TvPat
04-22-2007, 10:25 PM
I was at WalMart today and all of their TV's that do not have a built in ATSC tuner have the following message next to their price:
CONSUMER ALERT
This TV has only an analog broadcast tuner and will require a converter box after February 17, 2009, to receive over-the-air broadcasts with an antenna because of the Nation's transition to digital broadcasting. The TV should continue to work as before with cable and satellite TV services, gaming consoles, VCRs, DVD players, and similar products. For more information, call the Federal Communications Commission at 1-888-225-5322 (TTY: 1-888-835-5322) or visit the Commission's digital television website at: www.dtv.gov (http://www.dtv.gov).
walmart.com and bestbuy.com also show this message for all TV's that only have an NTSC tuner. I believe the notice is part of legislation passed earlier this year, and soon all stores will have to display this notice.
I have noticed that almost all TV's at Best Buy, no matter the size, now have a built in ATSC tuner. Most display an SDTV logo, which looks just like the HDTV logo with an S instead of an H. TV's over 13 inches manufactured after March 1, 2007 must have a built in ATSC tuner. They have a few for under $150, but the mandatory ATSC tuner does seem to have pushed up prices a bit.
CONSUMER ALERT
This TV has only an analog broadcast tuner and will require a converter box after February 17, 2009, to receive over-the-air broadcasts with an antenna because of the Nation's transition to digital broadcasting. The TV should continue to work as before with cable and satellite TV services, gaming consoles, VCRs, DVD players, and similar products. For more information, call the Federal Communications Commission at 1-888-225-5322 (TTY: 1-888-835-5322) or visit the Commission's digital television website at: www.dtv.gov (http://www.dtv.gov).
walmart.com and bestbuy.com also show this message for all TV's that only have an NTSC tuner. I believe the notice is part of legislation passed earlier this year, and soon all stores will have to display this notice.
I have noticed that almost all TV's at Best Buy, no matter the size, now have a built in ATSC tuner. Most display an SDTV logo, which looks just like the HDTV logo with an S instead of an H. TV's over 13 inches manufactured after March 1, 2007 must have a built in ATSC tuner. They have a few for under $150, but the mandatory ATSC tuner does seem to have pushed up prices a bit.