My real issue is that Manafactures are not including Digital Freeview tuners as standard in all the new equpment - how much can it cost? I am sure there are lots of cheap white lable tuners with software that can be installed to all TV's and VCD's DVD recorders etc. Its time the goverment made this a requirement.
It might cause TV prices to go up by £20-30 but if everyone had to rase thier prices by the same amount it would not hurt competition.
But nowadays, you've got to convert TVs in bedrooms, kitchens, etc., making sure each is connected to an outdoor aerial
So do all televisions using an indoor aerial have to switch to an outdoor one for digital?
I thought, though haven't tried, that I could just plug Freeview straight into a small indoor one, albeit with low quality.
What an ignorant and conceited thing to say. Have you not considered that some people aren't as technically minded as you? Have you ever tried explaining a Freeview box to an 85 year old granny who currently uses an indoor aerial and hasn't even found Channel 5 yet?
Technically minded? Me? Yes I've converted both my grannies (75 and 76) to digital, and the one that's using DTT seems to understand that Channel One is still channel one, albeit using a different remote control. And she's got channel 5 for the first time in her life. And for the other side of the family - on Freesat - I wrote down on a piece of paper what all the channel numbers were for them so they dont have to try and fathom out the EPG.
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True, but compared to other switchovers (such as from 405 to 625 and B&W to colour), there's much more equipment these days. If it was a case of just upgrading the one TV in the living room, as it was for most people in the 70s, it'd be fairly straightforward. But nowadays, you've got to convert TVs in bedrooms, kitchens, etc., making sure each is connected to an outdoor aerial and has a freeview box connected or is an iDTV.
How many rooms has your house got?! We have three TVs (living room, bedroom, bedroom), all with freeview boxes. All three use INDOOR aerials from Argos (20 quid, tops), and besides the box we bought back in 2002, cost £30 or less - one of which is from ebay. So the cost of upgrading our TVs was £50. Bargain.
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Have you ever tried buying a reasonably priced 16:9 portable?
No, but I've got two 4:3 portables with 16:9 mode, which every portable post 1996 should have.
The way I see it, it's going to happen whether people like it or not. It's been government policy for 10 years, it's physically allowed much more TV from a limited spectrum, and it's more efficient and a wholly better system all round. So apart from a few stick in the muds, Daily Mail hacks and people resistant to change, the vast majority of the UK endorse the switch. More households have some sort of digital capability now than those purely analogue.
Maybe in the next two years more, cheaper twin tuner freeview boxes will become available. A system like Sky Multiroom could exist. And when everything IS broacast in 16:9, the price of 16:9 portables will/should plunge. It's a change for the better, a change for the good of TV viewers across the UK. Or would you prefer to be stuck with 5 analogue channels only forever?
So do all televisions using an indoor aerial have to switch to an outdoor one for digital?
I thought, though haven't tried, that I could just plug Freeview straight into a small indoor one, albeit with low quality.
I can get freeview perfectly with a cheap indoor aerial.
Both work perfectly. And I'm not in an especially strong signal area - in fact I have to have the aerial at a precise angle to pick up every mux, and sometimes my SDN and 3&4 muxes are dodgy.
With regard to 16:9 mode - both my Panasonic portable and my Samsung portable both have Aspect Ratio buttons (Zoom, Normal, 16:9). These can't be the only ones surely
What an ignorant and conceited thing to say. Have you not considered that some people aren't as technically minded as you? Have you ever tried explaining a Freeview box to an 85 year old granny who currently uses an indoor aerial and hasn't even found Channel 5 yet?
Technically minded? Me? Yes I've converted both my grannies (75 and 76) to digital, and the one that's using DTT seems to understand that Channel One is still channel one, albeit using a different remote control. And she's got channel 5 for the first time in her life. And for the other side of the family - on Freesat - I wrote down on a piece of paper what all the channel numbers were for them so they dont have to try and fathom out the EPG.
Sadly though the government hasn't included a roll-out of helpful grandsons to all OAPs as part of digital switchover.
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True, but compared to other switchovers (such as from 405 to 625 and B&W to colour), there's much more equipment these days. If it was a case of just upgrading the one TV in the living room, as it was for most people in the 70s, it'd be fairly straightforward. But nowadays, you've got to convert TVs in bedrooms, kitchens, etc., making sure each is connected to an outdoor aerial and has a freeview box connected or is an iDTV.
How many rooms has your house got?! We have three TVs (living room, bedroom, bedroom), all with freeview boxes. All three use INDOOR aerials from Argos (20 quid, tops), and besides the box we bought back in 2002, cost £30 or less - one of which is from ebay. So the cost of upgrading our TVs was £50. Bargain.
So it's again a case of 'I'm all right Jack'? Clearly you live in a strong signal area, but many don't.
I know the power of DTT transmissions will increase significantly when DSO happens, but you'll only know if an indoor aerial is sufficient once analogue has been switched off... and if it isn't - it's black screen time.
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The way I see it, it's going to happen whether people like it or not. It's been government policy for 10 years, it's physically allowed much more TV from a limited spectrum, and it's more efficient and a wholly better system all round. So apart from a few stick in the muds, Daily Mail hacks and people resistant to change, the vast majority of the UK endorse the switch. More households have some sort of digital capability now than those purely analogue.
Maybe in the next two years more, cheaper twin tuner freeview boxes will become available. A system like Sky Multiroom could exist. And when everything IS broacast in 16:9, the price of 16:9 portables will/should plunge. It's a change for the better, a change for the good of TV viewers across the UK. Or would you prefer to be stuck with 5 analogue channels only forever?
Well of course not, and I certainly enjoy having digital TV. It's just the smug attitude that just because you're all fine and dandy, no-one else should have a problem, which bugs me.
I have six TVs, five of which currently have freeview on them (3 Aldi boxes, one Alba and an old ITVd one).
We can't use indoors here however and the one in the dining room can't get SDN due to that socket not having been updated when we last ripped out the wires and replaced them.
Talking about widescreen, this page has certainly gone into 16:9 mode with the URLs above...
Anyway, everyone I know has some sort of digital TV in their house. I have Sky+ downstairs with built in Freeview in the TV. I also have a Freeview box in the bedroom.
I think by the time analogue turns off, everyone will have some sort of digital TV.
I'm not smug, I'm prepared. I'm done and dusted, sorted and ready. I'm one of those who have actually got off me arse and got digital TV a full three years ahead of switchoff. So sorry for offending u SfH if I've done what I perceive to be the the right thing.
And yes sorry for the links, unfortunately Argos' website is as vast and as myriadic as its catalogue.