7 TIPS for Switching to Digital TV in ‘09

by WHDH’s Hank Phillippi Ryan and Mary Schwager

Will there be an expensive glitch in your switch to digital TV next February? If you’re still fuzzy on the process, you could be tuning in to trouble. No matter what kind of television you have, the change should not cost you big bucks.

We shopped undercover to see what clerks - hot to make a sale - are really telling customers. We also interviewed officials at the Federal Communications Commission. And here, as they say in TV land, is the scoop:

So when does the big
switchover happen?

Digital Day is Feb. 17, 2009. Free TV will change from being broadcast via an analog signal to all digital, all the time.

Wait! I have a television with
rabbit ears. I rely on free TV.
What will happen to me?

Bad news: If your TV uses those pull-out antennas on the back of the set, or antennas on the roof, you will no longer get a signal.

Great. All I want to do is watch
7 News. Will I need to get a
new TV?

Definitely not. Here’s DTV 101: No matter what channel you watch on your antenna TV, all you need is a digital converter box. Buy one at your local electronics store, hook it up and your set is set. You’ll need a box for each antenna TV in your house.

How much is that converter
box going to cost?

It depends, but it certainly doesn’t have to be expensive. If you log on to www.dtv.gov and fill out a form, the federal government will send you a $40 coupon toward buying one. We surveyed electronics stores and found if you use that coupon, you can get a box for around 10 bucks.

I pay for my TV shows. Should
I call the cable or satellite guy?

Nope. If you already have cable service or satellite TV, you don’t need to do anything.

What if I recently bought a TV
or want to get a new one now
anyway?

Most sets now have built-in digital tuners. Check to see if the box is labeled “built-in digital tuner” or “ATSC.” If it is, you’re fine. If not, start at No. 1 again.

I went to an electronics
store, and they insisted I
need a new high-definition TV.

Wrong! And that’s not the only no-no we know of. When we went as undercover secret shoppers to stores across New England, we found sales clerks giving a lot of wrong advice like that. You don’t need hi-def. You don’t need to buy a new TV. You don’t need to sign up for cable or satellite. Remember DTV 101. {EXA}

Award-winning investigative reporter Hank Phillippi Ryan is on the air at Boston’s NBC affiliate where she has broken big stories for the past 22 years. She has won 24 Emmys as well as dozens of other regional, national and international honors for her work. She is also a best-selling mystery novelist  http://www.hankphillippiryan.com). Mary Schwager is a journalist with more than 16 years of experience and is the investigative producer at 7 News. She’s won more than two dozen awards for investigative, consumer and feature reporting and writing, including nine Emmy Awards, seven Edward R. Murrow Awards and three Associated Press honors. She was also a state licensed detective and performed criminal investigations on behalf of the Wisconsin Public Defender’s Office. Ryan and Schwager can be contacted at  hryan at whdh.com and  

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