A large poster showing a digital television converter box is displayed at a Radio Shack store near Ohio State University campus in Columbus, Ohio.
(Kiichiro Sato/AP)Photos (1 of 1)
Digital TV transition hits - what you need to know
In case you're one of the millions that might lose TV service today, here's how to set things straight.
By Gregory M. Lamb | Staff Writer for The Christian Science Monitor/ June 12, 2009 edition
Lisa Poole/AP
Digital television converter boxes are on display at Radio Shack in Gloucester, Mass.
As the last analog signals wink out forever, completing a long-awaited technological upgrade that promises better things to come, an unwelcome jolt hits those who are still unprepared.
By midnight June 12, all the nation’s local television stations are expected to have changed over to a digital signal. Owners of older analog TVs who want to still receive free programming over the airwaves will have to install a converter box or be left staring at a blank screen.
An estimated 2.2 million to 2.8 million households are still unprepared for the changeover, according to research firms SmithGeiger and Nielsen, respectively.
Households with cable or satellite connections will not be affected, no matter the type or age of TV the customer has, since those companies already convert their signal back into analog. (But remember that any secondary household TVs not hooked up to cable – in a den, kitchen, or bedroom, for example – will be affected.)
In theory, owners of TVs with digital tuners, whether high-definition (HDTV) or not, should be fine too. (TVs bought in the last two years probably are digital.) These sets are already equipped to display digital signals transmitted over the airwaves.
But two hurdles may face anyone trying to watch over-the-air TV by the time they awake tomorrow:
You may need a better antenna.
Digital transmissions don’t carry as well as analog signals, and they require better signal strength to keep the picture from flickering off and on – or not appearing at all. Gone is the possibility of settling for a snowy, grainy, or wavy picture. Now it’s crystal clear or nothing, as our tech columnist discovered the hard way. Viewers may need to purchase a more powerful set-top antenna to pull in channels they are used to seeing. In some situations, they may even need to install an attic or rooftop antenna to get adequate service. The website antennaweb.org provides a handy calculator that shows how near your set is to transmission towers and what stations you might be expected to receive depending on the type of antenna you have.
You’ll need to re-calibrate your converter box.
Those installing a converter box now will need to calibrate it to find the new digital TV signals in their area – a simple process explained in the instructions with the box. But some of those signals will be changing as the analog signals are dropped. Stations may adjust their signal strengths too. Even viewers who installed their converter box months ago should re-calibrate it tomorrow and, to be safe, every once in awhile after that in case local stations make further changes. (Antennas may need adjusting, too.)
The above involves just enough nuisance and expense that it may send a few people in search of a good book or back to their radios for news and entertainment. Others will likely sign up for cable or satellite TV to avoid the hassle. (Those who don’t need or want more channels should ask for the least-expensive “basic” package, which may not be advertised by the company.) Still others may move more of their TV viewing online, watching shows at the networks’ own websites or on sites such as Hulu.com.
What’s the good news?
Well, the federal government pocketed about $20 billion from selling off the old airwaves spectrum to private companies that will be able to offer even more new digital wonders, such as enhanced cellphone services.
For viewers who manage to get their antenna and converter box issues settled, digital TV will mean a noticeably sharper picture, even on the same old set. Depending on where they live, it also may mean many more channels to view: Local stations now will have room to broadcast three or four digital channels where before they could broadcast only one in analog. (Note: These are new broadcast channels. Over-the-air viewers still won’t be able to see cable-only channels such as CNN or ESPN.)
Viewers with HDTVs will be able to enjoy some programs broadcast in high-definition without the need of a cable box or satellite dish.
Vouchers worth $40 toward the cost of a converter box (total cost: $40 to $100) are still available from the federal government (limit: two per household). In addition, viewers may be able to receive free help in setting up their converter box and determining their antenna needs.
To apply for vouchers, receive help, or just learn more about the digital transition, go to www.DTV.gov or call the US government’s hotline at 1-888-CALL-FCC (1-888-225-5322).
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Comments
2. Cassie | 06.12.09
Very relevant post. Another way that you can transition is through TiVo’s OTA. They have a YouTube video about it: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=65wdXjKsgQc”
3. JimC | 06.13.09
When multi-national corporations can’t sell enough of the new digital TV’s they’ve spent so much money developing - all they have to do is have the government change the laws to make people buy them.
Too bad those who invented pet rocks didn’t think of this.
4. pearl vecchio | 06.13.09
It’s 6/13/09 and I’m not getting my main stations, my zip is 33067. pompano or parkland FL.
5. mike | 06.14.09
I use over-the-air digital, and the signal strength seems to have suddenly dropped (I lost several digital channels) coincident with the elimination of analog broadcasts. Is there any change to the digital broadcasts?
6. archmac | 06.18.09
Great…we’ve gone back to the dark ages of television and again need to risk life and limb to mount big ugly antennas on our roofs if we want to get even one television station! Back to the days of leaky roofs and men falling off ladders…what progress!
Cable is not available in my NH town, and satellite cannot be configured to work in my house. I now get only one channel, down from 5 before the stations started switching in February (and that is with an amplified indoor antenna).
Thank you, idiot Federal government, for yet another needless hassle.
7. Jerry | 06.18.09
Well, we’ve been without television since last Thursday. We did buy a new television set which ambiguously said it was digitally ready. The FCC told us it was digitally OK. After all, it showed a loading bar in the right place.Since our old antenna didn’t work, we bought a new digital antenna. Unfortunately,the new set still didn’t acquire a single digital station. Three different Tech Support folks from the manufacturer assured us that this model ought to receive digital signals… It must be our location. (We’re located in midtown New York City.) We lugged our old TV to another room, installed a converter, and with the old antenna, we finally got digital reception. Sort of. Everything was fine, except last night, when I changed channels, I found that pesky Analogue talk on the screen where I expected a sportscast.
We tried to install an amplified HDTV antenna on the brand new television set, but a key part of it was missing from the box.
Only a week has elapsed. All the radio and online reports tell us that everyone agrees there’s no problem. That’s reassuring.
8. Andrea | 06.18.09
So far, digital tv is nothing but a huge hassle. Adjusting the attenna is a pain and takes forever because you no longer can see the picture improving like you could on analog. You have to make a slight adjustment, stand back, and wait to see if the ‘little squares’ pop up again. Also, I’ve lost channels I was a fan of for years here in the Detroit area. I had 2-3 Canadian channels I watched weekly and they aren’t going digital for some time. Some local channels still don’t come in no matter how much I adjust and rescan. Crazy waste to have to go through this. I can’t afford cable and am stuck.
9. Baytovin | 06.21.09
I’m curious as to why so many people waited until the last minute to take care of these issues. Digital broadcasting and digital converters have been available for over a year in most areas and making the switch long ago would have prevented much of the annoyance and frustration now being experienced. It isn’t as though the stations forgot to give plenty of warning over the past year. The constant warnings were a frustrating annoyance in themselves.
10. MO | 07.14.09
My converter box worked for a day and a half before it pooped out. I even have a rooftop antenna. We plugged in an old antenna we had laying around and got 5 channels-4 of them were church (one of those four was in Spanish) and some rainbow bright cartoon. Now we get NOTHING. We just bought a house and are in the process of remodeling so we aren’t getting cable until we move in but this is a pain in the … until then.
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1. Mike Licht | 06.12.09
The Digital TV transition is no trouble at all if your cables are correctly polarized. Go to Screen 47 of the DTV Converter Box On-Screen Installation Guide and use the resident GPS to correctly align your antenna for each channel, allowing for local ionospheric conditions, and ARRRGGGHH!
Technical reference:
http://notionscapital.wordpress.com/2009/06/12/tv-d-day-usa/