TV Digital Conversion
January 13, 2009
Do you have have questions about the digital television conversion, HD television, or how to pick out the right television. Rob Hill of Hills Appliance answered your questions.
Moderator: Rob Hill of Hill's Appliance is in The Gazette newsroom answering your questions about the conversion to digital television signals and other TV questions. Rob has worked in his family's business for 15 years. If you have questions, go ahead and ask them. And don't forget to hit your Refresh button to keep up with the chat.
moderator: When picking out a new T.V. what features should people look for to maximize their viewing experience?
Rob Hill: It depends a little on the application the TV will be used for and what he environment is like in the veiwing area. For instance, If you have a Sony Play Station 3 or a Blu Ray disc player and want a larger(46" & up),TV you would want to look at a TV with the 1080 P feature that takes advantage of the high quality signal and keeps it sharp on a larger screen. While a 720 p TV is really just fine for veiwing cable,satellite or off air signals. Especially since they are not broadcasting 1080 P signals and may not be for some time. And smaller TV's don't need the 1080 P feature as much because there are well over a million pixels on the screen producing excellent high definition sharpness. And as for the difference in Plasma & LCD. They are both high quality long lasting technology. Most negatives being spread around about plasma TV's are problems that were rare and in the past. The main difference is just that plasma has a glass screen and does reflect the light more that the plastic LCD screen. So if a lot of sunlight or bright lights shine on your TV the LCD may be a better choice. While some experts actually prefer Plasma if it is in a low light area such as a basement. Plasma also has a faster processor for less motion blur and usually better contrast ratio. The new 120 htz processor on LCD is better than the earlier LCD 60 htz processor providing less motion blur but it does cost more and many people may not really notice much difference and I think that issue can be improved more in time with better filming and broadcasting. Many people are actually getting hung up on too many details, buzz words, rumors and myths. A basic good quality TV is fine for most people.
moderator: What is this digital conversion and why is it being done?
Rob Hill: United States interests decided to switch to digital and high definition many years ago and it has been a long process. It was originally to provide a better picture quality and added capabilities. What a lot of people don't realize is that the government actually may have made things simpler than it could have been. Manufacturers of TV's, filmers and broadcasters were all planning on going high definition but many of them couldn't agree on the exact type of technology to use and neither could filmers & broadcasters. Things at that point could have become a real mess because many products would not be compatible with each other or the signal and everyone would have been confused on what to buy and what would work with what. That's when the government stepped in to standardize the way the signals would be filmed and broadcast and the way TV's would be made so that they would all work together and set dates of when it should be done by. The government will although get some benefit from aquiring that analog air space for security and emergency resources and what they don't need the will auction off to the highest bidders in the corporate and private businesses that can use it.
moderator: How will this digital conversion change our television viewing experience?
Rob Hill: People who live near the broadcasters or larger cities ,and have an antenna, will love it because the will have better picture quality as well as more channels. The problem at this time is that some people that live on the outskirts of the reach of a digital signal may not receive it even though they were getting the analog signal before. This especially applies to people on rabbit ears. As the old analog signal got weaker(farther out) the picture would get snowy and some people could live with that, but when a digital signal gets weak it just goes out completley so you get nothing at all.
tzkmom: We have a converter box but the signal is weak. Will they boost the power or will I need some kind of booster?
Rob Hill: The broadcasters are going through changes right now that are affecting the strength and quality of the signals on TV's as well as digital converter boxes. After February 17th many of them will be switching their digital signal from UHF to VHF and boosting the power. You may want to wait and see how things look around the end of February before spending much money upgrading and antenna system.
Free4all: With a converter and a basic set of rabbit ears, what channels should I expect to get here in Emporia.
Rob Hill: Unfortunatley at this time most people are not getting digital reception on rabbit ears in the Emporia area even though they were getting the analog signal to their satisfaction. I don't think anybody knows , at this point, if that will be remedied when they boost the signal after February 17th. Although if you hold the top of your left rabbit ear in your right hand and hold your left foot in the air and don't move it usually helps. Actually most people in the Emporia area have received Channel 13 mostly, lucky ones got 11, few got 27 & 49. Once the signal goes digital there are more possibilities like 13-1, 11-1,11-2,11-3,27-1 and so on. It just remains to be seen what actually happens out here on the fringe.
jacque461: I have tried two different digital boxes and have the right antenea and still don't get a picture. Am I just out of luck? I do live in the country outside of Olpe.
Rob Hill: At this time it is hard to say. Living south of Emporia you are on the edge of digital reception, Especially right now. You'll just have to wait and see what happens by the end of February when they boost the signal. I would recomend a large antenna and a booster and it needs to be pointed just right. But I would wait and see what happens before spending much money on antenna upgrades. The one positive though for people who spend money on an antenna is that the signal is free from then on.
Observation: Are there a lot of the DTV converter boxes locally available currently, or are they in short supply?
Rob Hill: The converter boxes have seemed to be in short supply in the Emporia area ever since they've been on the market. I'v only been out of them for 2 or 3 days though in the last several months. You can check with any retailer that sells electronics and if you get the government coupon they have a list with it telling you who should be stocking them in your area. Most everybody underestimated how many people would want them and manufactures and retailers don't want to be stuck with a lot of them when everybody is done buying them.
ddarbro: Is it true that one of the reasons that we are going digital is so that they can start charging us for over the air broadcasts? This is what happened to the satellite industry. Without digital they have no way of charging us, but once they go digital they can scramble the signals and require us to purchase another box to unscramble the signal and charge us a monthly charge. The same as satellite. I believe the industry is the one pushing this change. We have been fine for over 60 years with antenna's and now they are forcing us to make it easier for them to take away just one more of our freedoms. Big business and greed always seems to tell us what they know is good for us. If it fills their pockets.
Rob Hill: I stay in pretty good touch with what's happening in the industry and have not heard anything in the form of rumors or facts talking about charging for over the air signals. I think as long as the broadcasters have enough veiwers their will be enouph advertisers interested in advertising on their station and that's where they make most of their income.
MatthewCook: I got a digital converter box and connected it to my antenna. It picked up one channel for about 30 minutes, then proceeded to declare that i had "0% antenna strength". The instructions say to readjust the antenna, but no matter the position of it it always comes up 0%. I've checked all the connections and am sure that my antenna is functional (i can pick old analog channels). what's the problem?
Rob Hill: You are probably just too far away from the broadcaster or have too small of an antenna at this time. you may want to wait and see what happens at the end of February. If you still don't receive a signal after they boost the power you basically have two choices of what you can do if you want to receive an over the air signal, and those are to get a larger antenna or move closer to Topeka. Most people arn't choosing the later.
connielarry: Hi Ron In December I purchased a Lg television from Hills (love the tv by the way). Connected everything like you said and when Channel 13 did their digital test I did not receive the signal. The tv is only connected to a set of rabbit ears. Could that be where the problem is? Cable is not an option. Do I need an outdoor antenna or just a different set of rabbit ears? The rabbit ears I am using now allows me to receive good reception. Thanks for you help.
Rob Hill: That has been a very common question & problem. Some of these tests have been very confusing to people. Even people with digital tv's are thinking they are not digital ready when they are. If you do not have your tv actually on a digital channel when the test occurs it will show you no picture and most people conducting the test hav'nt explained this. Even people watching cable have seen these tests and think they're not going to get a signal when they actually have nothing to worry about. It remains to be seen if you will pick up the digital signal after Feb. 17th. They will boost the signal after that and hopefully you'll be ok.
Moderator: We hope Rob's answers have helped explain the situation for all of you. Right now, it sounds as if "wait and see" is the best advice. Check your signal after the switchover on Feb. 17. After that, it's time to ask more questions. For now, though, these are all the questions we've got. We'll let Rob get back to work. You can read a full transcript of the chat in the print edition of The Gazette.