The year we lose our TV signals

[Robert]

Welcome to 2009. The year we lose our TV signals. What a way to start the year, knowing in another month and a half, we will lose our tv reception, unless we subscribe to costly cable or satellite tv. Oh yea, they tell us we can get convertors and even give us coupons worth $40 for the $50 and up boxes that DO NOT work in rural areas, because the digital signals are under-powered for those in fringe areas. Yea, i know this first hand. I got my coupon, bought a $60 box for $20 and the coupon, and while I used to get 7 channels (occasionally two more), with the converter box, I get PBS. That's it. I can watch Mr. Rogers, Sesame Street, Teletubbies, and all the cruddy english garbage they show, but no local news, no weather reports, no Soaps (that psrt is OK, I hate soaps)...... I'll just miss the local news and weather reports, and once and awhile South Park..... Either way, even despite most of the crappy tv programs, like American Idol, all the Crime shows, Survivor, and the Springer Show, I will still miss the tv. On the plus side I will no longer have to climb on the roof to fix my antenna after a windstorm.....

Of course there is one good thing about 2009, we'll lose BUSH !!!! A much welcomed loss.......

It looks like 2009 may end up being NEUTRAL. We lose an asshole president and out tv signals.

Happy New Year

Robert

[Ed Pawlowski]

Progress. At some point in technological life we have to move on and some are going to be left behind. You can't buy leaded gas any more either. You don't have to subscribe to cable, but you do need a digital TV. I don't know how well that will work in your area compared to a box.

I have to wonder how many people will wake up and not have any TV at all and not have a clue as to why. They've been talking about it every hour for months but some will still say "no one told me"

[Ann]

What cable TV? (Nor is the southern horizon accessible from my house.) But, except for those who don't have winter, we aren't going to know for sure how this will play out until the trees have leafed out this spring.

The one possibility is that "white space" (TV Band) devices will work out and be reasonably priced. That way we would be able to download at least some TV programs. I'm not holding my breath.

[JohnR66]

I suspect the only people who really should be pissed are the ones who already had a good quality, high mounted antenna and are having trouble getting the signal. This should be very rare. Second are the people who will have to upgrade their antenna, get a higher mast and upgraded feed line. This can be costly if professionally installed.

[Cheri]

"Robert"

Really? Are you sure we'll lose him? I would imagine that we'll see and hear about him every single day for many years to come.

Cheri

[Cheri]

Of course they will. It's inevitable. :-)

Cheri

[trader4]

Posts like this would have more credibility and make a better point if they told us where they live, what city's stations they are trying to receive in digital, what kind of antenna, where's it's mounted, what kind of converter box, etc. That way, we could learn and possibly make usefull suggestions on what they could do and they may find other folks here with similar situations that have solved it. The fact that they don't suggests they are more interested in whining than solving.

No question there are a small minority that are going to be negatively impacted. It's just like the govt putting a new highway near your home. You get the noise, pollution, etc that comes with that too. On the flip side, there are many people that have reported here that they now have perfect reception with DTV, while with NTSC they had a marginal pic on some stations.

[SBH]

What I world like for 2009 is to get rid of all the little whiners, which would probably account for half the population.

Change is inevitable, get over it.

[aemeijers]

My house resembles that second remark. :^(

I have satt, so it isn't urgent. But my satt local package doesn't carry ALL the locals, and doesn't carry the secondary channels they are adding with digital. Plus, knowing Murphy was an optimist, I always try to have a backup for everything. Don't really wanna spring for a rotator, which I would need to get all the signals in this fringe area, so trying to devise a spot to put the mast where I can just reach out the window, loosen a thumbscrew, and rotate the mast by hand, for the very occasional times I need to point the other direction.

-- aem sends...

[ransley]

So you didnt check ratings on boxes before you went to your local store and got one, kinda dumb, you reviewed your computer, tv, car and wife. It just so happens NO boxes sold at local stores have good ratings, ratings are done by many like Cnet, Consumer Reports and are easy to joogle. Yes reception varies greatly, Quality of picture, ease of use, so go read ratings, buy another box, and enjoy.

[Andy]

Andy writes

I think you are incorrect....

In my area, stations have been broadcasting digital signals together with the old analog signals for over a year.,

I have one of the free $40 digital converter boxes, so I can watch either the old analog signal or the new digital signal, as I choose....

The digital signals have a better picture quality, although I am using only an old standard definition color set.

Each analog channel, in addition to the analog signal has an additional three digital channels,.... so I get three times the number of channels without any detrimental effect.....

For instance, the old channel 12 analog is now 12.1 , 12.2 and

12.3 and separate programs are transmitted on each.

When the analog signals are ended, each channel will be able to broadcast FIVE digital standard definition channels, or 2 or 3 high definition channels (I forget which). The choice of programming is , of course, up to the station, but in all cases it will be the same or better, or more numerous....... a business decision.

So, with NO loss of quality, and with no change in the antenna, after February 17th , using my $40 decoder box (which the government paid for and I got it for free, as can anyone) I will have more channels, a better picture, and additional features, since the decoder boxes have "guide", "signal strength" and a bunch of other built-in features that the old analog system doesn't have...

The only requirement is that I plug in a cheap , free, converter box OR buy a new TV......

Don't worry about antennae ---- if you get a decent signal now, you will get a better signal in the future, since the digital processing is more efficient than the analog.

If you get a really bad signal now, you will still get a really bad signal, which might not be able to be processed........ But the customer really needed a fix for that anyway, and maybe a higher, or larger, or rotatable antenna will help....Maybe not.... but there won't be any change in their need.....

NONE of my above discussion applies to cable, or satellite signals. They do not change at all....

By the way, this stuff has been advertised and talked about for the last three years. Someone would have to be in a coma not to know about it. I got my first FREE digital TV converter box about a year or so ago.... THAT has been advertised for a year and a half, and they started accepting applications for the free coupon in january 2008.

If one googles " D T V converter box " they can learn all about it.

Andy in Eureka, Texas

PS I now have several converter boxes, which I have compared, and I like the RCA one very much. I do not like the Magnavox one very much.....

[aemeijers]

Yes, change is inevitable. Improvement, however, is not. Entropy always wins, etc.

-- aem sends...

[dadiOH]

Progress? The reason for the change from analog to digital is money, nothing more. It allows removal of some VHF and UHF from TV use thereby enabling those friendly, caring folks in Washington to peddle the freed up frequencies. The feds get billions...and the manufacturers get to sell new, "improved" TV sets. Wide screen ones at that (another useless "innovation").

[Caesar Romano]

Good riddance to it.

[enigma]

Robert wrote in news: [e-mail]:

you do realize that you can not only live without television, but you might even get more things accomplished. you could use the time you waste watching tv to learn something new or work on hobbies. i get my local weather & news online. i haven't watched tv in well over 20 years. there's really nothing worth watching (although i do have satellite for Discovery channel etc for other members of the family). i also have a book addiction...

do you think he'll have a library? if so, what books would it contain? lee

[sligoNoSPAMjoe]

....

Check around with your neighbors and local electronics stores. Find out what kind an antenna you need. You may end up with 10 good channels if you look to fix the problem rather then just complain about it.

[Steve Barker]

I agree. And since when is dish costly? Hell, just eat out one less time each month. Done.

s

[AL]

yeah, those original round screens are the way to go - who needs "innovation"?

[AZ Nomad]

Get a dish, you idiot.

[Ann]

Buying a digital TV should make no difference with the reception part of it. A 42" flat screen won't get any more stations, although retailers would like us to believe that they do.

Already, it may be too late to get a coupon in time. Rather than being open ended, the funding is for a specific dollar amount. When all the money is out there in the form of redeemable coupons, new applicants have to wait for coupons to expire, unredeemed.