Emergency TV w/batteries for disasters (converter, channel, channels, signal)
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I have several small TVs, B&W, that run on batteries, and use rabbit ears, to receive broadcasts when our power is out.
It occurred to me today, after posting a list of items to have on hand for emergencies, that after the switch from analog, none of these TVs will work, including the one that is built in to my flashlight.
So now what?
Would someone tell me exactly what I need to do . . . so my emergency TVs that run on batteries will be able to pick up a signal when the power is off? Or is this just an impossibility?
If we need some kind of "box" to translate the signals, I am supposing it runs off electricity?
We've discovered that black and white tvs were next to worthless in an emergency anyway, because the stations with the severe weather information use color radar that converts to a mushy gray on those little tvs.
A suggestion is to get a 12 volt tv designed for auto and RV use. Most people aren't very far from their cars.
We've discovered that black and white tvs were next to worthless in an emergency anyway, because the stations with the severe weather information use color radar that converts to a mushy gray on those little tvs.
A suggestion is to get a 12 volt tv designed for auto and RV use. Most people aren't very far from their cars.
We do have the type designed for RV use, but my understanding is - they won't pick up a signal after we are all switched to digital in a year. You have to use a conversion box of some type and I assume the box also requires plug in/electricity.
I have three - and have gotten good reception on local stations in the past, in both NC and KS. But now it looks like they will be worthless. We have radios, too, but we like having something visual as well, LOL.
Wow - I was hoping someone new about these conversion "boxes" and whether they are a plug in or had to have their own source of electricity.
Seems a real waste when we have 3 nice little tvs that we have happily used in the past.
Its my understanding that cable is switching to digital signals...
NOT over the air basic channels that are picked up via rabbit ears?
And, a radio would be better in general anyway.
All stations are going digital for terrestrial broadcast on February 17, 2009. Cable actually doesn't have to go digital, as they are not under the rule of the FCC - they can do it at their leisure, if at all (they will though, it will become less expensive from a broadcast perspective to maintain digital and abandon tape methods).
Battery-powered units with digital tuners are out there, but are a few hundred bucks a piece. For now... there is no solution I'm aware of.
Wow - I was hoping someone new about these conversion "boxes" and whether they are a plug in or had to have their own source of electricity.
Seems a real waste when we have 3 nice little tvs that we have happily used in the past.
None of the manufacturers making the converter boxes have any plan for a battery-powered alternative.
Best bet might be buying a small generator instead.
I have yet to see any battery powered Digital TVs in the marketplace. They'll probably be introduced after the switchover in 2009. I don't think digital TVs have reached a low enough price point that manufacturers would find much of a market for a battery-powered unit at the price they'd have to sell it for.
I doubt that there will ever be battery powered digital converter boxes.
Also, something that often gets overlooked are these emergency radios with TV band reception. I just saw several in a Sharper Image store over the weekend. After the switchover to digital signals, the TV band portion of those radios will be useless.
I have a small collection of battery powered tv's. I have used them in several emergency situations. And I use them frequently when working in slightly remote areas. Even when in a populated area I am often without a power source. So analog signal is very important to me. One guy above mentioned that you can't see the radar on the news with these little black and whites. Who cares, you get the jist and are provided other important info. And some of you mentioned newer rv/boat tv's that are digital ready with cigarette lighter power, what good is that if your car is in a tree down the street? These tv's are a part of millions of families emergency kits. And everything about digital tv... from the tv station all the way to the tv set, requires a perfect uninterupted A/C source. Flucuating power will disable a tv station. Even if they are forced to use generators in emergencies, I doubt all the computers making your tv signal will be stable. I am a live sound engineer and use a lot of wireless equipment. I understand the difference between digital signal and radio frequencies. A digital signal can only exist in a perfect setting. So I guarantee lives will be lost in the next major disaster because people will be unable to access emergency information. There is no reason to switch other than money to be made by selling those frequencies. They sell you on the sound an image aspect, but when dealing with over the air tv.... thats not the most important thing. People who care about digital clarity already have cable or satellite. And when they sell off the FM radio frequencies we will be in the same boat with portable radios. Nothing is more dependable than a radio frequency. It's not the prettiest, but nothing else is as solid. You can suffice with a partial radio(tv) frequency signal, and maybe get needed information. Their is no such thing as a partial digital signal. It's either on or off. So the public has been led like a herd of mentally retarded sheep down the wrong road once again. And I challenge any fan of the digital world to prove me wrong.
Last edited by aeroscott; 05-02-2008 at 05:41 PM..
I have a small collection of battery powered tv's. I have used them in several emergency situations. And I use them frequently when working in slightly remote areas. Even when in a populated area I am often without a power source. So analog signal is very important to me. One guy above mentioned that you can't see the radar on the news with these little black and whites. Who cares, you get the jist and are provided other important info. And some of you mentioned newer rv/boat tv's that are digital ready with cigarette lighter power, what good is that if your car is in a tree down the street? These tv's are a part of millions of families emergency kits. And everything about digital tv... from the tv station all the way to the tv set, requires a perfect uninterupted A/C source. Flucuating power will disable a tv station. Even if they are forced to use generators in emergencies, I doubt all the computers making your tv signal will be stable. I am a live sound engineer and use a lot of wireless equipment. I understand the difference between digital signal and radio frequencies. A digital signal can only exist in a perfect setting. So I guarantee lives will be lost in the next major disaster because people will be unable to access emergency information. There is no reason to switch other than money to be made by selling those frequencies. They sell you on the sound an image aspect, but when dealing with over the air tv.... thats not the most important thing. People who care about digital clarity already have cable or satellite. And when they sell off the FM radio frequencies we will be in the same boat with portable radios. Nothing is more dependable than a radio frequency. It's not the prettiest, but nothing else is as solid. You can suffice with a partial radio(tv) frequency signal, and maybe get needed information. Their is no such thing as a partial digital signal. It's either on or off. So the public has been led like a herd of mentally retarded sheep down the wrong road once again. And I challenge any fan of the digital world to prove me wrong.
It's going to be difficult to have a serious disscusion with anyone on this topic with someone who dosen't know the difference between frequency and digital;and you as demonstrated, you clearly don't. One has NOTHING to do with the other..it's like comparing apples and a Chevy pickup truck.
Analog and digital are just two different methods of encoding information onto an AC signal. The "information" of an analog signal is contained in the actual magnitude of the signal relative to some referrence point. It can contain ALL values between the minimum and the maximum. A digital signal consists of a series of signal levels which transition between one of two predefined levels. These two levels are used to encode a binary representation of the information. The two levels are more often than not anything but ON/Off as you incorrectly stated. The actual value of the levels is not important as is the case in an anaolg signal.
Frequency is just the number of times per second that the AC signal completes one cycle. Could be analog,could be digital.. The method of information encoding (analog/digital)is not contained or implied in anyway in the definitionof frequency. Frequency is related to wavelength by the propagation velocity of the wave thru the media involved. For an electromagnetic wave thru space that's the speed of light. 299 792 458 m / s or roughly 186,000 Miles per second.
most portable TVs have radio tuners. radio is better anyways in an emergency so you'll be fine
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