Posted: 3/27/2008 10:14:53 PM EDT
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Would it be a good idea to get one of those boxes that connects and converts digital airwaves to analog when the the switch takes place next year? If the SHTF would cable or FIOS TV be affected? Might be a good idea to have a conversion box with an old analog tv to hook up to battery/inverter power to get info. |
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i'll be interested to see what the boxes cost. whether cable, satellite, or fios tv will be affected by a shtf event depends on the shtf event. i bought an hd tv tuner for my laptop for less than $100. it came w/ the tuner, about the size of two bic lighters taped together, the antenna and a remote. it receives both HD and analog signals. you can also connect it to cable, satellite, or a larger antenna. it will also record two hours of tv. it is powered off of the USB port on the laptop so no extra power cable to worry about. if i have to bug out, i'll take my 3 lbs lappy (have inverters in both vehicles already) and the tuner and i'll have over the air tv available if there's a signal. |
| The box itself cost $49 dollars here at walmart. You can get a $40 coupon from dtv2009.gov They will send 2 per household. You can also buy a dvd recorder and it will do the samething as the converter box and you can use the coupon on some of them. We picked up a couple last week for $12 and some change after the coupon and hooked it up, got a few more channels but I don't speak enough spanish to watch them. |
My answer is yes. Even if you don't need it for SHTF. You are already paying for the $40 coupon through your taxes, so take advantage. Worst case scenario you plug it into a TV in your garage... worst-er case you loose your job and have to get rid of the cable bill. |
that's cheaper than i thought. no reason not to pick one up. |
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Forget it, when I can not get broadcast TV any more, we will just use them for DVD/VCR and the PS2 till they die, then toss them. I am not wasting any more money on TV's......... My wife is GTG on this as well. I am also working on dropping the amount of time I spend on the internet, hope to get it down to an hour a week or so before Memorial Day. Too much stuff to do after work to waste time on this other crap. |
What brand and model HD tuner for your laptop did you get? Sounds to me like a very important item for getting info during a SHTF event. Would you buy the same model again, if not, what would you buy today? |
Thats sounds cool, can you post the name or put up a link? Thanks! 
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We haven't had a TV signal for four years now. I came home from work a couple times on beautiful summer days, and both my boys were parked in front of the TV. I kicked them outside to go play, and it happened again the next day. We canceled the direct TV by the end of the week, and haven't regretted it since. We did try it one other time in our first house and went about three years without one, because it broke and we were broke. After a couple months we could've bought a new one we just never did. Two years ago we gave away our older 27" and kept the newer 19", the only thing its hooked up to is the DVD system and sometimes the ps2. We don't have an antenna for it, and wont be buying one either. I get my news off the internet, and conservative talk radio. My wife manages a Video store, so she brings home programs like Jericho, or CSI, when we have time to sit around. |
Thats all fine and dandy but not all TV is junk, your kids are missing out on a lot of cool educational stuff on Discovery, Animal Planet, History, The Learning Channel, National Geographic etc.. |
i don't think he meant to imply that all on tv was junk. i know i, as a parent, wouldn't have a problem w/ my kids watching shows on the channels you mentioned, but the problem is rarely do kids elect to watch those channels. i enjoy those channels, that's the main reason why we keep teh satellite. |
it is a pinnacle pctv hd pro stick. link it has done everything that i have needed. i could watch analog tv w/o a problem. hd works well on my desk top w/ a dedicated video card, but stutters on my laptop, which is actually a tablet and has integrated video (shares memory w/ laptop). if i close almost all of the programs running in the background, then it works. here's a review that i found. link none of their complaints really affect the way i use it. ymmv. |
Please provide as link to this piece of equipment. mark Already done thanks!!! |
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Just ran across this PC adapter too. I have no idea of quality, worth, etc. Just passing on another cheap option. Found it on spoofee Digital HD Tuner for PC |
Thanks for the Info. Just an FYI for everyone else: This USB device, and all the HD tuners I could find requires USB 2.0, due to the large amount of data, my dell laptop is 3 years old, and does NOT have it. Better check before you buy. |
good point. a work around would be, if your laptop had a pcmcia card slot, which most older (and a good number of newer) laptops have, then you could add a usb 2.0 adapter for less than $20. link i have no experience w/ the one i linked just the first one that came up on google. |
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Televisions are radios with pictures. In an event radio has always been and will continue to be the the best way to get information. A good radio weighs in at 1/10th the weight of even the smallest/lightest television. They are normally directly battery powered requiring no UPS/generator to run. They are typically also ten times more energy efficient. They are able to pull in signals from much further away. I've got a nice GE "SuperRadio III" that will run nearly 400 hours off of four D batteries and picks up stations in San Diego, Palm Springs, and Los Angeles during the day and even further away at night. For portable use one of my amateur radios has AM, FM, and yes, even the TV audio bands to listen into - along with the REAL sources of news like the police, fire, EMT, and other rescue forces. Television is for wankers (I work at a television broadcast facility) |
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I have Directv so there is no problem on Feb, 2009. BUT, I am about due for a new TV and plan to get at least a 37 inch unit sometime this year. The current digital broadcasts have as many as 5 channels (you will see them as Ch 7.1, Ch 7.2, etc) and most include a round the clock weather channel. Most digital TV channels around here are on UHF, so a good outside antenna is useful. There is more over the air than what I had thought. RS |
I have a GE SuperRadio as well and my main little jewell is a Kaito KA1102, I am also a ham and have a little Yasue VX-7R that has a lot of capabilities as well so I know where you're coming from. I just would like to round out my emergency com station with a small TV. Where you that you are picking up stations from SD LA and CV? |
Why watch someone do something when you can do it yourself? My kids are playing in the woods, trying to snare a squirrel. They will be catching frogs soon and collecting wood to make a fire. They like my Tom Brown book and want to start a fire "the old fashioned way". When it's dark out they can read. When It's nice they can go to the range with me. I also have my own machine shop, and they can " come out to the shop to earn a buck". If I catch part of a program on Discovery or History, I do feel like I should get cable again, untill I get home and get to work on all the things I want to do. If I could get just three channels then I would sign on again, but untill then my kids and I will be having fun, not watching TV. |
Only until everything switches to digital in Feb '09.  I'm sure you could use one of the converter boxes as a broadcast TV audio tuner. Might be a good reason to pick one up even for those of us that don't "need" them since we have cable, or an HDTV with an ATSC tuner. |