What will you be doing with your CRT televisions?
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.
Victoria Lets Secrets Out Again
Good news for those who just watch it for the articles…
CBS just made the day of America’s men, revealing that it once again will air the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show this fall.
Which means there’s still time to order HDTV.
This year’s lingerie-clad catwalkerswhich so far include Heidi Klum, Adriana Lima, Marisa Miller and Miranda Kerrwill strut their holiday-themed stuff from the Fontainebleau Miami Beach resort.
As always, the show also features musical performances from as yet unrevealed artists. Last year, the Spice Girls and Black Eyed Peas’ will.i.am graced the stage, the latter filling in as a last-minute replacement for a then in-mourning Kanye West.
Lost season 4 DVD news
Is it just me or are DVD releases getting announced earlier and earlier? Whatever the case, Lost fans can plan on getting the season four DVD as a Christmas/ Hanukkah/Kwanzaa present because it doesn’t come out until December 9th. Which makes sense I suppose, since the show returns in early ’09.
The 5-disc set (aka “The Expanded Experience”) will obviously include all 14 season four eps plus a ton of goodies. As far as DVD sets go, Lost always has great extras. According to TVShowsOnDVD.com, expect to see 5 featurettes, bloopers, deleted scenes, and audio commentaries for some of the episodes. The one goodie that really has me excited? The “Oceanic Airlines Safety Guide.” Hilarious. It immediately made me think of Airtoons — all those funny and inappropriate airline safety cards.
As with season three, there will also be a BluRay release but I’ve got to be honest. I have the regular season three DVDs and they look pretty damn good on my HDTV set. So I’m not convinced that shelling out the extra $40 to $50 bucks is really worth it. Yet, anyway. You can pre-order both at Amazon for way less though - $38.99 for the normal DVDs and $66.95 for the BluRay.
HD DVD is officially dead
Do you hear that? That’s the sound of “Taps” being played for HDTV players and recorders. Toshiba has announced that, “it will no longer develop, manufacture and market HD DVD players and recorders.” Yes, it’s true. Just like Beta was phased out in favor of VHS, HDTV has lost in its head to head battle with Blu-ray. As of March 2008, the manufacture of the hardware will cease, and production of HD DVD disk drives for PCs and games as well. The only exception, said Atsutoshi Nishida, President and CEO of Toshiba Corporation are laptops. “[Toshiba] continues to assess the position of notebook PCs with integrated HD DVD drives.”
Where does that leave those lucky consumers who’ve invested in HD DVD and its recorders? Up a tree, in many ways. Toshiba spokesmen say the company will continue to sell recording media on line, but don’t expect a slew of HD DVD software in the future. Blu-ray will be king, you can bet on that. For those of us who haven’t gone HD, Toshiba reiterates in their corporate release that they will continue to market conventional DVD players and recorders.