Thanks to everyone who has been directly commenting to our stories on our website. You're out there, and we hear you. Because of the volume of response we've gotten about Aldo Cugnini's article "Smart antennas" from the March 2008 issue, editorial director Brad Dick has put together a brief guide that elaborates on the smart antenna and the DTV transition and includes links to news, vendors, tutorials, blogs and other resources to clear up any questions you may have. We aim to please; keep the comments coming.

General DTV/smart antenna information

 

Video tutorials

http://www.zenith.com/dtv/setup.html

Setting up a Zenith STB.

 

http://www.zenith.com/dtv/analogtv.html

A typical viewer discusses keeping her old TV by using STBs

 

Tutorials

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_antenna

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CEA-909

http://broadcastengineering.com/hdtv/smart_antennas/

 

Digital Stream DTX9900 and GE 22730 Digital TV Converters

Peter Putman

http://www.hdtvexpert.com/pages_b/DTVconverters.html

3-2008

 

Will I need a new antenna?

http://www.ezdigitaltv.com/Antenna_Information.html

 

Picking an antenna

http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx

 

Installing DTV convertor boxes

http://www.pbs4549.org/agingsmart/v2i3_converter.htm

 

Vendor information (Broadcast Engineering does not endorse or recommend any particular vendor’s products)

 

Vendor: Antennas Direct

http://www.news4forum.com/tvtechies/2008/04/antenna-help.html

http://www.antennasdirect.com

 

Vendor: Solid Signal

http://www.solidsignal.com/antennas/?xfermeth=directg&gclid=CKnWpsm_jZUCFQnIsgodVVSNfg

Antenna selector page

http://www.solidsignal.com/antenna_selector.asp

 

Vendor: Afterdawn.com

http://www.afterdawn.com/hardware/product_details.cfm/4917/rca_dta800b

 

Vendor: Summitsource.com

http://www.summitsource.com/dx-antenna-dta5000-tv-smart-antenna-multidirectional-hdtv-digital-uhf-vhf-outdoor-offair-high-definition-local-hd-sylvania-television-reception-aerial-green-zone-part-dta5000-p-6320.html

 

http://www.summitsource.com/hdtv-antenna-tv-aerial-amplifier-booster-indoor-hdtv-antenna-digital-hdtv-high-definition-c-47_56.html

 

Vendor: General Electric smart antenna

http://hometheater.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=hometheater&cdn=gadgets&tm=9&f=00&su=p284.9.336.ip_p504.1.336.ip_&tt=11&bt=0&bts=0&zu=http%3A//www.jascoproducts.com/hdtv/GE-Smart-Digital-Antenna.asp

 

Vendor:

http://www.smarter.com/antennas/pl--ch-3--ca-197--bn-10.html

 

Terk antennas

http://www.audiovox.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/GenProductListCmd?type=nprev&catalogId=10001&storeId=10001&categoryId=5065&langId=-1&page=&urlString=&productId=&brand=

 

Best Buy, Terk antennas

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=7322587&type=product&id=1118844608800

 

Vendor: EZ Digital

http://www.ezdigitaltv.com/Antenna_Information.html

 

DTV Webs/Blogs:

 

http://www.dtvtransition.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=12&Itemid=26

 

Community Broadcasters Association recommended Analog pass-through convertor boxes

http://www.keepuson.com/index2.php?page=18&x=

 

http://williambryson.blogspot.com/2008/04/mailbag-dtv-questions-and-answers-2.html

 

Consumer Reports blog

http://blogs.consumerreports.org/electronics/2008/02/how-to-use-a-co.html

 

DTV for dummies .com

http://www.dummies.com/WileyCDA/DummiesArticle/Buying-a-DTV-Digital-to-Analog-Converter-Box.id-6023.html

 

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r20011039-why-are-ATSC-DTV-Tuners-so-Expensive

 

http://www.engadgethd.com/2008/01/02/hd-stbs-are-not-eligable-for-40-dtv-vouchers

 

Analog pass-through feature

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Analog_passthrough

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison_of_CECB_units

(Above link provides a table of feature comparisons on some models.)

http://www.wpbstv.org/DigitalUpdate.htm

http://www.keepuson.com/index2.php?page=4&x=

(Above links provide lists of convertor boxes with analog pass-through.)

 

http://www.ezdigitaltv.com/Analog_Pass-Through.html

http://www.twice.com/article/CA6580191.html

http://www.dtv.gov/consumercorner.html

 

 

Blogs

http://blogs.consumerreports.org/electronics/2008/04/the-dtv-transit.html

http://blogs.consumerreports.org/electronics/2008/04/first-look-phil.html

http://www.tvsnob.com/archives/018297.php

http://forums.dealmac.com/read.php?8,2753639

http://hdtvprofessor.com/HDTVAlmanac/?p=729

http://www.engadgethd.com/2008/06/05/digital-stream-dtx9950-converter-box-touts-analog-pass-through/

 

Vendors

http://www.newtechreview.com/newtechreview/newsinfo.asp?NewsID=3699

http://www.solidsignal.com/prod_display.asp?PROD=TB100HH9

http://www.solidsignal.com/prod_display.asp?PROD=TB100MG9

http://www.afterdawn.com/news/archive/14732.cfm

http://www.retrevo.com/content/special-reports/2008/10/retrevo-dtv-info-center

 

News stories

Converter Boxes: What to Buy and Where

10/14/2008

One new coupon-eligible converter box was approved this past week, bringing the total to 176. There are 75 certified converter boxes, of which 41 can pass through analog signals, now available in retail stores. There are also 101 certified converter boxes, of which 59 can pass through analog signals, not yet available in retail stores. Each box costs around $40-70. For a detailed listing of eligible boxes, visit www.ntiadtv.gov/cecb_list.cfm.

 

No new national retailers joined the program this past week. There are 7 national, 35 online and 12 telephone retailers selling converter boxes. For a complete listing or to search for local retailers, visit www.DTV2009.gov/VendorSearch.aspx.

 

http://reviews.cnet.com/tv-hdtv-tuners-receivers/winegard-rcdt09a/4505-6487_7-33280760.html?tag=mncol;txt

 

Battery-powered convertor boxes

http://reviews.cnet.com/tv-hdtv-tuners-receivers/winegard-rcdt09a/4505-6487_7-33280760.html?tag=mncol;txt

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-10054968-1.html?tag=TOCmoreStories.0

 

First battery-powered converter box hits the marketplace

The manufacturer, Winegard, has introduced the first battery pack for DTV converter boxes that will keep certain analog TV sets operational during power outages. However, the pack is only compatible with a Winegard converter box. It requires 6 “D” batteries and lasts up to 18 hours.   www.winegarddirect.com/viewitem.asp?p=RC-BP9V

 Thanks for the information. This is great.