Harrison_B Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 (edited) I'm livid. I just had a long discussion (mainly argument) with my cable representative on how the conversion will effect my family. We currently have three TV's (one with a box and two w/o boxes). We receive Basic and Family cable (nothing fancy). All three TV's are hooked up to cable and are working fine. We knew when they convert to digital we will lose one TV (it's very old), but we purchase a new digitial TV to handle the cable signal coming in. Well, instead of converting Family cable to digital - they converted them to HD (high definition). This means I'm force to "rent" two boxes to receive the same stations ($18.00/monthly more) to receive the same stations I'm receiving now. The digital TV will only receive the Basic stations (now both my TV's receive both Basic & Family stations without the boxes). My representative told me I could purchase the converter box using the $40.00 coupon from the government; however, that is only good if I don't have cable. Since I have cable and an account with them, I asked her how this government box was going to help to receive my missing Family stations and she stated that it couldn't. The government box was only for TV's with antenna's. I need to rent "their" boxes. I could still get Family cable; however, I won't be able to view these stations from two TV's. Sorry, for the long story. I'm just mad! We're looking into other options. If my cable company, just said in the beginning - you need to rent boxes if you have Basic/Family services, I would have been okay with it. But they kept emphasing that if you have cable, you don't have to do a thing. Anyway, I'm just venting....:confused: Edited May 4, 2009 by Harrison_B Typo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomLovesClassics Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 We fought with the dish people, and the matter was never resolved. We cancelled service. Cable is not available in my area. At first it was a little difficult, my husband is addicted to tv. He hooked the computer up to the tv, and now I will even watch it on ocassion. the kids watch a lot less tv, as it is only on when my husband is home. We have watched movies before they were out in the theater. I grew up not being able to watch what I wanted on TV, because my brothers always got to chosse what they wanted to watch. When I was grown, I could not afford TV. I really do not like TV that much. Though I seem to use a computer quite a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillary in KS Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 We have cable, but just the cheap kind: $11 for the networks and about 5 other channels. We don't have a box, and we've been fine with the channels that have already converted. Why do you need a box if you're already hooked up to cable? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OnTheBrink Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Are your tv's digital cable ready? If not, you need the converter box. I know it stinks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shannon C Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 I thought any tv would work if you had cable. Mine are still working fine and they are just connected to the wall. Channels here have already converted. My tvs are not digital either. I thought that would only happen if you relied only on antenna. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phathui5 Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Could you cancel it and get Netflix instead? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stacie Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 I thought any tv would work if you had cable. Mine are still working fine and they are just connected to the wall. Channels here have already converted. My tvs are not digital either. I thought that would only happen if you relied only on antenna. This is what I thought as well. We were told the older televisions can't receive the signal without a converter box IF they are using the air signals. The cable eliminates this problem since the cable signal is sent directly to the tv. It will not be a hd picture if your tv is not capable, but you can still pick up the signal. Call a local tv station for clarification. I know ours has a specialist that works with customers during the conversion and can answer questions clearly. If that doesn't work out, try visiting a local electronics store (not the Best Buy big box type store) and talking with their tv salespeople. They are very familiar with the ins and outs of the digital conversion. Good luck!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zoraida Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 I thought any tv would work if you had cable. Mine are still working fine and they are just connected to the wall. Channels here have already converted. My tvs are not digital either. I thought that would only happen if you relied only on antenna. I thought the same thing. If you have cable you do not need a box. If you have an antenna you need the box. Last week though, we received a note from our cable company talking about next weeks change over. I don't have the letter but it confused the heck out of me. We have a new digital tv in our family room and an older tv in our master bedroom. The letter said that digital would be ready in our area by 6 a.m. Tuesday. In order for the digital channals to appear on our t.v, we would have to run a channel scan for the digital channels to appear on our television. We would also need to run this scan at least twice a month for the next several months because we will be getting new channels and they will not appear unless we run the periodic scan. Well if we run a scan on our new digital television it searches for cable channels first and than it does a search for digital channels which we of course do not have yet. When we run a scan on our older tv it only searches for cable stations. So I'm now wondering if our older tv will work too. I know for a fact that the commercials on tv all say the same thing - cable you do not need a box. Antenna you need a box. Blessings Zoraida Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TraceyS/FL Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 This is what I thought as well. We were told the older televisions can't receive the signal without a converter box IF they are using the air signals. The cable eliminates this problem since the cable signal is sent directly to the tv. It will not be a hd picture if your tv is not capable, but you can still pick up the signal. Call a local tv station for clarification. I know ours has a specialist that works with customers during the conversion and can answer questions clearly. If that doesn't work out, try visiting a local electronics store (not the Best Buy big box type store) and talking with their tv salespeople. They are very familiar with the ins and outs of the digital conversion. Good luck!! You didn't need digital cable... or boxes. Anything transmitted over the black cable from the wall, will still work on the TV. The cable company is converting the digital to analog for you. It ONLY affects people that use an antennae to get signal. My local NBC station has this page up with info - and there is a link to the governments page. http://www.wesh.com/digital/index.html I'm pretty sure your cable company is trying to milk you for money. I'd cancel everything and either start over.... or go DirecTV :D Another site: http://www.dtvanswers.com/ I hate the cable company.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Rat Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 We switched from cable to Direct TV and have never been happier. We've only seen one $2 rate increase in the last 4 years. With cable it seemed every few months the rate went up. We've never had any loss of service and the one time we had problems with our picture they came out and fixed it. We pay around $60 for 2 rooms, lots of channels but no movie channels. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harrison_B Posted May 4, 2009 Author Share Posted May 4, 2009 Hi Everyone, Thank you for replying. I've been investigating and I found out that I do need a cable box for the two TV's that are directly hooked up to cable. Once the conversion takes place, the cable company is only obligated to provide only local service per FCC. We will be able to get the basic channels without the box (none that we watch). I will lose the Family package on those TV's (even though I get them now). I talked with someone who works in the industry and he was saying that the digital conversion is a "cover" that the cable companies are using to force people rent their boxes. Anyway, I'm calming down ... Again, thank you for your replies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaxMom Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 Yes. In fact, our ridiculously expensive bundled service just went up another $60, which landed it firmly in the "f-you, Comcast" zone. Our phone cuts back over to Verizon - dial-tone only - next week, and my husband spent the better part of the afternoon on the mid-level roof, messing around with the ancient antenna we have, trying to ascertain whether it will work (it didn't when we moved in 10 years ago, as far as we could tell) well enough with the digital converter box to hold off on a new one. Alas, not so much. However, our research has yielded some very interesting information: if we get a higher-range antenna, we should be able to get stations from our local area, plus DC, Baltimore, Philly and points between. All free, after we buy a new antenna and converter boxes. Even if we keep internet through them (because we've had the same email addresses for 6 years or so), we'll be saving around $120/month just on phone and tv. Essentially, all equipment - if we go really high-end - will be paid for in 2 months of no cable. Makes me a little nauseous, frankly. So yes, we have fought with the cable company. And we have finished fighting with them and have told them to take a flying leap. Other than the bill, there is nothing they provide us that we can't get elsewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harrison_B Posted May 4, 2009 Author Share Posted May 4, 2009 So yes, we have fought with the cable company. And we have finished fighting with them and have told them to take a flying leap. Other than the bill, there is nothing they provide us that we can't get elsewhere. Luckily, we never converted everything to cable. We kept Verizon because we wanted a phone to work in emergencies and we're using dial-up for the internet (I know ancient). If the cable company was up front with this charge, I would have accepted it. What they did was very deceptive IMHO. My husband spoke with a supervisor (we couldn't get heads-or-tails from the customer rep's (I know they have to follow a script)) and finally the supervisor said that to receive Family package additional boxes will be required on all TV's after the conversion. Is this true for all cable? I don't know, but in my area it seems it is a way for the cable company to make extra money. I bought a digital TV so I didn't have to rent a digital box. Anyway, we looked into DirectTV and we're going to use them because my DH company gives us a discount. We're still waiting for FIOS to come in the area. We'll end up paying the same, but at least all three TV's will have the stations I'm paying for (plus we're getting a DVR to use for 12 months). I'm still upset, but like you said I can get the services elsewhere (and cheaper, too!) So in a couple of days ---- goodbye, cable! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathy in MD Posted May 4, 2009 Share Posted May 4, 2009 (edited) You didn't need digital cable... or boxes. Anything transmitted over the black cable from the wall, will still work on the TV. The cable company is converting the digital to analog for you. It ONLY affects people that use an antennae to get signal. My local NBC station has this page up with info - and there is a link to the governments page. http://www.wesh.com/digital/index.html I'm pretty sure your cable company is trying to milk you for money. I'd cancel everything and either start over.... or go DirecTV :D Another site: http://www.dtvanswers.com/ I hate the cable company.... One of our stations has converted to digital and all we get is static. Our cable company says they'll provide the free converter box and remote for one year, then they'll charge for it. Do you think they're trying to sneak the extra fees in when the attention is off of them????:tongue_smilie: eta We'd dump Comcast in a heartbeat too, if we could get broadband from anyone else. Edited May 4, 2009 by Kathy in MD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harrison_B Posted May 4, 2009 Author Share Posted May 4, 2009 One of our stations has converted to digital and all we get is static. Our cable company says they'll provide the free converter box and remote for one year, then they'll charge for it. Do you think they're trying to sneak the extra fees in when the attention is off of them????:tongue_smilie: Yes, you're lucky that they're providing one box for free for a year. We're paying $9.00/box now. I'm upset because they're requiring me to rent two additional boxes from them - adding up to additional $18.00/monthly charge. Bottom line for us, we would be paying $27.00 monthly charges just for boxes. And to top it off, the government boxes which you do receive a $40.00 coupon won't work on the cable service. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joannqn Posted May 5, 2009 Share Posted May 5, 2009 My father just told me all about his fight with Comcast. He bought a high definition TV and, with the conversion, the cable boxes provides him with poor quality. What's the point of having a high end TV if your cable box gives you poor quality? After the fight, he ended up with a free upgrade to the HD cable box and a discount on the box for the second tv. He's also getting a lower rate for a year than he was paying in the first place. He's happier for now. My family uses antenna. We've noticed that we have more channels than we used to but one of our most watched channels often has no signal so we often have to turn the box off and go back to analog to watch a show in lower quality than we used to get. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harrison_B Posted May 5, 2009 Author Share Posted May 5, 2009 My mom had a similar situation with Optimum and she just dropped them today. They raised her rates and they couldn't do a "thing" for her. She called Customer Service three times and they basically told her to leave if she was not happy. So FIOS was recently wired into her neighborhood and she switched. Guess what - all of a sudden the cable company could drop her rates by approximately 1/3 and give her free boxes. She basically told them - thanks, but no thanks! They lost a customer. They'll be losing us after tomorrow. I'm finding their practices deceptive in terms of not telling their customers about requiring boxes on all TV's for the Family package.(IMHO). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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