On February 17, 2009, all wireless television signals will switch from analog to digital, freeing up broadcast space so some folks can make up a lot of money auctioning it off. Granted, any American that uses cable or satellite will still be able to use the old televisions, however those who still use an antenna will have to purchase a digital tuner. Full details can be found on the FCC site.My first question is: who out there still even needs a converter box? Most everybody I know has cable or satellite television. You can even get a discount on the device.
In my home, I have four televisions (I'm such a television enthusiast, I should write about it. Oh wait. I am). They are an LCD TV, a plasma, a large-screen CRT from the dark ages of 1991 (when they were first released. It was a hand-me-down) and a 27 inch CRT from about 10 years ago.
I've been trying to sell the 27-inch in order to upgrade and get another flat-panel, but nobody has been answering my ads on Craigslist. I started at $100, then lowered to $75, then lowered to $50. After weeks of no bites (except for the occasional "is it HDTV?" question), I gave up.
My second question is, for those of you who own one, what will you be doing with your old standard-definition CRT televisions? Will you be giving them to charity? Will you try to sell them? Keep them and get a converter box if you're using strictly antenna? Please respond either via the following poll or the comments.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
7-02-2008 @ 9:24AM
Thomas said...
No-one should be junking a tv, it should be taken for recycling. Is there a US equivelant of an HWRC (household waste recycling centre)?
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7-02-2008 @ 9:32AM
Henry said...
I'm holding onto mine a 24" CRT. It's old, the picture is off center, but until I can get a deal, on a preferably 1080p HDTV (proud PS3 owner here) I don't think I'll be upgrading. A relative, I've heard has more flat screens than they know what to do with, so maybe I will be moving on up, but it's unclear.
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7-02-2008 @ 9:41AM
Joel Keller said...
When I decide to upgrade to flat-screens, I figure that I'll just use Freecycle to give away my old tube TVs (I have a 27" one and a 20" one). Despite the old technology, someone somewhere will always be willing to grab an old working TV if it's free.
There are other places you can donate the TV, maybe to local schools or YMCAs or any other place that can use it to show the kiddies educational and other videos. I'm sure if you plug "donate TV" into Google, you'll get a lot of choices.
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7-02-2008 @ 11:16AM
Hank said...
I've tried the freecycle route; no one wants my 27"sony.
My original plan when I got the new TV was to move the 27" upstairs to replace my 19" (my first TV), and give that one away. But the Sony is too big for the space.
On the plus side, my wife says now we should get a flat panel and wall ount it in the room. The downside is two perfectly good CRTs that no one wants.
7-02-2008 @ 9:50AM
Mj said...
I agree about the recycling. Go green! I don't HAVE an old tv anymore. All of ours are as up to date as possible. My partner is a tech junkie, so we always have the latest. Same with computers. I do, however, think it wrong that the government tells us what kind of tv we have to get. Shades of Big Brother. And not the CBS show.
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7-02-2008 @ 9:52AM
Scott said...
Why junk a CRT? Moving to digital does not mean going to a flat-panel. I have cable (the non-digital, "we really don't want to sell it to you anymore" kind) and I'm skeptical, but I'm hoping Comcast will continue to offer it after February 2009. I'm perfectly happy with the picture I get on my 32" Sony. I like my current non-HD TiVos. I hope to get a few more years' use out of all of it. Assuming Comcast continues to offer an analog cable package, which they certainly CAN technically, just by doing the digital-analog conversion at their end. Only greed on the part of the cable company stands in my way.
Uh-oh...I'm screwed.
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7-02-2008 @ 9:55AM
iguitaround said...
We've got a pretty nice CRT TV that's only 4 years old. We'll be donating it to a local community center for use in their kid's programs. Most of the TVs they currently have don't even have RCA jacks for newer DVD players!
If your CRT still works well, find someplace to donate it! It will probably be a big upgrade for them!
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7-02-2008 @ 9:57AM
Enrique said...
My fiance just moved out of her apartment and left her 24" CRT behind. Who knows what'll become of it, but there's no way we were lugging that beast to the new apartment. My 50" HDTV will do fine just fine.
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7-02-2008 @ 10:22AM
bubbalove1x said...
What will I be doing with my CRT? Well, since I specifically bought a time tested technology that has proved itself to be longer lasting than any of new type of tv's on the market today (does anyone have a 1st generation plasma?) when I made the upgrade to HDTV, I'll be keeping mine for the next 20-30 years at least. Both of my HDTV's are CRT style. They're impossible to find these days (I bought mine a little a year ago), and I don't mean to sound like a hater on the new tech tv's, and yes, I need help moving the 36" one, but I'm more than happy to stick with what has worked and been upgraded for the past 75 years... But that's just me...
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7-02-2008 @ 10:59AM
cckrobinson said...
I don't have any :)
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7-02-2008 @ 11:22AM
Michael said...
We have four TV's, and I will be putting converter boxes on them all. We get seven channels, most of which are reruns or infocrap. I have looked at the cable listings and it isn't any better there. They say that digital tv will make the picture and sound so much better...but the programming will still be crap!!!
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7-02-2008 @ 11:33AM
John Howard said...
I don't really understand why you would conflate the digital TV switch with flat panel vs CRT TVs. The two have nothing to do with each other. Also, there are plenty of newer CRT TVs with SDTV tuners that will work fine after the switch.
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7-02-2008 @ 3:24PM
Bradley said...
Thank you for pointing that out. I get so tired of people confusing the terms digital and HDTV. Digital television can be both SDTV and HDTV. Best Buy and many other retailers still sell CRT TVs that have digital tuners. If you want a TV for your garage and don't have an old one are you going to spend $100-$150 for a tube tv that is more likely to take the abuse of being in the garage, or are you going to buy a flat-panel that has a finite life-span and may not handle the dust and temperature changes a garage can hand it.
I love my HDTV, but I can think of plenty of other cases in addition to the one above where I would want to buy an SDTV CRT.
7-02-2008 @ 4:40PM
Joel Keller said...
I don't think Brad's making that leap, that the digital upgrade means you have to junk your tube TV. He does mention that you'll either need a converter for over-the-air signals or do nothing if you're a cable or satellite customer. But, as the price of HD flat-screens comes down, more people are going to make the upgrade and more tubes are going to flood the secondary market / landfills.
To be honest, the only reason why I'd buy an LCD or plasma is to watch sports in HD. SD looks like crap on one of those TVs, especially when you expand the picture to fit the screen, like most people do. And I kind of wish tube-based HD sets were still being made, since I bet the HD pictures they produce are much sharper than anything produced by a comparably-sized LCD or plasma.
7-02-2008 @ 12:28PM
CJ said...
Geez, I'm tired of people saying stuff like "who out there still even needs a converter box?". While I like TV and shows that are on cable, I can honestly find better things to do with my cash. We just got a new DVD recorder with a converter built in and it's been a night and day difference. We have none of the antennae problems from before and get a slew of new channels. We plan on upgrading our TV eventually, but we're in no rush... the CRT still works fine and look a LOT better with the digital signal now.
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7-02-2008 @ 12:34PM
Franklin said...
Until the prices for HDTVs comes down from the stratosphere I'll be sticking to my old-style TVs. I'll be damned if I'll pay even half of what they're currently asking for hi-def units. It's only vapid entertainment and I'm not about to shell out a thousand bucks or more just to see more ugly detail in an actor's face.
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7-02-2008 @ 12:36PM
Jennifer said...
After finding out that my new flatscreen is likely to die within the next four years, whereas my old TV lasted for over a decade with no problems whatsoever...hell, I may pick up a box and keep the old TV.
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7-02-2008 @ 2:15PM
Jere said...
I use my 27" CRT for my Xbox. The 360 is plugged into the HDTV. The Xbox is plugged into the CRT. I can play games and watch TV at the same time.
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7-02-2008 @ 4:58PM
Beanie said...
I'm really surprised at how misleading the title of this entry is..
CRT does NOT equal analog signal! Man, you just keep spreading the fodder. I have a 30" Samsung CRT HDTV, which has a beautiful picture (but weighs a ton) and has a built-in digital receiver. There's really enough misinformation going around thanks to Best Buy about the digital transition, I figured a blog called TVSquad would be able to handle it. Not mad, just disappointed.
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7-04-2008 @ 9:33AM
Nathanael B said...
I don't have cable/satellite, so I actually applied for the coupon and picked up a converter box. It works quite nicely, and the picture is (predictably) better than watching an analog signal, so I'm happy...
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