[Grovenet] Here's a little more on the DTV (Not to be confused with HDTV ! ! ! ! )

Mon Mar 31 18:35:52 PDT 2008

would it be so terrible for people to have to buy their own converter?

I'm really not certain why the government is forking out the money for these boxes anyway, we've known this is going to happen for a long time, plus it is almost a year before it happens, someone can't save $40 by then?

also, I agree, many people will buy them and then find out they don't need them because they won't have realized that if they have cable or satellite they don't need them, that will cause a flood of them in Freecycle hopefully.

Vickie

Bob Browning <rab at jurislex.com> wrote:               Crave  
  A Blog from CNET 

       Mar 31 2008
  Don't sign up for your $40 DTV converter box coupon--yet     
    Matthew Moskovciak

   The DTV transition is less than a year away and as of January 1, 2008, Americans have been eligible to sign up for a $40 coupon to help purchase DTV converter boxes needed to receive new digital TV signals. While your instincts may tell you to sign up as quickly as possible, there's a strong argument to be made to hold off for a little while. Here's why:
 1. The coupon expires in three months
 If you carefully read you the FAQ on the government's Web site, the program clearly states that the $40 coupons expire three months after they're shipped. That's unfortunate because we're guessing many people don't think much of it, and are just trying to sign up before they forget. Now you're forced into getting whatever DTV boxes that are currently on the market, even though...
 2. Better, cheaper boxes are coming
 None of the DTV converter boxes we've seen so far are available for $40 yet, which means you'll need to kick in some real American dollars in addition to your coupon. Echostar is planning on releasing a $40 converter box, the TR-40, but it won't come out until this summer--so if you already have your coupon, you probably won't be able to get it. That wouldn't be so bad, except that the Echostar TR-40 looks like it's going to be substantially better than current models, offering a full EPG and program search functionality. Even if the Echostar device isn't everything it's cracked up to be...
 3. Current models will get cheaper
 This is just an educated guess, but don't be surprised if all of the current DTV converter boxes currently going for $50 to $60 suddenly drop to $40 once the Echostar TR-40 comes out. It will be near impossible for the other boxes to compete with free, so they'll be forced to sell for $40, which means it essentially free to consumers with a coupon.
 The main counterargument against waiting is that if you wait too long, it's possible that the government's coupon program will run out of money. That's definitely something to consider, as there are only 22.25 million coupons available. After those are used up, an additional 11.25 million coupons will become available, but only to households that solely use analog over-the-air TV (no cable, satellite, Fios, and so on). So if you're worried that you're not going to get a coupon at all, you can play it safe and sign up now. But it's probably a pretty safe bet that the current coupon program won't run dry during the next couple months, and you'll get more out of that $40 coupon.
 DTV transition resources
 CNET's Quick Guide to the DTV transition
 DTV Coupon Program
 FAQ: What the digital switch actually means
 Antenna Web: Find what digital signals you can receive

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 by xaxain March 31, 2008 8:40 AM       
I was at walmart this weekend and they had 2 units both of them were $40. One was an RCA unit and I can't remember what the other unit was but, I have seen then for $40.   by Improviz March 31, 2008 2:57 PM    
   Every discussion or story about the DTV conversion should state, in bold letters right at the beginning: IF YOU HAVE CABLE OR SATELLITE THIS DOES NOT CONCERN YOU. YOU WILL NOT NEED A CONVERTER. This ONLY applies to people who get their TV over the air from an antenna. I don't know anyone who doesn't have at least basic cable. I realize there are parts of the country, like the 9th Ward in New Orleans, that are maybe not wired for cable. And maybe economically disadvantaged people do not have cable. But really, responsible journalism demands that you try to stop a huge wave of people running out and buying these who don't need them and can't use them if they do buy them.  

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