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The end of analog TV

Discussion in 'Fred's House of Pancakes' started by Danny, Apr 25, 2005.

  1. Danny

    Danny Admin/Founder
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    http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7593620/

    Very interesting article about the impending doom of analog TV sets. Myself, I've been telling everyone I know not to buy another analog set and to only buy digital, especially if you have the money to burn and are looking at a nice TV.

    I can't wait for the day when beautiful 16:9 HDTV broadcasts will be commonplace and I don't have to act snobby when a friend asks if I want to come over and watch TV:

    Me: "Oh, did you get a new HDTV or something?"
    Him: "No, I just wanted to watch the game with you, man."
    Me: "Sorry... I've.... uh.... I can't come over today, sorry!"

    From the article:

    "Depending on the outcome of discussions in Congress, television as we know it may end at exactly midnight Dec. 31, 2006.


    That’s the date Congress targeted, a decade ago, for the end of analog television broadcasting and a full cutover to a digital format. If enforced, that means that overnight, somewhere around 70 million television sets now connected to rabbit ears or roof-top antennas will suddenly and forever go blank, unless their owners purchase a special converter box. Back when the legislation was written, New Year’s Eve 2006 probably looked as safely distant as the dark side of the moon. But now that date is right around the corner and Congress and the FCC are struggling mightily to figure out what to do."
     
    #1 Danny, Apr 25, 2005
  2. bookrats

    bookrats New Member

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    From what I've heard on NPR, it's likely the deadline will be extended.

    Not that I think that analog TV will be disappearing quickly (and maybe almost gone) by 2010. But it takes a market force to get people to move. (And there are a lot of people who just want a TV -- picture quality, etc., are not issues. Price is.)

    My bet: The thing that will push people into buying a digital TV, more than anything: HDTV DVDs. I think hi-res movies on DVD are going to be a very big deal.

    But these things don't happen overnight. Let's remember: Toyota's been selling Prii for 8 years -- but they didn't really click until now.
     
    #2 bookrats, Apr 25, 2005
  3. john1701a

    john1701a Prius Guru

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    I've been waiting forever (10 years) for that deadline to finally arrive. Being trapped using ancient technology to view a low-quality image in a truncated shape sure is frustrating.

    Fortunately, the solution is closer than most realize. It will come in the form of a HDD/DVD recorder. The tuner will be HDTV with the option of both recording and outputing a single that is backward compatible for your existing analog television.

    Since people are buying those recorders anyway, it is just a natural for it to be the device that provides access to HDTV.
     
    #3 john1701a, Apr 25, 2005
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