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There's another invoncenience with digital only broadcasting. In the old days, when I got a new TV and wanted to give it a quick test, I could just plug it in and tune to the local channels. The signals were strong enough that I didn't need an antenna and the picture was usually good enough to tell that the TV was working properly. Now, I have to dig out the converter box and antenna while dealing with all the wires. I do like the fact that DTV offers many subchannels and a clear picture; but, there are still many aspects of DTV that I don't care for. The "all or nothing" reception and the fact that I can't use my battery powered portable TV's as they were intended to be used are two big issues I have with DTV.
We still have analog cable delivery and the traditional VHF rotary TV tuners will still tune in cable channels 2-13; but, I can see the writing on the wall. Comcast is already running an endless loop info channel on how to hook up the new digital cable adapters and there has already been several channels removed from the analog line-up. That tells me that it's only a matter of time before analog cable is a thing of the past. Before long, any older TV will require some sort of set top box in order to use it and the only thing the old analog tuner inside the TV will need to be able to do is receive channels 3 or 4. At least they are providing boxes that will allow the older sets to be used. I'd be very PO'ed if the older sets became an oversized paperweight.
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