Do I Need an HDTV?

Updated 4:17 PM EDT, Tue, Nov 11, 2008

Digital ready television sets for sale.
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Digital ready television set for sale. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

 

Will I have to buy a High Definition TV (HDTV) to watch digital broadcast television after the transition?

No.

It is important to understand that the DTV transition is a transition from analog broadcasting to digital broadcasting, which includes both standard definition (SD) and high definition (HD).

An SD DTV (which is simply a TV with an internal digital tuner), or a digital-to-analog converter box hooked to an analog TV, is all you need to continue watching over-the-air broadcast television. You can watch HD programs on an SD DTV (or on an analog TV with a converter box), but you won’t get full HD quality on a non-HDTV. SD DTVs are comparably priced to similar sized analog TVs.

A High Definition DTV will enable you to watch both SD programming and full quality HD programming. However, HDTVs are much more expensive than standard DTVs.

BUT... you might want to upgrade to an HDTV because, well, they are pretty cool.

Comments (18)

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  • narkspud Friday, Feb 27 at 5:36 PM FLAG COMMENT moses - You need a better antenna, or a better location for the antenna you have.
  • moses canales Tuesday, Feb 24 at 6:50 PM FLAG COMMENT NBC stations araound the Bay Area are the weaker signals. One day you see it other day don't.
  • narkspud Tuesday, Jan 20 at 11:11 PM FLAG COMMENT cindy - There's no such thing as a "digital" TV antenna - an antenna is an antenna. What kind will depend on where you're located in relation to the transmitters. In all cases, your best bet will be something on the roof pointed at the transmitters, but in some cases, a good indoor antenna will be adequate. It will need to be able to get UHF, and maybe VHF as well. Enter your address into http://www.tvfool.com and it will tell ... MORE >
  • cindy Monday, Jan 19 at 1:13 PM FLAG COMMENT I purchasing a new TV for the transition. What kind of antenna do I need for the new tv?
  • narkspud Wednesday, Jan 14 at 6:24 PM FLAG COMMENT Chebanse - CBS 2's website is oversimplifying things quite a bit. When the switch is thrown, they will be easier to pick up, but it's more because they're changing DTV channels than because of power levels. (You'll have to do another channel scan so your box or TV can "find" them again.) It looks like there's going to be quite a lot of channel jumping in Chicago, so results will vary from station to station. You can enter your ... MORE >

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