I wonder if this will affect cell phones?New Digital TV in 2009

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Lights Out,

It will not effect cell phones - only televisions.

Analog phones will be effected soon..this only applies to ANALOG phone if your phone is a ditigal phone you don't have to worry..They did a story on the phones on my local tv station....

I checked my phone it is set on analog but I can switch it to digital.

LightsOut, analong phones? home land line or cell phone you should experience fewer communication burps changing to digital.
In many places cell phone communication is zip useless digital. Walk-around portable home phones less than 5.8 GHz bleed over and service can be iffy, but I'll keep a plug in land line for emergency.
Next year my old TV will probably require a fix-it box. Although it's served me well, it's time for me to enter the 21st century I've been researching LCDs - might purchase a new TV tomorrow

This message has been edited. Last edited by: tessa89,

Good Luck tessa on the tv purchase. Our tv will work as we are on dish network. The article stated only television sets that use
tv antennas will be affected. I'll keep ours until they poop out completely.

I know you will do lots of research hope you will let us know how you feel about the LCD'S

The analog phone change over is separate from the digital tv change over. For phones the company that supplies your phone service can give you guidance.

I got rid of my land line phone. I've been cell-only for years.

I'm with Lights Out - I'll use my current tvs until they die. I have a tv on rabbit ears in the closet I use as a tornado shelter. There's another antenna in my attic, fully-usable, wired to all over the house, that I can connect to the tv in my basement family room if I loose cable tv during a storm. I'm getting converter boxes for both of those TVs. In this area when you are in a storm warning you need tv to know when its safe to come out of your tornado shelter.

JoW, sure you saw the commercial about the govt. mailing you a $40.00 coupon for the purchase of those boxes. I knock on wood when I talk about or tv's. Don't want them to poop out on me. Knocking on wood is easy I just tap tap on the noggin.

grr even if we want a new tv we can't even GIVE ours away for free!! have you seen all the tvs listed on craig's list? sadly the tvs are all going into the landfill as well as the armoires that held them. a really conflicting topic for me

kittyhead I agree with you 100%.
What is craigs list? I have heard people talk about that. Thanks for the info.

craigslist is a free site where you can list items, services or anything you want for sale or for free. There are groups for each area of the country. www.craigslist.com Also www.freecycle.org is another group with local groups around the world where you can list items you no longer need/want and somone can arange to come get them. Freecycle is monitored and messages have to be clean and offers have to be family friendly and nothing is allowed for sale, free only. It was created to help keep things out of landfills. PPL often post their broken apliances and such cuz somone can scrap them and it saves you the hassle of trying to figure out how to transport it.

We just recently bought a LCD HDTV. We do not have any pay TV service of any kind so all we get is broadcast. Our old TV died so we droped it off at the electronics drop off at the local landfill.

I am verry happy with our LCD TV. We get extra HD chanels that you cannot get through annalog. The picture on the HD chanels are as clear as a pay service. The only diffrence is you know how w/a regular antenna if the chanel is not strong it is staticy? Well if a HD channel is not coming in strong it will start to digital skip (kindof like a DVD does if it's scratched) and then the signal will cut out. So it's a issue of good picture or no picture, there is no inbetween. the signal has to be coming in within 2 bars from full strength or it will cut out.

Our TV is a Westinghouse. There is also a setting that you have to switch inside the TV for a energy saver. If you do not switch this over when you turn off your TV it will just go into standby and continue to draw power. With the energy saver on it takes a minute to boot up the TV but you won't be drawing a bunch of power when it's off

Oh, and when it comes time to selcet your new TV. If you are not sure if you should get LCD or Plasma. HEre is a deciding factory. Plasma will have a sharper picture but the screen is glass so it still has glare. LCD is a plastic screen and does not glare, great for bright rooms (and the picture is still pretty dnaged clear!). Also plasma get's hot.

You have to go to www.DTV.com and apply for the coupon for the converter...the coupon will be for $40. and the converters are about $70. and you can get up to two coupons....the converters will be sold at places like Best Buy...Radio Shack etc...they are not availabe yet I don't think....the phone thing is this month this year...your carrier should have contacted anyone who has the anolalog only phones , not many are going to have thes..if you can text or take pictures you have no worries...

Thanks everyone I just took a look at craigslist.

I've already applied for the coupons for the converters. I did that weeks ago. I won't replace my tvs until they die.

I almost never watch tv. Its on now, but I'm listening, not watching. I can't see paying for a high quality picture when I spend most of my tv time looking at the computer.

Now they are going to take away regular DVD's it is all goin to be the Blu-Ray things..Heck I just got the dang DVD player...Target and Wally World are only going to carry the Blu-ray ones....you think the big boys are going to let us breath in the future or will we have to change something to do that too...I think tomorrow is the phone d-day....

We are on dish network so I'm not sure but I don't think we need to buy converters. I hope not because I won't replace anything until it poops out.

My DVD player just died. I'm so glad we didn't run out and buy a new one with this blu-ray thing becoming the latest and greatest faze.

The HDTV being forced on us is irritating me! We're on antennae. TV is not on but about 10 hours a week. I've applied for the converter coupon. BUT my husband can be an electronics junkie. He is actually looking at LCD (his preference over plasma) tvs twice as big as we now have at well over 1,000 dollars! That will also require a new entertainment center! FOR 10 HOURS A WEEK!!! Now does this make sense to any of you?

I did watch more tv than I do now. But when he hears it, he comes into the living room and highjacks the remote. Then I get to watch 3-second snatches of each channel. That is until I get up and go to my sewing room to quilt. I put on an audio book and the headphones.

the converters are only for those of us who do not have pay service and only watch the braodcast chanels. I now have a LCD HDTV and am verry happy with it. Still not planing to pay for cable or satalite. WE get extra chanels as it is.

Hope tessa,will come in and post, she was looking for a new tv. She is a good sleuth about these types of things. I appreciate her opinion.

We have Dish too and just had the dish person come out and put a box in the back tv that was just one ears....not because if the DVT thing but mainly because DH retires this week and we will disagree on what to watch..It is my understanding that no tv HDTV or not will receive any thing rabbit ears or outside antenna