Sunday, November 02, 2008

Receive HD Channels without HDTV

I have decided some time ago that I was not ready for a new HDTV yet. The JVC 37" analog TV we have works great and there was no reason to replace it now. So I bought an Insignia coverter box. It costs about $60, and with the government coupon of $40 I ended paying a net of $20. They sell other cheaper boxes but I was told this one provides a better picture, and as you will see below I was pleased with its picture quality.
Initially I thought I didn't need to hook up my new converter box before the transmission went digital next February, but then I found out that there were already some high definition channels out in the air begging for reception. This evening I connected the converter box to my TV and I was in for a pleasant surprise. The converter box found four channels that it received with the indoor antenna and the quality of the picture was excellent. If I wanted to switch back to the regular analog TV channels, all I had to do was to turn the converter box off. It was as simple as that.
Of course the digital TV would have better clarity because of its high definition capability, but I am quite pleased with the quality of the picture that I receive via the converter box. I am confident that within the next several months the price of high definition TVs is going to drop considerably and the quality will continue to improve as new technologies emerge, so in the meantime the converter box is an excellent interim solution. Wouldn't you agree?