As everyone should know by now, all analog TV broadcasts are suppose to end in mid-February. Don't forget that this means not only will your living room TV set stop receiving, but so will your VCR, the little set in the garage, the portable in your travel trailer, the handheld you take to the ball game, the old TV tuner card/dongle in your desktop PC...all will be nothing but paperweights (1)!
Have you purchased a converter box yet? Did you even apply for the federal coupon program? If you haven't applied for your coupon(s) yet, get your butt over to www.dtv2009.gov and apply. There may be a delay as I've heard they ran out of money, but the Demicans and Republicrats youse guys voted in will be forking over more bucks soon. Anyway, I just got mine. I think the way it works is if you fill out the online form and answer that you have one or more TV sets hooked up to cable or satellite, you only get one $40 coupon, and two if you say you have only over-the-air TV service. I just received my two coupons and am looking for a couple of converters on which to spend them, hence this thread.
Has anyone purchased a converter box? If so, what brand/model did you purchase and how do you like it? Did you manage to find one equal to the value of the $40 federal coupon? So far, I have not found a $40 box. The cheapest I've found are in the $50-70 range. They're the basic models with an antenna in jack, a TV out jack, and a set of composite/audio jacks. They perform the minimal DTV conversion, but have no analog RF signal passthrough (2), no 'next program' schedule feature, no TV controls from the provided remote control, and one requires you to toggle a switch on the unit to go from 4x3 to 16x9.
So, hopefully some of you have found a $40 unit and can give me the low down. Also, if you weren't able to find an 'approved' $40 unit either, tell me what you did get. Did you go high-end? Do you regret it and wish you'd just got the cheapo? What cool 'gotta have' features are included in your fancy-schmancy box? Meanwhile, I'll be going through the 'approved' list at www.ntiadtv.gov/cecb_list.cfm. I've heard a scary rumor that some manufactures have stopped shipping converters for fear they've misjudged demand and don't want to be left with a lot of merchandise on the shelves. The list at the website mentioned above seems to confirm that. About half the approved converters are listed as 'not currently available' by the manufacturers.
Ok then, while I'm searching for best deals from the governments approved list, all youse guys with boxes can post your reviews here and include a picture or two, mmmk (3)?
Almost forgot, non-USA folks, are youse guys doing or have you already done a digital switchover like we are doing?
(1) Unless you're getting your signal from cable or satellite.
(2) Good if you want to hook up that old VCR/DVD or you're in a remote area that has received a digital switchover extension from the FCC.
(3) Those without TV, don't bother posting about how superior you are over us TV watchers, but feel free to go start a thread on your taste comparison of deciduous tree leaves.
Have you purchased a converter box yet? Did you even apply for the federal coupon program? If you haven't applied for your coupon(s) yet, get your butt over to www.dtv2009.gov and apply. There may be a delay as I've heard they ran out of money, but the Demicans and Republicrats youse guys voted in will be forking over more bucks soon. Anyway, I just got mine. I think the way it works is if you fill out the online form and answer that you have one or more TV sets hooked up to cable or satellite, you only get one $40 coupon, and two if you say you have only over-the-air TV service. I just received my two coupons and am looking for a couple of converters on which to spend them, hence this thread.
Has anyone purchased a converter box? If so, what brand/model did you purchase and how do you like it? Did you manage to find one equal to the value of the $40 federal coupon? So far, I have not found a $40 box. The cheapest I've found are in the $50-70 range. They're the basic models with an antenna in jack, a TV out jack, and a set of composite/audio jacks. They perform the minimal DTV conversion, but have no analog RF signal passthrough (2), no 'next program' schedule feature, no TV controls from the provided remote control, and one requires you to toggle a switch on the unit to go from 4x3 to 16x9.
So, hopefully some of you have found a $40 unit and can give me the low down. Also, if you weren't able to find an 'approved' $40 unit either, tell me what you did get. Did you go high-end? Do you regret it and wish you'd just got the cheapo? What cool 'gotta have' features are included in your fancy-schmancy box? Meanwhile, I'll be going through the 'approved' list at www.ntiadtv.gov/cecb_list.cfm. I've heard a scary rumor that some manufactures have stopped shipping converters for fear they've misjudged demand and don't want to be left with a lot of merchandise on the shelves. The list at the website mentioned above seems to confirm that. About half the approved converters are listed as 'not currently available' by the manufacturers.
Ok then, while I'm searching for best deals from the governments approved list, all youse guys with boxes can post your reviews here and include a picture or two, mmmk (3)?
Almost forgot, non-USA folks, are youse guys doing or have you already done a digital switchover like we are doing?
(1) Unless you're getting your signal from cable or satellite.
(2) Good if you want to hook up that old VCR/DVD or you're in a remote area that has received a digital switchover extension from the FCC.
(3) Those without TV, don't bother posting about how superior you are over us TV watchers, but feel free to go start a thread on your taste comparison of deciduous tree leaves.
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