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DTV Converter

Lesa of Newport news, VA August 18, 2009

OTA tv is history - - If you want tv anymore you have to pay for cable - - where's the lawsuit.... I can't afford cable so I'm stuck like so many others with poor to no tv. How are we suppose to get news/weather if we can't get any channels? Somewhere someone has got to be filing a class action lawsuit and I want to know who and where because I want to join in.

Barry of Flatwoods, KY August 6, 2009

I just wanted to complain about dtv....with analog I had about eight channels, now I only have two, unless it's cloudy or raining, then I don't have anything. After purchasing two converter boxes, it kind of ticks me off. Cable isn't available in my area, and I can't afford satellite. It just goes to show what our elected officals will do to us for a dollar in their own pocket. Shameful and disgusting........

Mrs. of Robbins, NC July 30, 2009

When we hooked up our converter box the volume on our tv went down. We have to turn the tv up as loud as it will go and we can still hardly hear it. What's up with that?

Jodie of Burnsville, MN July 27, 2009

I feel so powerless to this change to dtv. I have one old tv for which I have tried 3 seperate antennas in an effort to obtain a descent picture. The channels received along with the quality of the picture varies from day to day. Even if I flip to another channel and return, there's no guarentee that the picture will come back. I am also tired of pictures freezing in mid-frame, or pixels hanging in air. I can't even listen to the sound, like old time radio, because it will also "drop out." I bought a brand new plasma tv, but the same thing occurs. I am tired of trying to figure out which part of the room I should move the tv to get better reception; nothing works.

To be optimistic, I figure I am getting a little exercise each time I have to jump off the couch to move or adjust the antenna. One thing I know for sure..the best reception occurs when I literally sit holding the antenna while watching tv. I feel like this was some type of ploy to make people buy cable, something I do not want to afford when there are more necessary things in life, such as funding your children's college education. I remember having to manually change channels or volume on the old tvs as a child, but I am up and down off the couch much more frequently with this dtv. I would much prefer the analog.

Ruth of South Jordan , UT July 27, 2009

We spent a lot of money coverting all the tv's in our home to digital. We thought we were prepared. Every commercial we watched stated that once we had a digital coverter box, the stations would be EXACTLY the same. This was and is a lie. I thought maybe that people with old tv's that didn't get HD channels would have issues. There are no tv stations on our brand new plasma tv's. I would like an explanation on what is being done. I feel like the country was forced into this, and that it was a ploy to force Americans to purchase cable. As I see, we are not alone in our frustration, from reading comments from other consumers.

Keith of Salt Lake City, UT July 26, 2009

I've got the right antenna, we got the box! Every channel has a tendency to skip like a bad DVD or freeze up and pixelate. Why did we switch again? At least with the old UHF if the signal wasn't perfect, you didn't miss whole portions of the storyline, whither by lost picture or lapsed dialogue. I just don't get why we, as a country were forced to take a worse option, pay for it, and have no option to improve without contracting with some bs cable company or satellite provider.

Perry of Salisbury Center, NY July 22, 2009

I live about 30 miles from the nearest TV station but because of the high elevation and large antenna on a 50ft tower, I could receive 14 to 17 tv channels. The news came about TV stations switching to digital,so I purchased the required converter box and hooked it up. This was in late May and I was happy to see that I now received 27 channels,mostly digital with only 5 analog. Then came the analog shut off day in mid June. I believe it was June 12. I went from 27 channels to 2. These 2 only have fair signal. So I purchased a digital antenna with no better results. What the hell happened? I've spent over 100.00 and still have little reception. I really need to have someone explain to me how Digital TV is better. I'll take a snowy analog picture any day over one thats not there.

Lenor of Stafford, VA July 18, 2009

When the tv stations switched to digital we lost all of our tv stations. We bought a booster, dtv converter, and new antenna and we do not get a single tv station. all we get is a messages that say "Bad or no signal" We are totally disgusted since the only solution right now is to dish out 60+ for satelite or cable. I'm sure those companies are laughing all the way to the bank. Whose big idea was this anyway? It is really hard on the elderly on a fixed income who stay at home and can't even watch their favorite show to help pass the day. I know several elderly people in the situation. What a fiasco!

Mary of Lawrenceburg, KY July 14, 2009

FCC demand for the switch over to Digital TV without thoroughly investigating it's ability to work properly as analog did. I live half way between Lexington and Louisville Ky. With analog I received 10+ channels. 4 of them came in clearly. I now get one in which is a cartoon & old black & white show channel. I sometimes get 3 others but they usually freeze or fade in & out. Digital TV acts just like satellite TV only much worse. I have always relied on the weather channels so I can be safe and get inside when there were approaching storms, especially for tornado & severe thunder storm warnings & watches.

I came in, turned on a station and found out if I needed to stay in, or go to the basement for a tornado warning. Or if I could go back out & work if none was coming my way. People who live & work on farms rely on those weather reports to determine if they need to cut hay, tobacco, or other crops. They help determine when to go out or stay in. They are the ones that are most affected by the switch. The ones who are not living on top of the stations don't get reception or get very poor reception. I used to have satellite TV but it goes out during bad weather also. It does no good during storms either, and we don't know if we need to take shelter during a tornado warning. With Digital, I loose reception anytime when it rains, it's cloudy, windy, slightly breezy, or even humid.

Yes humidity affects the signal. The time of day affects it also. It it much worse than satellite TV. I am in an area that does not have cable TV so that is not an option, besides I am a very hard working fellow American. I am 55, I hold down 2 jobs working one day for 24hrs straight and 2 days I work 17 hrs each on my feet the entire time many times with no lunch break. I basically work 7 days a week ~ 80 -108 hrs a week. I take 2-3 days a year off. I still barely make ends meet. I have almost nothing on the one & only credit card I have. I can't even afford medical insurance let alone satellite TV. I sure would appreciate being able to relax & watch a little TV with what little free time I have. I live a very frugal life. I don't buy anything I don't need. Now with the digital switch I don't even get that luxury. I have been in contact with the FCC & the local TV stations and they just keep giving me the run a round. They keep saying that it is my antenna, car interference, building interference. Anything but admitting to their mistake.

My antenna was just fine until the very day of the switch over. I live in a 30 foot tall 3 story house that sits on top of the tallest ridge in the county. There are no houses visible except one neighbor one ridge over. When I get on my roof I can see over the tops of all of the trees, that is all I see. There should be nothing stopping my reception. I usually sit on my roof to watch the “Thunder over Louisville” and the 4th of July fireworks, both of which are 35-45 miles from me. I think they need to switch back to analog until they work ALL of the bugs out of digital.

Terri of Manchester, NH July 11, 2009

I am very disappointed with the new DTV. As victims of the economy, a cable network is no longer an option for us and we are very displeased with the reception we are getting. Even with the box apart from the picture breaking up, we get a big black box in the middle of our TV screen, the mouths and the voices don't match, not to mention we can now only get one channel. Our house is situated such that we should be able to get decent reception but not now. TV watching is a luxury gone by. Our nation is regressing due to governmental regulations and taxation.

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