Coupons for digital converter boxes now available....

[maddythebeagle]

Feds share coupons to help TV transition (AP) by AP: Yahoo! Tech

I applied but the site is getting hammered...

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Do note that the coupon expires something like 3 months after its issued, and that allegedly a lot of the existing converter boxes may sell for $80 until the coupons are all used up, then be marked down to $40-50.

What ticks me off is that I cant find (but havent looked that hard) a box that qualifies for this program that has an HDMI output so that when you're done using it as an OTA box for your old tv, you could use it as an OTA tuner on a tunerless dtv.

[Nords]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cute fuzzy bunny Do note that the coupon expires something like 3 months after its issued, and that allegedly a lot of the existing converter boxes may sell for $80 until the coupons are all used up, then be marked down to $40-50.

If we're lucky we'll get v1.0 of the converters, but we won't confirm they're buggy until 2009, and then we can spend the next few years updating them. Maybe Apple will come out with a special version for Mac users.

It's all a vast govt conspiracy. The bandwidth that's freed up by the digital conversion is expected to auction off for something around $15B while the total value of 22 million $40 coupons is $880M. 6% off. But, hey, some of the bandwidth will be used for improved emergency response services.

A huge advertising campaign must've kicked off yesteday. Our kid asked her first question about the conversion so I told her that I didn't watch TV and didn't feel it was my problem. But I lost on appeal to Mom.

So hurry for those coupons... only 21,999,998 left!

[cute fuzzy bunny]

The really great part is that these all come with an IR remote control, so now I can get rid of that wire from the remote control to the tv!

[maddythebeagle]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cute fuzzy bunny Do note that the coupon expires something like 3 months after its issued, and that allegedly a lot of the existing converter boxes may sell for $80 until the coupons are all used up, then be marked down to $40-50.

That's what I was worried about also....

[Texas Proud]

I think I will wait a bit.... still have over a year...

I can not find any converter boxes online that are cheap.... and I would think that they would make one in the $40 to $60 range... I hope that will change over the next few months now that there are coupons.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

I think next year sometime you'll be able to buy a $50-75 box that is of better quality, has an HDMI connector...orrrr...a DVR or DVD player that has the tuner built in for a nominally higher price.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

This is what you can buy with the coupons:

DigitalSTREAM D2A1D10
DigitalSTREAM D2A1D20
Zenith DTT900
Magnavox TB100MW9
Philco TB150HH9
Sansonic FT300A
Philco TB100HH9
MicroGEM MG2000
Sansonic FT300RT
MaxMedia MMDTVB03
Apex DT1001
ECHOSTAR TR-40
AMTC AT-2016

[RetireeRobert]

Quote:

Originally Posted by maddythebeagle Feds share coupons to help TV transition (AP) by AP: Yahoo! Tech I applied but the site is getting hammered...

Got my online application accepted and confirmed yesterday before lunch.

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by cute fuzzy bunny Do note that the coupon expires something like 3 months after its issued, and that allegedly a lot of the existing converter boxes may sell for $80 until the coupons are all used up, then be marked down to $40-50.

This doesn't seem like good usage of our tax money, if companies can afford to mark down the converter boxes. It nearly seems like a subsidy of those companies.

[cute fuzzy bunny]

Is is sort of interesting, isnt it?

- Govt gets to sell off the old bandwidth for billions, makes sure to lead off with this by noting that they'll bravely offer up a small part for fire/police/rescue.

- Converter manufacturers get to unload a bunch of cheap converters that have no useful purpose past an aging televisions lifespan and have >100% profit margins on what would otherwise be a slim margin product, which to be fair means a ton of companies will make them, giving people a lot of choice...errr...in how they're sporked.

- Consumers think they're getting a great deal, because who doesnt like getting 50% off of something?

- Government protects the makers of cheap low end tuners by limiting what you can buy with the coupons.

- Converter makers get to come back and sell the same product a second time, this time with an HDMI connector in it, to the OTA customers who buy cheap tunerless DTV's.

- Taxpayers foot the bill but we feel okay about it because the coupons are supposed to go to poorer people in rural areas with rabbit ear televisions from the 1970's that cant afford a new tv or tuner box. Nevermind that 70% of the coupons will be snatched up by well to do people, many of which have cable or satellite.

- Google gets to buy a big hunk of the bandwidth opened up, creates nearly seamless national wireless network that allows free wireless access and applications for all, funneled through the google network and its advertising of course, effectively supplanting the television industry as most people migrate from broadcast analog to broadband digital with all entertainment and information being piped wirelessly to their house.

Oh yeah, and then you'll need a new converter box for that.

And wish you'd bought some GOOG at $200 a share.

[ERD50]

I just might get one now. I got a 'taste' of what DTV has to offer within range of Chicago when I 'tested' the HDTV the kids bought for the in-laws. Perfect reception, added channels - maybe worth the money?

Of course, we will be viewing in Standard Def on our old sets, but a $40 investment seems OK to get a little more out of our current set. We could always move the box to other sets as we upgrade to HDTVs (probably not until the old ones break - but maybe not, that HDTV is sweet).

-ERD50