Immediate improvement in picture quality

Even if you keep your old set and add a converter box, you will see an immediate improvement in picture quality. Since the signal is digital, there are no ghost, color shifts or fading out. The digital signal is either on or off, which means if you can receive a good signal the picture will be very clear, if your signal is weak the picture won't appear on the screen, there will be no snowy pictures or ignition noise. So everyone will benefit from the change.

What will happen if I don't do anything?

There are two basic reasons for the change to the digital format. First the digital format allow many improvements to be added as time goes on. If you remember the 2nd version of Back to the Future, they had tv screens that would have multi-media displays, you could watch tv, view your computer send and receive messages on screen. The uses for digital are endless

At the same time when the conversion takes place. all the old analog transmitters will be shut off. Then according to the FCC, those frequencies will be sold for use as communication frequencies, use for cell phones data tranmission and misc.

Will my old tv set still work?

The simple answer is yes, if you purchase a digital convertor box, you will be able to continue enjoying all of your favorite programs with you existing tv. If you have satelite services such as Directv or Dish network, you don't have to do anything. The signal being produced is already down-converted from the digital format to analog.

Is digital tv also HDTV?

This is probably the biggest misconception of the whole digital broadcast picture. First of all in order to received a program in hi-definition, you must first be able to receive digital broadcasts. However not all digital broadcasts are not in Hi-definition.

The main reason for changing to digital is that this is the first major change to television since color was introduced back in 1953. If you want to know more about how tv came into the modern age the link about is an excellent source of information.

Have questions? Fcc Q & A page

Here is the official page from the FCC regarding the changeover to digital television. This is the government agency responsible for all broadcasts in the US.

Q & A from the FCC on the subject of HDTV

http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/digitaltv.html This website will provide further information on the changeover to HDTV

Dvd formats reach an agreement

It seems that Sony has won the battle over formatting for the hd dvd format. Sony's Blu-ray technology has been chosen by a number of large retailers over the Toshiba system. We went through a similar problem when video tape formats were introduced. You have the Sony Beta format and the Vhs format developed by JVC corp. At this time the dvd format is so new there should be little or no problem for those who have already purchased the products.

What's in the future?

Right now Hd is only in it's infancy. Eventually your tv set will become an information center. With multi-screens running simataneously, you'll be able to do your banking, send emails watch multi-broacasts and send and receive data.

One of the main reasons for the change is the fact that analog tv was developed as far as it could go. In order to provide some of the services mentioned above, the technology would have to shift from analog to digital. If you've ever seen Back to the Future II, you see one of Marty's friends with a screen similar to what the future may look like. It is a very exciting time for those of you who love television and strive for state of the art performance. We will be updating this blog as news comes down the pipe.

The connections

Now we come to the meat of the subject the connections. The back of an hd set can be very confusing if your not fimiliar with the different types of connectors. Here we will discuss the differences between the connectors and the benefits to you.

1. HDMI, hdmi stands for high-definition multimedia interface. This is probably the best connection on your hd set. You will find this connector looks like a computer connector, which basically what it is. You will find this connector on HD satelite receivers and dvd players. In most cases you have to buy that connector separately.
2. Component video: What component video does is break the video signal down to the three primary colors of television (red,green and blue). This connection helps insure proper color registration for more detail and more accurate colors.
3. S-video: Although s-video has been around for sometime if you don't have either of the previous connectors on your unit s-video gives you an improved picture from just composite video. S-video basically breaks the video signal in two parts, the video signal comes in one connector and the color information comes in the other connector.

Hd is like a high power race car

As we discussed in earlier threads Hd can produce amazing pictures, but remember if your hooking up other devices to your new hd set, it's the connection that's critical. With analog upgrading connections resulted in very minimal picture differences. With that being said, hd is like a nitro burning race car, but the critical parts is putting the proper fuel in to get the results out.

With hd, you best signal sources are going to be:

1. Live sporting events broadcast in hd and received in hd (remember you need either a good outside antenna or satelite hd receiver.
2. Dvd are coming along nicely in the hd technology, platforms like blue tooth, and there again the connection is the critical link.
3. Satelite tv (with hd receiver) Satelite can produce excellent signal sources but keep in mind even though you have an hd receiver not all program sources are in hd.

So now what?

Keep in mind digital television is still in it's infincy. Eventually you will be able to access the internet, receive phone calls, watch multiple broadcasts and much more.

The question is are you ready for the change and what do you need to be current.

First of all you can keep using your analog set, but you will be required to buy a converter box in order to receive the new signals. If you have satelite, you already have digital to analog conversion. If your not sure you can email me with any questions. I have been in the electronics field for over 30 years.

Second and most important remember this saying: good in good out bad in bad out. What that means to you is in order to get the

First things first.

When the fcc does make the switchover you have options. The first option is to simply go out and buy an hd set with the atsc tuner. By the was ATSC stands for advanced television standards committe. That was the committee formed to determine which digital television system we use in the US. You see analog systesm varied from country to country. The US, Japan, Canada and Mexico all used the NTSC system which stands for National television standards committe. That was the committe that had a similar problem when color was introduced. There were two proposed system, one electronic and one mechanical.

Now as we move to current day the Hdtv system has several noticeable differences.

1. Digital signal is basically a computer based signal broadcast to you. The digital signal has no ghosts, no color shifting and color fading, the signal is either perfect or it is gone.
2. You will have several sources to receive digital signals from: Satelite, cable tv, off-air broadcasts, dvd.

One thing you have to remember just because you have a digital television, doesn't guarantee that the program is in HD. A good live broadcast on HD can be as much as 7times more detailed than analog. Some tv stations had to re-do their news sets because with HD you could see how cheap looking the materials were they used.