Digital TV broadcasting is coming.

[mikeschn]

Digital TV broadcasting is coming. To see if your stuff will work, check here:
http://www.dtvanswers.com/dtv_how.html

Mike...

[48Rob]

Mike,

Are you implying that we don't all have cable television in our trailers?

Rob

[kartvines]

I posted a question a while back related to this, because I knew that the TV I bought in my flip down device would never work now that the conversion is coming, and to think we have yet to try the TV once since I started to restore my 1965 Scad-A-Bout. We bought one of those converter boxes hoping it would not need A/C to power it but was disappointed to find it did, so if we want to watch TV in the future we must either park in a camp ground with A/C or power the converter box off our battery with power inverter.

[MrBuzz]

Digital signals might be a real plus for us TD-er's. The signals seem to be stronger than the older analog signals, probably because they are using brand new equipment. And there is more content available too and being digital it's a short hop to displaying on a laptop.
This summer I'm going to be testing a USB TV tuner-on-a-stick device that plugs into my laptop so I can watch & record TV on that. It has a small external antenna like a car cellphone antenna and seems to pull in stations pretty well so far.

[TPMcGinty]

I ordered my $40 digital converter coupon today! I'm not sure how much power a converter takes.

[bobhenry]

I ordered my $40 digital converter coupon today! I'm not sure how much power a converter takes.

Here is the 12 volt one I found on general discussion of same topic

http://www.ezdigitaltv.com/Artec_T3A.html

Says 4 watts power consumption max.

[bobhenry]

Mike,

Are you implying that we don't all have cable television in our trailers?

Rob

By Feb 09 gasoline will be $17.50 a gallon and we can just put a splitter in the house line and run cable to the back yard where we will be camping in our teardrops. This will be the only place we can afford to drive to.

[mikeschn]

By Feb 09 gasoline will be $17.50 a gallon and we can just put a splitter in the house line and run cable to the back yard where we will be camping in our teardrops. This will be the only place we can afford to drive to.

[Alphacarina]

Digital signals might be a real plus for us TD-er's. The signals seem to be stronger than the older analog signals, probably because they are using brand new equipment.

Digital is much clearer not because the signals are stronger but because analog signals vary from strong and clear to weak and fuzzy and everything in between. Digital is all or nothing - If you have even a minimal signal, the picture is 100% perfect . . . . because it's digital - All or nothing

Don

[Alphacarina]

By Feb 09 gasoline will be $17.50 a gallon . . . .

Yup - We're caught between a rock and a hard place

As the world price of oil skyrockets due to increased demand (wait til every Chinese household has a car!) we're force to pay for gas with the nearly worthless George Bush dollars - You may be right . . . . we can only hope it's not $20 a gallon by then

The good news is, we may all be earning $50 an hour by then

Don

[Airspeed]

well heck! We'll be OK! Bush is sending us all a check to help us out and get the economy rolling again! I'm going to fill the gas tank in my Blazer with my incentive check!

[starleen2]

finally an excuse for the misses to buy on of them flat screen TV's

[davefullmer]

My wife and I have been having a "discussion" about the need for a conversion box. Maybe someone here has direct knowledge about this subject.

"She says" We need to either buy the conversion box or get on Satalite to receive a signal on our new HDTV.

"I say" We will have to buy a new antenna that will receive digital, but won't need the converter or a dish.

HELP before this blows up into a argument rather that a "discussion".

Dave

[TPMcGinty]

My wife and I have been having a "discussion" about the need for a conversion box. Maybe someone here has direct knowledge about this subject.

"She says" We need to either buy the conversion box or get on Satalite to receive a signal on our new HDTV.

"I say" We will have to buy a new antenna that will receive digital, but won't need the converter or a dish.

HELP before this blows up into a argument rather that a "discussion".

Dave

In most cases the HDTV's already have a built in high definition (ATSC) receiver. You will have to check your owners manual. If you have one built in you don't need a converter.

As for your antenna, most antennas are capable of receiving the necessary high definition signals. You are probably OK. Try it and see if it works before going out and spending money on an antenna you didn't need.

[brian_bp]

My wife and I have been having a "discussion" about the need for a conversion box. Maybe someone here has direct knowledge about this subject.

"She says" We need to either buy the conversion box or get on Satalite to receive a signal on our new HDTV.

"I say" We will have to buy a new antenna that will receive digital, but won't need the converter or a dish.

HELP before this blows up into a argument rather that a "discussion".

Dave

In most cases the HDTV's already have a built in high definition (ATSC) receiver. You will have to check your owners manual. If you have one built in you don't need a converter.

As for your antenna, most antennas are capable of receiving the necessary high definition signals. You are probably OK. Try it and see if it works before going out and spending money on an antenna you didn't need.

I agree with Tim, and I'll add two more details...

If the HD TV is really new, it is legally required to have an ATSC tuner (to protect the consumer from needing to buy a converter; your government looking out for you). If you bought it from someone in Hong Kong via eBay, all bets are off.

Since the digital TV broadcasts appear to be in the UHF range, an existing TV antenna that works for the old broadcast channels 14 and up should work for digital. An antenna designed only for VHF (channels 2 through 13) would not likely be suitable, but as Tim says, most will work (because most are for VHF and UHF).