i despise dtv.

United States
June 13, 2009 4:23pm CST
I think the American people should STOP watching public television (all the channels you can get on a TV without Cable or Satellite), because I honestly hate the new DTV system they have up and running. I like free TV you don't have to pay $!0 or $20 a month for. Anyone here with me? And the current DTV system does provide many of the channels I used to have, but many of the higher numbered ones pixelate very easily, and two channels never come in at all. And, SURE, you can buy a directional antenna, but those things cost $100! That's outrageous! Think of all the money companies are pulling in because of the DTV law (antennae, LCD TVs, DTV boxes, need I say more?)! It's an unholy sin against fellow human beings for something we simply do not need! I say all of us who lack cable or sattelite stop watching TV altogether and do something else - like watch Hulu, Youtube, maybe even plug into TV using our computers if possible. ------ What do YOU guys think of the DTV conversion?
1 response
@cbjones (1147)
• United States
13 Jun 09
Unholy sin. That's kinda funny(if not an overreaction). I had no idea there were hidden fee's with using a converter box. I figured you could just buy that and not have to deal with cable or satellite services as an alternative.
• United States
14 Jun 09
Well, if you want it all to come in clear, you have to buy a direction antenna - or face some channels being pixelated due to a weak signal. You see, our old channels ran on who types of aerowaves: VHF and UHF. VHF accomodates channels 2-13 nicely, and UHF picks up channels 13 and above - or so. Your antenna is capable of picking up only UHF or VHF waves well, but nanother in a poorer quality. However, the DTV box needs both sets of signals to pick up all of the broad ranges of channels available in your area. The only efficient way to achieve this is with a directional antenna. Also, directional antennae ignore the bounces made by the waves. TV waves bounce around the room to get to your antenna. They bounce off of walls, pictures, objects in the room. Rabbit ears are affected by these bouncing paths moreso than directional antennae, and so are inferior - and sometimes useless - in the digital age. This is because in digital, if too little of the digital signal is picked up, you get macroblocking (pixelation), jerky motion, freezing up, and even total signal loss - known in short as the digital "cliff". It doesn't take much signal for the DTV box to transmit the show - but sometimes the signal is so weak it can't give the box enough signal - thus, the picture fails to transmit properly. With analog, on the other hand, bits and pieces fly across the room. Some bits make it to the antenna, some do not. The pieces that do not are filled in with static and white noise. Rather than simply failing, the picture just gets static-kier and the sound gets noisier when less signal comes in. I prefer the noise of analog to the failure of digital.