We saw it Saturday in the XD3 theater — and then again on Sunday in a regular “digital” theater. We REALLY like the digital screens, they're so much brighter and crisper than the typical theaters.

For most movies we'll continue to see them in the “regular” digital theaters at Cinemark West Plano; but for cool action flicks, stuff like that, we'll probably go to XD3 over IMAX, just because it's closer to home and the seats are more comfortable. ;-)

I'm not enough of a videophile & audiophile to notice much of a difference – it's all about the good experience for me, and we've had that consistently at the West Plano theater. :)

The sound – we were near the back and the right side surround channel was completely OFF – no sound coming from the right at all – all from the left (which is not a political metaphor, even though that would describe me pretty well, and it looks like maybe you too)

I just wrote an email, we'll see if I get a response.

I am a professional movie theater technician. It is my responsibility to install, maintain and oversee the operation of projection equipment in movie theaters. I have formerly worked for Cinemark. I have since moved on to other positions. (Better pay.) I have direct, hands-on experience with Cinemark's XD3 projection system. Although I do not have direct experience with the AMC IMAX system, I know how it works.

The simple answer is: It is all about marketing hype.

XD3 and IMAX digital are simply names for digital movie systems. Nothing more.
What they have done is to rip out the old 35mm projector and replace it with a new digital projector. I am the guy who did the “ripping.” And, yes, I mean rip! We literally cut the wires with a pair of wire cutters, hauled the old projector away and plopped the new one in its place. We did some minor upgrades to the sound system. We installed some new amplifiers, replaced a few of the old speakers and tweaked it to make it better. You are still listening to the same old sound system. It's just been fixed up a bit.

The XD3 system is based on the Barco DP-300 digital projection system. It uses the Doremi digital cinema server, capable of playing movies in Real-D 3-D format.

http://www.barco.com/

http://www.doremicinema.com/

Please enjoy reading the websites I have listed above. You should be able to find lots of good information to satisfy your curiosity.

Here's the bottom line: XD3 is nothing special. It is a very nice digital movie system. Cinemark has spiffed up their theaters and has done a few nice things for the customers to enjoy but this is nothing special.

The AMC Digital IMAX system is very similar. It simply uses equipment made by another manufacturer. To explain the differences between the IMAX and the XD3 would take a long-winded technical explanation that will bore you to tears. I will spare you the pain. ;)
The difference between them is similar to comparing a Ford car to a Chevrolet. While they are very nice cars, they are certainly not Ferraris!

If you like watching movies in digital format, you will see a very nice presentation. Even though I do not work for Cinemark any more, I still keep in touch with guys who do. Those guys know their jobs. They do good work. If you are watching movies on digital projectors installed by my former coworkers, you are seeing a good presentation.

But you are NOT watching anything special. It's just a digital movie. “XD3″ is just a name some marketing executive slapped on it in hopes it would sell more tickets.

Do you really want to see a good movie presentation? Go find a movie theater with a 70mm projector. Yes, I said film! There is no video technology that can produce the resolution of 70mm film. There likely never will be. All the marketing “suits” would have you believe that film projectors are “old technology” but the truth is that digital video will never equal the quality of film. It's just not technically possible.

If you like watching movies, great! If you want to see movies in the latest digital formats, in new updated movie theaters, wonderful! You will have a good movie-going experience. But the bottom line of what I am saying is:

DON'T BELIEVE THE HYPE!

You might want to check out the Engadget blog just to set them straight.
http://www.engadgethd.com/2009/05/10/poll-is-st...