On Nov 15, 2:05 am, (Beachcomber) wrote:
Forget the Comcasts and the other cable/satellite services unless you
like to pay... and...pay... and pay.
The most inexpensive way to get HDTV is over the air broadcast from
your local stations.


The only way your proposal is cheaper is if he gives up cable all
together, as HD is free on Cablevision. I easily spend 90% of my
viewing time watching cable channels, History, Discovery, FoodTV, A&E,
etc. instead of what you can get OTA. I couldn't even tell you the
basic prime time network schedule. And there is HD content on many
other cable channels as well and it is growing. So, I don;t see going
back to an antenna as a mainstream solution that a guy who already has
cable and a Sony Bravia is going to find acceptable.



All USA TV stations will be digital by FEB 2009
and most are broadcasting digital right now. (Note that digital does
not necessarily mean HDTV, but many of the network shows are being
produced and transmitted in Digital HDTV right now).

Here is the government's DTV site:

http://www.dtv.gov/

This is terrestrial broadcasting (for free) over what was known as the
old UHF-TV band. If you live way out in the styx, though, you may be
out of luck for free over-the-air HDTV broadcasts. Check with your
local stations to see what digital (UHF) channels they are
broadcasting on. Usually it is posted somewhere on the station's web
site.

Some rural areas rely on UHF translators. Often these are not even
owned by the local stations and these most likely will not immediately
be upgraded to rebroadcast the digital TV signals to the hills and
valleys except in special cases. The digital signals you want should
come from the main transmitter facility of your local station.
(Hopefully, you will be lucky enough to live in the main reception
area).

You will need a HDTV receiver and an ordinary UHF antenna. (Outdoor
antennas work best, just as with the current VHF-UHF broadcast
signals). Some companies are selling special "Digital TV Antennas".
Whether they work any better than a plain old UHF antenna is
debatable. Some have extra amplifiers in the line. You need not
spend a lot of money with antennas though and you may already have one
that will work fine.

The stronger the signal, the less interference you will experience.
Digital TV is more of an "either it works or it doesn't situation",
but it is not necessarily perfect. If you have crappy reception,
chances are you will have problems.

Your biggest expense will be your digital receiver. Make sure you
know what you are getting. See the website above. This is not just a
wide screen TV or monitor. It has to be a true HDTV capable receiver
capable of tuning and displaying the news US DTV Standards. Expect
to pay $1000 plus for a quality unit. (There may be seasonal sales
for less than that).

Beachcomber


$1000 for an ATSC tuner? You could buy a whole TV or DVR for that
much. Tuners are available for around $100. Also, you can't buy any
new TV today, regardless of size, without an ATSC tuner. They all
must have one built-in.