Enjoy Watching TV? Here's What You Need to Know

Technology continues to advance by leaps and bounds. And while most of us will agree that technology is our friend, we still don't want anything leaping or bounding on us unexpectedly. There are changes coming in the world of television that you need to know about. On February 19, 2009, the TV networks will all be switching their broadcasting signals from analog to digital. So what does this mean to you? It means that if you still get your TV reception via rabbit ears or a roof-based antenna, you will need to get a "digital converter antenna" that will pull in the digital signal to your television. However, your old TV will not be obsolete. There is no need to go buy one of the new "high definition" digital televisions (DTV) unless you want to. Again, your current TV set will still work with one of the converter antennas. Also, the digital antenna is going to be subsidized by the Federal government, so there is a good chance that they will be very low cost, if there is a cost at all.

The only word of warning here is that like all antennas, reception and quality will depend on your location. As for those of you who currently get your television by cable or a satellite and do not have a digital TV come 2009, you will need to contact your cable or satellite provider to ask if you will need a converter box for your TV. And lastly, while digital televisions are much more expensive than the televisions you may be used to, like all new technology their prices continue to drop significantly every few months.