Nope! Didn't get anything here ;-)

But thanks for askin'!!!

Pretty sure it's NBC.

The only local stations to me that have gone full power digital and actually broadcast HDTV are PBS and CBS. The ABC station is digital, but at standard (EDTV?) resolution. My NBC station doesn't transmit ANY digital signals yet. On the rare occasions I get all 14 channels I mentioned earlier, they are from cities much farther away. It's as if those stations all agree to do full-power tests on certain days.

IMO, if the government really wants to get everyone to move to digital, they need to give some incentives. Free Digital-to-NTSC boxes for those who can't afford digital TVs. Some bonuses to TV stations related to the percentage of wide-screen HDTV they air. Maybe some form of buy-back or trade-in offered for old TVs when someone buys a new HDTV of any type. "bring in any old TV and get $200 off any plasma or LCD HDTV we sell!"

I'm still waiting.

Dave B.

Yeah, just think of it. People just THROWING TVs away so the poisonous gases can be in the dump or giving them away to Goodwill or some place like that and nobody wanting to buy them. Just a huge prob if the companies don't recycle them. (for when EVERYTHING is in HD)


(sry about the messed up quote thing)

There's no reason to believe the old TVs will be thrown away irresponsively. At least not any more than they are right now. There are companies out there that mine old electronics for valuable metals. If they would chip in with the Govt, to buy back or allow trade in for new TVs then most people would opt to bring the old TV in for the cash or trade value and recycling rather than just throw it out.

My little town sponsors a "turn-it-in" week each spring where old chemicals, electronics, batteries, and whatever else should be recycled or disposed of with care can be turned in at several locations. The city then arranges for that stuff to be taken care of.

I think one thing they definitly need to do is bring the prices of ATSC tuners down, with some barebones cheapones that basically just decrpt the digital signal in 480p for older NTSC TVs... just so they can actually get the stations... Say a $50 -$70 piece, I know I would be good for at least 10...

I purchased a sanyo 30" HDTV from Walmart that came with NTSC and ATSC tuners built in. <$700. I also think the Govt. is pushing TV manufacturers to inlude tuners in their HDTVs. There is probably a deadline for that, too.

As for stand-alone ATSC tuner boxes, I agree they should be readily available and inexpensive. They are not much more complicated than NTSC tuners, and every $40 VCR has one of those in it. I think $29.95 is a good and fair price for a black box NTSC/ATSC tuner with remote. $19.95 would be a great price, and surely help sell more of those HDTV-Ready screens out there.

I kinda thought the ATSC tuners were still high cost because of computation required to decode the digital signal which needs a CPU of some nature. Also the sensitivity of the tuner has to be of good enough quality to pick up some of the remote or lower power stations.

In any event the whole ATSC tuner circuit will be squeezed in to one surface mount chip in another couple of years. I just hope they don't cheapen it to the point of not picking up fringe stations.


-Don B

But what we are talking about is the ability to have dirt cheap ATSC tuners, where people do not necessarily care about the fringe stations. I am all for having some more expensive ATSC tuners that have better signal quality for more money, I am even waiting for the ATSC tuner that has the DVR built with it (you can do it now, but it isnt widespread really, so I want something good)