Within a year, your old TV may be a dinosaur. On Feb. 17, 2009, the transition to digital television broadcasting will conclude for all full-power television stations.
Translators and low-power broadcasters will conclude the transition at a later time.
While some televisions are already equipped to receive those digital signals, other sets only capable of handling analog signals won’t work properly after the February 2009 date — unless they are outfitted with digital-to-analog converter boxes, according to B.R. Forbes, public affairs spokesperson for the National Telecommunications & Information Administration.
The federal government has already launched a Digital-to-Analog Converter Box Coupon Program and as of Jan. 1, all U.S. households will be eligible to request up to two coupons to be used toward the purchase of two digital-to-analog converter boxes, which may also be referred to as a Coupon-Eligible Converter Box (CECB).
“The unit converts the over-the-air TV signal into an analog format that can be translated by the television set,” Forbes said. “The converter box isn’t needed if the television has a built-in digital tuner and will not work with cable or satellite service.”
“When people go into purchase the converter boxes, manufacturers should include simple installation instructions for the model of TV the customer owns,” Forbes said.
If it’s difficult to understand all those high-tech terms or you don’t speak geek, Rick Storm, manager of Rex TV & Appliance in Auburn, has simpler way of describing why an analog TV set will have problems after February 2009.
“It’s kind of like comparing the TVs most of us grew up watching that received analog signals speaking English. But now, the digital signal TVs will get is like French. So a set that is only equipped to get the analog signal can’t understand the language.”
Fortunately, converter boxes speak both languages.
Picture quality should improve with the switch, according to Storm.
“The television picture will have about eight to 10 times better with more resolution,” said Storm, who has been working in the TV sales business for 25 years. “It’ll be so clear, it’ll be like looking out the window.”
Nearly all the TV sets at Rex are already equipped to receive a digital signal, according to Storm.
Most TVs manufactured since 2007 have ATSC (Advanced Television System Committee) tuners.
However, televisions that are sold that are only designed to receive an analog signal must be clearly marked with a sticker that states such by retailers.
Visit www.dtvtransition.org to take the quiz to see if a converter box is the right choice for you.
For more on the transition, visit www.dtv2009.gov.
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