satilite dish

[washerboy]

I've almost decided to cancle my dish services. I'm not that big of a TV watcher and it seems when I do watch the tube it's mostly the major network stations. I understand there's a box I can purchase at Best Buy or Radio Shack that allows the reception of local channels. Has anyone tried "the box" and how well does it work? It's not that I'm a cheap skate; but it seems silly to spend 850.00 a year for something I don't use. thanks!

 

[mattl]

Well a lot depends on where you live. If you get decent reception OTA (Over The Air) you will be able to get a lot of what is on traditional network TV. Take a look at the link below and it will tell you what you can expect to get.

You will need some sort of antenna, small to massive, again location dependent. You can get an OTA DVR too, At this point I would find it very difficult to function without a DVR. You can buy the basic converter box for about $50 too. It's just a basic tuner that converts the signal to one an older TV needs to work, either RF Ch. 3 or composite connections.

If your computer is capable of connecting to your TV Windows Media player does a good job of acting as a DVR, if you pop a tuner card into the computer. They can be had for $20 on eBay.

http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx

 

[mattl]

DVR...

Not sure of pricing.

http://blog.channelmaster.com/2010/01/cm-7000pal-dvr.html

 

[spookiness]

I'm about to make the break

I'm 95% certain I'm going to get a Tivo Premiere.
I have an existing, relatively new, OTA DTV bandwith antenna on the roof and it works well.
I thought about making a home-made DVR from an old pc, but I just don't feel like it. Tivo Premier works with OTA signals, then you have the online/streaming component. I like that you can program it remotely over the internet, or your phone even.

Still $20 a month for Tivo, plus another $10 for Netflix, but cheaper than cable or Dish, and I'm not paying for a lot of stuff I'll never watch. My free-to-me Samsung Blue-ray player does Facebook, Youtube, Pandora.

In a pinch I could still watch network shows on Hulu, but I'd rather watch on a TV.

 

[spookiness]

Back to original poster

You need to read thru this first:
http://www.dtv.gov

You only need a converter box if your tv is older, otherwise you just need an antenna.

If you don't know what any of this means, you most likely need the box. Don't get the Magnavox ones at Wal-mart they suck. Zenith is better.

The easiest option is to just splurge on a new tv, then you only need an antenna.

 

[rp2813]

Does anyone know if there are digital-to-analog boxes that have a switched 120V outlet on them?  I'm using a box for OTA signal on my 1950 Admiral TV but would love to have the entire system (OK, maybe not volume control) activated and operated by the converter box.  Currently I have to turn the TV on and off manually.

 

I had a Radio Shack cable converter box that worked everything -- when I had the TV hooked up to cable -- but we have Dish now, and not in the room where the Admiral lives, so rooftop antenna is the only option.

 

[washerboy]

thank you

thanks Matt and Spook. I got a new TV 2 years ago; a small flat screen for the bedroom. A friend that was moving gave me his almost new 27 inch TV (old style) that I have in the spare bedroom. Since I already had satilite in the house when the big conversion took place I guess I didn't pay close enough attention. I was under the impression that unless I bought the converter box I'd have no TV reception. The reason I got the dish to begin with was because without it I could only get one local channel and it was mostly snow; someone told me it was due to the age of my home and layers upon layers of lead base paint blocking the reception. Another problem I have with the dish is when we have major storms and tornados there's no reception. It never really bothered me until last month when we had all those nasty storms ripping across the south. The first one in April that all those people got killed due to trees falling on their homes was the first time I ever got "scared". I sat in the hallway with my pillow, dogs and flash light while the screen on the TV was saying something about a transponder and the storm sirens were blairing!!! It would have at least been nice to have access to the local weatherman to know what was going on. The web sites you all suggested were very helpful..esp. the DVR. Thanks for your thoughts!!!/m

 

[cadman]

Mark,

Just a heads-up to do your research before buying a DTV box. 95% are absolute junk and their reviews don't lie. I was lucky, picked up a pair of RCA boxes back when the coupons were out that are decent. The market was flooded with options during the changeover since manufacturers were cashing in on all the incentives. Now that the 'free money' is off the table, the options are limited and from what I can tell, the manufacturers aren't exactly putting their finest R&D into a product that doesn't pay them back long-term (like the cable co's and SAT boxes).

I'm on the prowl for 2 more but can't find anything decent. The RCA's have an extremely tight IR angle for the remote, and will power down after x-many hours even if you're watching a show. However that's better than the routine overheating, out of sync audio, intermittent remotes and premature failures reviewers are posting! -Cory

 

[spookiness]

antennas

For your newer flat screen you probably don't need a converter box, but for the other one you probably do. If you do need a box, check Craigslist if you have that in your area, or ask friends if they have one. No reason to buy new if you can help it. My complaint with the Magnavox ones is they are slow. I had one I used in a spare bedroom thats not hooked up to my sat. I got a Zenith on for 10 bucks used and it is much better, with a better remote.

As for the antennas, I don't know if the lead paint thing is true or not, but in any case an outside antenna is best, or some people put them in an attic.

Antennaweb.org is a good resource for learning about antennas. There is also a locater where you enter your address and it tells you what you may be able to get. I think it also advises you on the type of antenna you'd need.

The antenna I have is a flat disc that is omnidirectional. It doesn't need a rotater. It is for urban and suburban areas not far from transmitter towers.

If you decide its all too much trouble, look into downgrading your satellite package. It probably would not hurt to call them and threaten to cancel and see if they have any offers. If you have fulfilled your contact commitment, you might be able to sign up for a new promotion. I'm like you in that these days I'm looking to cut my expenses, and I'm no longer timid about asking for discounts!

 

[mattl]

I'll toss out a cheap and good  quality option for you if you don't mind a little kludge factor.  On ebay you can pick up a used directv HD Tivo HR10-250 for a few bucks, $20 or so seems the going price last time I looked ( this kills me since I paid $1000 when it first came out 6 years ago...).  These work as decent OTA tuners without the D connection, will even let you pause and rewind.  You loose the program guide and recording ability, but it's a cheap and better alternative to the crappy converter boxes.

 

I've had SAT for over a decade and overall I'm quite happy with it.  Signal outages are rare, but when one happens I know I have about 15 minutes before I get hit hard by a storm.  A radio and a laptop will be much more informative that a weather crawl at the bottom of the screen.  First thing I do when weather gets bad is check the radar on my computer, I use firefox with the Forecast fox add in and there is live radar all the time.

 

 

 

[whirlcool]

I know what you mean about DVR boxes. We got our first this week and it's really great. We used to time shift with a VHS machine and you always would lose some picture quality using that method. With the DVR, the picture looks as good as the original did. Plus you can record 2 different programs while watching a 3rd.

It appears to be the ultimate convenience item.