Gate Stereoscopic Society three Lume Pad 2s for our recent Maker Faire 2023 exhibition. For three days we experimented with these devices and collected feedback from the many attendees who visited our table.
The Lume Pad 2 is a multi-purpose Android tablet with an advanced 3-D display and powerful AI-based 2-D to 3-D conversion software. Its native apps include generative AI tools, 3-D chat, streaming video, and more, but this review is written for a specific group: Photographers who work with two lenses (whether with two synchronized cameras, dual-lens cameras, or single-lens “cha-cha” dual exposures) to capture offset left & right photos for viewing as a stereo (3-D) pair. This group has been making, viewing, and sharing stereo photographs for nearly 200 years, and the Lume Pad 2 offers unique potential for these artists.
About the Lume Pad 2
The Lume Pad 2 utilizes Leia, Inc.’s proprietary Diffractive Lightfield Backlighting (DLB) technology to show the user a “spatial” 3-D image or video without eyewear. Embedded cameras track the user’s face, so that each image is targeted to one eye even if the face isn’t perfectly still. The result is a convincing and comfortable 3-D image.
The DBL display works well in varied light, and the tracking cameras are reliable for spectacle wearers. The screen may toggle between the left & right photos when the tablet is first engaged and the tracking cameras seek their targets, but is otherwise steady. The reasonably broad 86 degree 3-D viewing angle is sufficient.
One user at a time can see the display in 3-D. The tracking cameras rapidly find their mark, however, so stereo photos can still be shared effectively with a group. It’s akin to passing a Holmes stereoscope around a table rather than crowding around a projection screen or 3DTV.
The display is just over 12 inches, with a 2560×1600 pixel resolution at 244 ppi and a steady 120Hz refresh rate in both 2-D and 3-D modes. Its aluminum frame makes the device not lightweight at 27 ½ ounces, but it’s still very portable and runs cool. Battery life is not extensive.
Dual-lens cameras adorn the rear of the device, offering fair still image quality at 4656×2910 resolution per view (9312×2910 total) and HD-resolution (3840×1080) 3-D video. It might not become anyone’s main stereo camera, but it pairs well with the LeiaPix social network (see below). That said, stereo photos captured with a Lume Pad have been spotted at stereo camera club meetings.
By default, photos taken with the Lume Pad 2 appear as single-frame JPG files when downloaded from the tablet. Side-by-side stereo versions can be exported from the tablet with the included LeiaPlayer app, or converted from the JPG files’ embedded metadata with scripts like Lume2LR.py.
The Lume Pad 2’s DLB display is supported by a suite of apps produced by Leia, Inc. specifically for the tablet. Not all are of direct interest to stereo photographers. LeiaViewer is a 3-D model viewer for Sketchfab artists. LeiaDream is an AI art generation tool. LeiaTube is a real time 2-D to 3-D conversion app for YouTube videos. Nevertheless, these apps are worth exploring.
For stereographers, LeiaPlayer is the stereo photo & 3-D video viewing app, and the LeiaFrame app is for 3-D slideshows. Leia’s apps are generally intuitive and stable, certainly up to the task of viewing stereo photos and videos. Knowledge of the Android operating system is key to a positive experience with the tablet; the user manual is a good start for the uninitiated.
Lume Pad 2 for Stereo Photographers
A glasses-free 3-D screen with limitless AI-converted 3-D content is a substantial achievement. Yet Leia, Inc. hasn’t overlooked traditional stereo photographers, and shows some care in making the Lume Pad 2 compatible with our needs.
As an Android tablet, photo and video files can be imported and saved on the device by several methods. The Lume Pad 2 also has a USB-C port, and can be connected directly to a computer to transfer files (OS X users must install the free but limited Android File Transfer for Mac utility).
The Lume Pad 2 natively supports parallel-view, side-by-side (left image on the left) JPG files for stills, a common stereo format. Appending “_2x1” to the end of the filename before the file extension sets the proper view type. Remarkably, when first I uploaded a set of side-by-side stereo photos without the “_2x1” tag, the Lume Pad 2 recognized the files as side-by-side stereo photos and offered to automatically update the filenames (Stereo Photo Maker also has a batch renaming tool for the Lume Pad 2). The tablet also recognized my half-width, side-by-side MP4 video files and played them correctly without prompting. MPO and JPS files (categorized as “legacy” formats) are also supported.
The Lume Pad 2 is very good as a viewer for side-by-side stereo photographs. There is some ghosting in high-contrast photos. The tracking cameras aren’t always accurate at first, sometimes briefly displaying a pseudo photo. Stereo photos exhibit good depth – greater than lenticular screens – and the device excels with “through the window” stereo compositions. The Lume Pad 2 is an Android tablet and thus won’t run the Windows-only Stereo Photo Maker. While the Lume Pad 2 (and other screen-based 3-D viewers) can’t match the immersive experience of a well-exposed Realist slide in a red button viewer, for example, any loss in quality is made up for in convenience and accessibility. That Leia, Inc. is directly supporting the small but passionate stereo photography community makes it possible to overlook these imperfections.
The “Glasses-Free 3-D” Device We’ve Been Waiting For?
It’s been a long time since the stereo community has been this excited about a new 3-D gadget. Our last “must-have” tech may have been the now discontinued 3DTV. It’s hard not to feel hopeful.
Stereo photographers are not the Lume Pad 2’s primary market. Its uncanny AI-assisted 3-D conversion creates new uses for streaming and gaming. The device generates its own content by means of mostly accurate AI 3-D conversion. The package works well enough to make 3-D accessible.
At $999.00 retail and less than a year on the market as of this writing, the Lume Pad 2 is still niche. It’s among a new generation of new “spatial” displays. Asus recently announced its own “Spatial Vision” technology. The Looking Glass holographic display is a favorite of stereo photographers. If these displays find demand, market competition may reduce prices and put autostereo screens in the hands of more people.
With the LeiaPix social network as an example, stereo photographers could turn to apps on these devices instead of camera clubs and stereoscopic societies to view and share their images. We’ve had stereo photography social networks before, but LeiaPix in particular seems to have crossed a threshold. It’s active, with excellent original stereo photos shared and displayed in 3-D. On the Lume Pad 2, the barrier of selecting a compatible view type is eliminated – livestreamed exhibitions need not be offered in multiple formats (anaglyph, SBS, half-width, etc.) to accommodate each participant.
Will automatic 2-D to 3-D conversion invalidate the work of stereo photographers? Any image can be made to have depth, but its effectiveness depends on the original composition. Scenes with shallow focus, without distinct foreground, middleground, and background elements, with dark backgrounds and bright foregrounds, make poor stereo images regardless of the AI used to make the conversion. As an experiment at Maker Faire Bay Area 2023, we loaded one Lume Pad 2 with a collection of stereo pairs, and another with just the left view of the same collection. Thor Klippert converted the flat views and compared the results to the stereo originals. Depending on the subject, the conversions were usually “good enough,” with the occasional image having an obvious error. Making conversions is also irresistibly fun. Conversions made with the free (ad supported) LeiaPix web converter are already making their way into camera club slideshows, regardless of correctness.
As cutting-edge consumer tech goes, it’s revealing to compare the Lume Pad 2 with last year’s overhyped 3-D gadget, the Meta Quest 2 virtual reality headset. Both accommodate one user at a time, both are pricey, and both can be seen as an answer in search of a problem. For stereo photographers, while excellent stereo photography galleries have been proven in metaverse, the Lume Pad 2 is more accessible as a screen for sharing 3-D. VR apps extend the functionality of headsets, but the Lume Pad 2 is a true computer that can be used to read email and browse the web as well as create fantastical 3-D AI-generated artworks. Wearing a VR headset is a socially isolating experience, and headsets complain with error messages about credentials and perimeter safety if shared with another person. The Lume Pad 2, while limited to 3-D for one person at a time, is fun to pass around.
The Lume Pad 2’s Diffractive Lightfield Backlighting display technology does 3-D well enough that it could start a mainstream trend. If the technology becomes ubiquitous, devices like the Lume Pad 2 could support stereo photographers and introduce the craft to new practitioners. If one can afford it, there’s no reason a stereo photographer shouldn’t be an early adopter of the Lume Pad 2.