Never thought of this one...

[icman95]

Just visited with a couple of RVing friends and they brought up a point I didn't even consider. The digital tv conversion won't be a problem for anyone with cable or satellite tv, so I didn't even think twice about it. My friend mentioned that he bought a converter box anyway, because of the tv in his camper. I hadn't considered that. We don't usally say at compgrounds that have cable hookup and the one time we did, we didn't hook up because that, to us, is the opposite of camping. We usually use the tv for weather/news or movies for a rainy night. No need for cable hookup. It's nice to get away from the boob tube a few weeks out of the year.



But what to do once the conversion takes place-now delayed until June? We won't be able to get the weather/news anymore unless we hook up the converter box. So, we went to the gov't website to apply for the coupon https://www.dtv2009.gov/. I knew before I went there that the program is out of funds, but I applied anyway. They said that as the coupons that were sent out and not used, expire (90 days) they will be issued to new applicants all placed on a waiting list. The estimate is that anyone applying today will get one the week of 4/11/09. All this, just to watch tv while camping. Wow!

 

[WestTN]

I bought a new 22" HD flatscreen for the home bedroom and set up my mount in the camper for it. Only takes a few minutes to move it.



The analog amp in the antenna amplifies the digital signal just fine.

 

[icman95]

I don't actually own a flatscreen. Bought the tv for the camper the day after I bought the camper 3 years ago. Flatscreens outnumbered the tube tvs in the store, but I could still get a 20" tube for a decent price, so I did. Figured I wouldn't be using it much, so why spend the $. Moving it from home to camper and back would justify the cost of a better model, but I'm much too lazy for that.

 

[CharlesHoward]

How does $367 for a 26" Sanyo LCD HDTV at Wal-Mart fit within budgets? That's what I replaced my original equipment TV with in Jan.
I love the usually HD picture and all the additional channels that come in crystal clear now versus fuzzy or not at all. I'm in Slidell LA, so there are plenty of broadcast channels within range - most are already Digital and free over the air.
The equally important issue for me was replacing a 69lb 27" analog Tube TV with a 13lb 26" Widescreen aspect TV saves over 50 lbs of onboard weight!

 

[Road Dog]

The switch -- whenever it happens -- is for analogue high power stations. Low power stations can continue transmitting analogue signals. If the campground has Wi-Fi (wireless Internet) then you can get your news fix with a laptop.

 

[WestTN]

I just realized I made a mistake in my earlier post. That $367 26" Sanyo from WalMart is exactly what I bought.



It is a great TV. It has the widest viewing angle I have seen on any LCD tv.

 

[icman95]

If the campground has Wi-Fi (wireless Internet) then you can get your news fix with a laptop.

Road Dog,



Thanks. I do bring my laptop with me, but of the usual haunts I frequent, only one has wi-fi and that's 3/4 mile away in the main lodge. We go there for Bike Week in Laconia, New Hampshire and several times last year I hopped on the back of my neighbor's little putt-putt scooter with the laptop slung over my shoulder while he rode me to the lodge so that I could get the wi-fi. Quite often we dry camp in the middle of a field nowhere near wi-fi. For one reason or another, I tend to gravitate towards the more primative spots. Haven't figured that out yet. Anyhoo, thanks for the tip.

 

[icman95]

If the flatscreens were in the $300 range when I bought the one I have now, I would have done it. Prices have really come down lately. Were $500-600 3 years ago for one that would fit the space. No matter, for the amount we use it, it works just fine. It's just that without that converter box, it won't work for long.

 

[Crash&Burn]

This post got me to thinking..... will our camper antenna's pull in a digital signal?

My home outdoor antenna works great with my new converter boxes, it has a UHF component (the part that looks like a half moon) which the digital signal uses. However my camper antenna is flat, I guess I need to try one of the converters on it before camping season gets here. I live about 20 miles from the local stations so this might not be much of a test...

 

[WestTN]

The powered antenna on my 1988 trailer works fine for the digital signals.

 

[DonTX]

Just for information, our local HEB grocery chain, gives you a converter box for your coupon, exact trade. Don't spend too much for a box, you can get two coupons from uncle sammie

 

[Andersonville]

The flatscreens use about 75% more power than CRT tv's and weather affects them too! Your regular antenna will work but may not be optimal for your location. When your digital tv quits it will be cheaper to buy a new one! 5 years is the projected life based on

"normal" use, whatever that is. I found this info on a tech website on the web. I can't amember which website. The government wants to "sell" the vhf uhf frequencies to other services. I haven't looked for any studies about how powerful the digital broadcast

signals are and whether the signals can cause cancer in lab mice but not in humans much as the cell phone manufacturers have tested. Just my . 02.

 

[JMetzger]

We have satellite at home & in the RV but we use the converter box for the TV in the RV to watch local channels for the area we are in. We travel all over the USA & we can't get our local Reno channels very far out of Reno.

 

[icman95]

This post got me to thinking..... will our camper antenna's pull in a digital signal?

My home outdoor antenna works great with my new converter boxes, it has a UHF component (the part that looks like a half moon) which the digital signal uses. However my camper antenna is flat, I guess I need to try one of the converters on it before camping season gets here. I live about 20 miles from the local stations so this might not be much of a test...

The friend who got me thinking about this said his antenna works just fine with his converter box. He doesn't store his RV for winter. He uses it as his "mantown" while it is parked in his yard. Goes out there to watch tv or just relax alone for a while. He said not only does he get all the regular channels that he used to get, but he gets some that he couldn't get before the converter box. He has the normal Winegard antenna that most of us get when the units come from the factory. I didn't actually go in to take a look at the setup, but he seems pleased with it.

 

[Grizzly]

Just for information, our local HEB grocery chain, gives you a converter box for your coupon, exact trade. Don't spend too much for a box, you can get two coupons from uncle sammie

You did better then I did Don. It cost me a $5 bill plus the coupons for each of my two converter boxes from Target. We have satellite for the house, but not for the 5er.

 

[PWitteveen]

I thought I heard that you can't leave the new flatscreens in the treiler over the winter if it freezes where you store your trailer, damages the TV somehow if it freezes.

 

[Grizzly]

I thought I heard that you can't leave the new flatscreens in the treiler over the winter if it freezes where you store your trailer, damages the TV somehow if it freezes.

Never heard of that happening.

 

[chazj]

I thought I heard that you can't leave the new flatscreens in the treiler over the winter if it freezes where you store your trailer, damages the TV somehow if it freezes.

I had my flatscreen LCD TV at the repair shop over winter. I was told, by the repairman, that I needed to allow enough time for the TV to warm to the ambient temperature in the heated trailer before plugging it in. Apparently rapid changes in temperatures, cold to warm, can cause problems within the TV upon energizing the componets inside.