OT Digital Converter Boxes

The converter box connects to the television, so if you have reception with no antenna, you will still have it, but they will broadcast in the digital format. Most televisions these days are sold with the converter built in already.

Unfortunately, the TV I attached it to gets a dozen channels with the antenna and when I tried to program the converter box, it said "zero channels available".

Since the most powerful station in the area is already broadcasting on digital (and I think some of the others are, too), if the box can't receive any digital channels at all, that means that the antenna built into the TV is not pulling in signals for the converter box. Which I didn't think it would, since the built-in antenna signal wouldn't be going through the converter box before going to the TV; of course, my broadcast engineering training was eons ago and pertained only to radio, so I was holding open the option that someone at the manufacturer had thought about the many people who watch TV in the back yard or at a campground or somewhere else where all they have is the built-in antenna.

I offered it up just as a "food for thought" for those who (like me) were dithering on whether to buy the box or a new TV. Since I'm in a Historic Preservation District and am not allowed to put an antenna outside the house, for the cost of the box + separate rabbit ears, and the hassle of dragging the box + rabbit ears around as I move the portable TV (i.e., three trips down the stairs instead of one), I would've been better off to just buy a new digital TV. Which is what I'm going to do, and give the old one and the converter box away to someone who does have a rooftop antenna and can make use of them.

Just ticks me off that with all the PR that they're giving about "you must get the converter box", none of the media have let us know that if you use only the antenna in the TV, the box alone is not enough. I would've preferred not to spend the money on the converter box if I was going to have to spend even more money to make it work.

As far as I know there are no channels over the air currently broadcasting in digital format. That may be why you didn't find any channels using the converter...Just a thought. If you are receiving a channel, and you don't have a digital television, the broadcast is definitely not being sent out in digital format.

The TV in our bedroom went out and I bought a 20" RCA digital for under 150. Smaller sets were much cheaper. Nobody is broadcasting digital signals until 2-17-2009. However, there may well be a few doing so, and if so, you can go to

and find out why the converter is not picking anything up. Maybe it's a setting.

My MIL, I just found out from my husband as I type this, does have her box set up and she is receiving ancillary channels, secondary PBS stations, etc. But she has a roof antennae.

Personally, I have satellite, but I'm with you. Forcing this technology on everyone stinks. I don't blame you for being annoyed.

Victoria

Channel 3 has been broadcasting in digital format as well as analog for quite some time to make sure that they don't have a changeover problem in February; in February, they'll just flip the Off switch on the analog transmitter. They're always at the forefront of new technology, and are also the highest-power signal in the area, so the fact that I cannot even pull them in with just the converter box tells me that I'll need to attach some sort of antenna to the box because it doesn't have a built-in antenna.

I do have cable for inside the house, but when I want to sit outside, I use the portable.

I don't mind the new technology, I mind that they're not giving full information. Buy the box and only then find out that it doesn't work and you need to buy something else to make it work.

Fortunately, I got the $40 coupon, and fortunately, the $20 it cost me for the box at Radio Shack is not going to break the budget, and fortunately, I have a friend who has an antenna but can't afford the box, so the box isn't going to waste, but I would've rather been told before I bought the box that I'd also need to buy rabbit ears to attach to the box, because then I would've skipped that purchase and gone directly to "buy digital TV".

Which is where I'm at now, but figured I'd save someone else in the same boat the trouble of making two trips to Radio Shack -- let them make an informed choice between box or new TV.

Well doesn't everyone know that anything sanctioned by the FCC is assured to be a huge PITA. If you are looking at a small 13 inch for outside, I saw them at Best Buy for under 100. Still, the whole idea is annoying.

I pay an astronomical satellite bill because we don't go out and spend money on eating out or other things like it. I personally don't like this digital signal. When a film has a scene in a dark room or night setting, the whole thing gets pixelated because of how they compress the signal. I mean, do we really NEED ten million news channels and every shopping channel on the planet?

Eh, this is just one of my pet peeves with things being forced down my throat and the throats of people who don't have money for gas to get to their second job. Just to watch a television show they'll have to buy this nonsense.

Just me blowing steam.

V

Thanks for the tip. WalMart has one on the website for $114, but it's not in the stores, and I didn't want to buy it sight unseen. I was going to check the Best Buy and Circuit City websites, but hadn't gotten to it yet.

Then, because this neighborhood has so many power outages, I'll also be looking for a battery-operated TV, so if anyone spots one of those, let me know where. The last time I asked about one at a store, she started trying to sell me one of those expensive new cell phones that lets you watch TV, and didn't get it that I meant something with easily replaceable batteries, because (DUH!) if the power's out, I can't recharge the cell phone.

Hold onto your hats, everyone ... I'm going to agree with Victoria on something! :)

It seems to me that since the local news went to digital recording equipment, they have more problems with pre-recorded segments fouling up than they ever did with tape. I keep yelling at the TV "remind me again why this is an improvement?"

And some of the national cable signals are now, as Vic said, pixilating for no reason or, worse yet, freezing entirely. In the middle of a sentence, the show stops, and picks up a few seconds later, with no clue what the lost dialogue was. One of these days, it's going to freeze in the middle of "the murderer is" and pick up with "The End", and when you hear of a murder at the movie channel HQ, you'll have no doubt who the murderer was!

Thanks for the tip. WalMart has one on the website for $114, but it's not in the stores, and I didn't want to buy it sight unseen. I was going to check the Best Buy and Circuit City websites, but hadn't gotten to it yet.

Then, because this neighborhood has so many power outages, I'll also be looking for a battery-operated TV, so if anyone spots one of those, let me know where. The last time I asked about one at a store, she started trying to sell me one of those expensive new cell phones that lets you watch TV, and didn't get it that I meant something with easily replaceable batteries, because (DUH!) if the power's out, I can't recharge the cell phone.

Hold onto your hats, everyone ... I'm going to agree with Victoria on something! :)

It seems to me that since the local news went to digital recording equipment, they have more problems with pre-recorded segments fouling up than they ever did with tape. I keep yelling at the TV "remind me again why this is an improvement?"

And some of the national cable signals are now, as Vic said, pixilating for no reason or, worse yet, freezing entirely. In the middle of a sentence, the show stops, and picks up a few seconds later, with no clue what the lost dialogue was. One of these days, it's going to freeze in the middle of "the murderer is" and pick up with "The End", and when you hear of a murder at the movie channel HQ, you'll have no doubt who the murderer was!

Here in the UK our TV transmitters are being converted to from analogue to digital. According to the changeover begins this year, our region should be completed by 2010 and the whole of the UK should be completed by 2012. However, as our TV hasn't been switched on since just before Christmas

2007 I don't think we'll be too worried There's always something more interesting to be getting on with and in any case the programmes on the wireless are much better. Bruce

Be very careful about the purchase of a battery operated TV. I have one but it only will work with an antenna and our news tells us that it won't pick up the HD signal at all. Needless to say the converter box will be useless because there isn't any electricity to power it.

So far they haven't come up with one that will work. In this hurricane country they tell us all this depressing information way back in May to aggravate us.

Lucille

I'm glad. Even a broken clock is right twice a day.

The reason to be digital is so they can fit more channels with compression. It's actually not an improvement. I'd prefer they spend government money on feeding children who have nothing IN America. Digital signals are less expensive to broadcast and only one or two satellites are needed to carry hundreds of channels.

They don't do it on purpose, it's the nature of digital. If a bird flies by, or if there are heavy clouds it will effect the signal. Even if people don't have personal digital satellite dishes, the ones at their stations are still subject to rain fade and any number of other things.

v

Hey there Vic. Don't faint but I agree with you too.

Will wonders never cease!!! RD&H

Lucille

I share your frustration with the freezing and pixillated picture, but that seems minor compared to the fact that local news has very little "local news" anymore. They repeat the weather report three or four times; spend five minutes on sports; announce who got booted off what island or dance show or whatever on their own network's primetime lineup; what celebrity a.) announced her pregnancy, b.) announced a divorce, c.) entered rehab; and show us (in Baltimore MD) the film footage of a house on fire in Kansas or a crook jumping over the counter of a 7-11 in Arizona....even while the Royal Farms down the street gets knocked off fairly regularly, but never gets mentioned on the news, presumably because there's no exciting video footage. Oh, yeah - they have to end with "good news", so there's always a puppy rescue or a kid with cancer being visited by a football star or whatever, followed by two minutes of the newsteam joking around, laughing, yadda-yadda....

Hey, I don't want you to be my *friends*! I want you to tell me what's

*happening* around the city where I live!!!

Sue (is it this bad where you are?)

Yep--it's that bad where I are.

Lucille in Port St Lucie, FL

That's what I was trying to explain to the dingbat at the store, about why I couldn't use the converter box she was in the process of ringing up with my existing battery-operated TV. The concept of "the power is out, I can't plug in the converter box" apparently had gone right past her until that moment.

Well, it's much easier to agree with someone who isn't Queen Bitch of the Universe!

I've done some work on myself. I'm still a maniac on the gardening newsgroup, but only to those who are ridiculous.

Glad to see my efforts are regaining trust.

v

We only watch the local news for the weather. However, they are transparent also. Whenever the teaser says, "Some storms to the west, will it rain in Central Texas?" We always know that means no, it isn't going to rain here.

So we resorted to watching MSNBC for a while when Keith Olbermann until he started doing the cutsey, tween stories with the gossip idiot and the fluffy piece in the middle of his ranting about current events. I don't want things DISfused. We are in huge trouble in the States. We have yet to really feel this situation.

So, the only intelligent news we get any more is Bill Moyers on PBS or NPR. Believe it or not, also on the Daily Show and Stephen Colbert on Comedy Central.

Sad.

snip

After reading this, I realize that we have an EXCELLENT local news team here at KOBI in Medford. Granted, they cover a large area and sometimes "local" means Coos Bay or Klamath Falls or Ashland but, other than a secton where they do cover "national" news, they really do try to concentrate on news happening within their viewing area. Even though we watch only on the weekends (work swing shift) for the weather, the meteorologists are all good and will answer emails about weather questions that viewers send in and try to do a good job at explaining the variances in the conditions throughout their area. There can be a huge difference between the weather in coastal Brookings and the weather at Crater Lake or Christmas Valley. :-) The sports would be kind of hokey to people coming from larger areas. They give a little time to Portland Trailblazers or the Seattle or San Francisco baseball/football teams but the majority of their time goes to high school sports.

One little side story they started a couple of years ago is the "Tank of Gas Getaway", which highlights local places that tend to get overlooked by local people. Depending on where in the viewing area a person lives, the getaway can involve a tank of gas round trip or, maybe one each way. Some may involve spending money when you get there, like the aquarium in Crescent City, or some may be a great view or a nice hike with a picnic lunch.

Sure, sometimes someone will push the wrong button or a new person may stumble over their words a little, but the news is LOCAL and the people seem genuinely interested in the community. It must be good, it gave Anne Curry part of the experience that took her to the Today Show. :-))))) Her dad passed away not too long ago and it was pleasant to see that the coverage was more about HIS contribution to the community than about his daugher being famous. :-) Nice father - nice daughter. :-)

Liz from Humbug