Clearer picture needed on switchover

[rpm]

Clearer picture needed on switchover

A Consumer watchdog is calling for greater efforts to advise the public about the switchover to digital TV that starts in November.

[JBenci]

Same thing with DSTV Decoders. I see them selling for as low as 300 bucks. Multichoice are obviously getting rid of the analogue stock.

[cr1s1s]

You know this whole thing bothers me a bit. We are able to buy HD ready TV's but they don't have digital tuners so you will be forced to buy a set top box anyway if you want to view the digital stations.

When they start selling sets with digital tuners then we can have this debate.

[Gambit]

Same thing with DSTV Decoders. I see them selling for as low as 300 bucks. Multichoice are obviously getting rid of the analogue stock.

DSTV decoders have always been digital and have nothing to do with terrestrial transmissions. The reason they are so cheap is multichoice wants more monthly subscriptions so they subsidise the decoders. And also technology gets cheapers every year.

[RoganDawes]

This comment pisses me off:

Adrian Boland, Merchandise Executive of Hitech Multimedia and Mass discounters said, “there is a huge cost difference between analogue and digital televisions, hence we still sell a lot of conventional televisions. An example is a conventional 54cm TV will sell for R899, an LCD will sell for R2199”.

In the context of this article, it sounds to me like he is suggesting that the LCD's on the market will be able to pick up the DVB-T signals that we are moving to, when that is so far from the truth it is not funny.

To the best of my knowledge, the DoC has not even confirmed whether there will be a Conditional Access system in place to control access to the feeds, so how shops can claim to be selling compliant hardware is beyond me.

While I have successfully received the test DVB-T broadcasts using a PC-based DVB-T receiver, I am holding off on buying ANY TV-related equipment until the DoC confirms what the requirements are to receive the "official" feeds. And I'm advising everyone I talk to about this to do the same.

[ninex]

You know this whole thing bothers me a bit. We are able to buy HD ready TV's but they don't have digital tuners so you will be forced to buy a set top box anyway if you want to view the digital stations.

When they start selling sets with digital tuners then we can have this debate.

I've seen the set top box and currently they connect to the HDTVs through component cables. So the digital tuner is integrated in the box. Basically the same as what DSTV does.

[maestro_za]

These digital tuners, if they connect via component cables, then 1080i is the highest resolution they can go. Which begs the question ... where does HDMI fit in?

The new HDMI HD decoders will connect to you TV via HDMI. Yet we have analogue aerial inputs. Still sounds like a analogue & digital tech side-by-side. Not a full digital connection.

At the end of the day, better picture quality is what we after. Let DoC fight over standards - even if they don't know what they talking about

[andres101]

The new HDMI HD decoders will connect to you TV via HDMI. Yet we have analogue aerial inputs. Still sounds like a analogue & digital tech side-by-side. Not a full digital connection.

the signal over the air will always be analogue. remember that a wave is transmitted and then converted to a digital signal by the decoder.

[SinnerG]

What's the point of this? There's buggerall on TV anyway. Higher resolution crap is still crap.

[Deenem]

the signal over the air will always be analogue. remember that a wave is transmitted and then converted to a digital signal by the decoder.

Well, sort of. The analogy is more like an analogue radio signal vs. a digital Wi-Fi signal.

The underlying 'transport' is still an RF sine wave, but the digital signal can carry more data and be compressed whereas an analogue signal cannot.

[oronte]

The journalist is poorly informed. Whether you buy a digital or analogue tv, you'll still need a set-top box (at least as the policy currently stands). The set-top boxes may incorporate converters. Also digital tvs are still far too expensive for most people to afford anyway (those R2000 LCD's are pretty small and for far less you can get a bigger analogue tv). Put TV's aside for a moment, what about VCR's and DVD recorders, I don't think any of the ones sold in South Africa incorporate digital tuners (I'm not sure if VCR's can manage digital anyway). I personally don't see a problem with analogue (just be ready to buy a converter if it's not incorporated into the box). There is no way SA can switch off the analogue signal in 3 years anyway (that date was initially set to compensate for usual 'mucking about' time).

[Deenem]

What's the point of this? There's buggerall on TV anyway. Higher resolution crap is still crap.

Exactly! It's only going to be SABC and eTv anyway.

If you've got a Dstv decoder you're already getting a digital signal ( and Multichoice compresses it so badly it looks worse than analogue anyway)

[Le^stat]

"Pay your T.V license...It's the right thing to do..."

I'm still waiting for an Inspector to come knocking...
I want to see those inspectors go into the dodge area's and ask those "pirates" for their licenses...

[Ivork]

.To the best of my knowledge, the DoC has not even confirmed whether there will be a Conditional Access system in place to control access to the feeds, so how shops can claim to be selling compliant hardware is beyond me.

It doesn't matter - all digital TV's come with CAMS anyway, weather you use them or not makes no difference.

Which begs the question - why the hell have they not started selling them yet?

And i think all those morons are getting much confused between a digital tv and an HD tv which are two very different things.

“In our recent radio interviews, it was shocking to learn that almost 99% of the callers had no idea of what digital migration is all about. This simply means that a lot of consumers are likely to misinterpret the massive discounts they get when buying televisions sets,” Bolani said.

And Bolani thinks he does? Bwahahahah ROFLMAO

I think they should first inform themselfs before sprouting all this BS -confusing the public and themselfs even more! idiots!

.

[Tns]

most people wouldn't know what the difference is between analog and digital