digital television

Digital Converter Boxes Reportedly in Stock

By Sharon Fisher, 2-16-08

Converter boxes that allow analog television sets to receive digital television signals are reportedly becoming available in stores, with Wal-Mart, for example, listing one model as in stock in four Treasure Valley stores.

People with older television sets who don’t have cable or digital satellite will need the boxes by February 17, 2009, which is when television broadcasting signals in the United States are scheduled to switch from analog to digital. This means that users who receive broadcast signals through devices such as rooftop antennas and rabbit ears will no longer be able to watch television. Instead, they must switch to cable or satellite, buy televisions with digital tuners, or buy one of these converter boxes. (Viewers who watch television through translator stations are exempt, for now.)

$40 coupons to help defray the cost of the boxes are available by registering through a website or by calling 1-888-388-2009. The coupons were to be mailed out when the boxes became available, but expire after 90 days. They are not scheduled to be available past March 1, 2009.

(I filed for a coupon on the first day, and my status is that it has been approved but has not yet been mailed.)

According to the Wal-Mart website, the boxes cost $49.87. Circuit City has another model for $59.99 that is also in-stock in the Treasure Valley, according to the company website. Best Buy’s website says it has a model but it is not possible to check whether they are available at a particular store. In all three cases, consumers must purchase the box by physically visiting the store; it is not possible to order them online.

Only certain models of boxes, from certain retailers, can be used with the coupons.

Idaho Public Television Manager Peter Morrill told legislators earlier this year that 418,000 Idahoans will be affected by the digital changeover.

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