Digital TV

Okay folks. Sometimes it pays to watch PBS news. I have some interesting news about DTV.

Background
If you watch broadcast TV, not on a cable box, but actually with an antenna, your TV receiver (TV's, many VCRs, some DVD-Rs and Tivos) will no longer receive a signal as of February 2009. The current bandwidth will be converted into digital signals to free up space for emergency broadcasting. Digital transmission offers many advances including:
-more than 4x more efficient use of bandwidth
-increased reception clarity
-high def
-enhanced V-chip functionality (all digital programs can be forced to comply with v-chip standards)

If you have satellite or cable, you're done. They'll be converted over to DTV in a month or so. However, if you don't, you will need a digital receiver or converter box. Many new TVs and recorders are ATSC compliant (ie digital), but a lot of them out there bear that cute little waring that says it will no longer work after feb 17th, 09.

Fortunately, the Government actually thought ahead on this one. If you have recently purchased one of these labeled devices, or just have old equipment that you'd planned to keep running as long as physically possible, then you can get an approved convertor box at a discounted rate. Basically, you get a $40 coupon that you can apply to an approved converter box.
This is the current list of qualifying converter boxes:
* DigitalSTREAM D2A1D10
* DigitalSTREAM D2A1D20
* Zenith DTT900
* Magnavox TB100MW9
* Philco TB150HH9
* MicroGEM MG2000
* Sansonic FT300RT
* MaxMedia MMDTVB03
* Apex DT1001
* ECHOSTAR TR-40
* AMTC AT-2016

Average expected price for approved boxes is about $50-60. Meaning that you may only need to shell out $20 to get up to date.

So, you just go to this website
dtv2009.gov/
and apply for a coupon, or two. The site will handle everything, and let you know what's to come.