We bought a new TV some time ago. With analog TV going bye-bye, and digital TV saying hello, we decided to get a TV that could take digital signals. The way it's set up now, you just see the regular analog channels and it doesn't look any different. But yesterday, I got curious. I had been reading up on digital and saw that a station can broadcast several signals across the same channel. Bleh-what? Okay, this means that a regular station like Channel 41 in Kansas City broadcasts it's regular station on the digital channel 41.1. But, on 41.2 they broadcast a 24 hour weather station. Which isn't that cool until you don't have cable or satellite.
See, the digital TV upgrade won't really affect cable or satellite subscribers. February of 2009 will roll around and won't be a big deal. But for us that have older TVs, we have to get a converter box (the government has a website where you can request two $40 off coupons for the converters).
I was curious about what extra signals I was getting, so I switched over to the digital side and took a look. The first thing I noticed is that changing channels is very slow. It takes about five seconds to get from one to another. But, I can be patient. What I noticed is I now have two 24 hour weather stations, four PBS stations, four religious nut stations, and a few other gems I'll have to check out later. That means my non-cable TV that used to get ten stations, now gets 21 stations. I realize that most of them still suck, but how is that different than cable? And, it's free.
So if you have no cable or satellite, and your TV is a newer set that gets digital, take a look. You may find more junk to watch.
Now I just need some guide that will tell me exactly what these stations are. There used to be one of those, but I don't think they actually show TV schedules any more.
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4 comments:
You wanna know something crazy? I have never bought a TV...NEVER. Oh, yes, I have owned several TVs but I didn't buy any of them. I will probably wait until January of 2009 to buy a new one in the hopes that either someone will buy me one for a gift or...someone will buy me one for a gift. We'll see what happens.
I didn't know we were all going digital in 2009!! Where have I been, under a rock? Suck. I don't want to buy a new TV and I don't want 40 dollar off coupons. I just want my TV to work like it does now. Is that too much to ask?
Well, your TV will work, but you'll have to get a digital converter (think cable box) to convert the signal to the old TV. They cost $50, and you can get a coupon from the government for $40 off. But you should request the coupon sooner rather than later because the government is SLOW.
So don't buy a new TV.
I would like to set the record strait. We bought the tv in the bedroom because we wanted a new VCR in the bedroom and got a new tv instead. It has a VCR in it so we can tape our shows. We didn't get it because its digital, but it sounds good. Maybe that was one of Matt's reasons, but not mine.
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