Analog TV signals become things of the past today with digital conversion

Lori Bethea and her fiance, Edgar Brown, were underwhelmed about spending $50 for a box that would allow them to continue watching broadcast television.

"It sucks," Brown said.

"You got to do what you've got to do," Bethea said.

The alternative is watching local television programs turn to "snow" when the nation switches from old-style analog television to digital TV signals today. Otherwise, consumers will need to peel off several hundred dollars to buy a new digital television or sign up for cable or satellite television service.

Cox Communications estimates that 50,000 to 65,000, or 2 percent, of the households in the Las Vegas area are unprepared for today's change to digital television, even though the switch was delayed in February to give people more time to prepare.

Research firm SmithGeiger LLC said Thursday that about 2.2 million households nationally were still unprepared around the beginning of June. Sponsored by the National Association of Broadcasters, it surveyed 948 households that relied on antennas and found that one in eight had not connected a digital TV or digital converter box.

Nielsen Co., which measures TV ratings with the help of a wide panel of households, put the number of unready homes at 2.8 million, or 2.5 percent of the total television market, as of Sunday. In February, when the government originally planned to convert to digital television signals, the number was 5.8 million.

Nielsen said minority households are less likely to be prepared, as are households consisting of people under age 35. Households with people older than 55 are far more likely to be prepared than the average.

Requests for $40 converter box coupons from the government have spiked this week, according to the Department of Commerce. It's too late to get a coupon before the conversion date now.

Many Las Vegas area television stations will convert to digital signals around midnight tonight.

Juergen Barbusca, spokesman for Cox Communications, has been calling Friday "D Day" for digital television as the company spent the last year preparing 1,350 workers in the Las Vegas area for a potential flood of new subscribers.

Barbusca didn't know what to expect, but he noted: "People in Las Vegas tend to do things at the last minute."

"I think we'll see some increase in traffic tomorrow. I don't think it will be a madhouse," said Jim Pearse, president of Ultimate Electronics, which has 32 stores, including two in Las Vegas. Pearse based his conclusion on the relatively smooth transition to digital TV earlier this year in Denver.

The Ultimate Electronics store at 741 S. Rainbow Blvd. was sold out of converter boxes on Thursday. A few miles away at 2050 N. Rainbow Blvd., Best Buy had stacked converter boxes on the floor.

About 50 or 60 converter boxes were sold over the past two days, said Adam Mills, Geek Squad supervisor at Best Buy.

Many customers decided to buy the boxes, rather than purchase a new television, because of the recession, Mills said.

Best Buy has a contract with the federal government to provide free installation of digital television converters for customers in 31 states regardless of where the converter box was purchased.

Chad Stone, chief executive officer of PC 911, a local electronic and computer technical service, said his staff has installed converter boxes for several customers who paid a $95 fee.

"They are annoyed they are having to spend this much money to watch regular TV," Stone said.

Installation is relatively easy for many people, Stone said.

It takes about five minutes to hook up the converter boxes, said Robert Lodge, a member of the Geek Squad.

The Geek Squad's personnel spend a great deal more time explaining how the boxes work. Customers with the boxes must use their old remote controls for power and volume but they can flip channels with their new remote controls.

Consumers using the converter box still need to use an antenna, such as rabbit ears.

The switch will cause some problems for people using converters.

Local TV stations with weak analog reception may disappear completely when the digital converter is used, Lodge said. Cox is offering free installation of cable television service within 48 hours. Those buying one additional service, such as telephone service, will get free basic cable service for a year.

People can also opt for satellite television service or can buy a digital television to replace their old set.

"It's a substantial benefit when they go from analog to digital, not only for the picture but for the sound," Pearse said.

Customers willing to spend even more can buy high-definition television sets, but many of those also subscribe to cable or satellite television.

"It's an unbelievable picture," Pearse said. "It's one of the finest technologies over the last three or four years."

Contact reporter John G. Edwards at jedwards@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-04