Are there any analog TVs left at the store?
by Ben Drawbaugh 
posted Mar 14th 2007 at 5:25PM
Wow that was fast, we didn't think it would happen that fast, but we stopped by a big box retailer to find that they didn't have any analog TVs on the shelves. In fact they only had three CRT TVs under 20-inches and they all included ATSC tuners. Did the manufacturers really just stop making these things before the deadline or did the store just not expect the old sets to sell through so fast and failed to order ATSC equipped replacements? We're pretty sure this isn't the end of CRT TVs as LCD models under 20 inches are still pretty pricey. Either way there is no doubt that we are moving in the right direction; towards the end of analog TV.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Bob Colby @ Mar 14th 2007 5:59PM
That's good to hear! It'll be interesting to see if they are also gone from the circulars this Sunday - there were still some sets being advertised just three days ago, and there's still plenty of old stuff (including one 23" "HD-Ready" set that they seem to think is still worth $719 even without an ATSC tuner) available at the various big-box dotcoms.
--- Bob
Switchover Scenarios: http://dtvswitch.blogspot.com
Paul Fernandez @ Mar 14th 2007 7:22PM
As a proud owner of a Toshiba 34HFX84 HDTV, which is no longer manufactured, I must say that it is STILL one of the best all-purpose televisions around (if you can manage to find one). It was the first CRT to market with two HDMI and component inputs each, and---minor geometry issues aside---this thing produces jaw-dropping visuals when viewing true 1080i channels like Discovery or HDNet. Watching HD DVDs on my 360 add-on via component is a dream and better than much of what I see displayed in stores, 1080p or not. The scary thing is what HD DVD or Blu-Ray discs would look like if I had a player connected to it via HDMI.
I'm not giving up my CRT until something proven, comparable and affordable becomes available. Did I mention that Gears of War and Lost Planet look otherwordly on this set?
skonofvulcan @ Mar 16th 2007 5:43AM
Hmm... I was just at our local Best Buy and they had 100's of analog TV's still. The local one for this half of Idaho has only about 10 flat screens of any kind. 99% of the TV's on the shelfs here are still analog. I wonder if they are just dumping the old models to rural areas etc. to try and get rid of them. Just to give you an idea how rural it is here we just got DSL last year. It currently runs $300 for setup and $82.95 a month...
Ben @ Mar 16th 2007 3:59PM
That was not my understanding, can you link to where you learned that?
My understanding is the same as Tim's.
Beau @ Mar 15th 2007 10:03AM
Uh, yeah. Here in the midwest there are plenty of analog-only sets. Pretty much every CRT and LCD tv under 26 inches (and plenty over) isn't digital. Lots of "digital ready" sets too. Every retailer is plumb full of obsolete tvs. Walmarts, targets, best buys ( yes an electronics store!); it doesn't matter they'll sell them to you with a smile.
MrSatyre @ Mar 15th 2007 2:08PM
The reason you don't see any analog TV's without ATSC tuners in ANY store in the nation is because it's illegal after February 28th, 2007 to sell them. Kudos to the FCC to force the issue so no matter how clueless folks in the market for a new TV are, when the big analog cutoff arrives in '09, they'll still be able to watch the local networks in pseudo-HD.
Tim @ May 8th 2007 3:02PM
It's not illegal to sell them, it's illegal to manufacture them. Any NTSC televisions that the retailers still have can still be sold. It's not until the retailers sell through the overstock of the NTSC televisions that you will see them disappear from the shelves. Sure, there may be some states where they have sold through already, but here in MD it is still hard to even find a tv under 26 inches which has ATSC already built into it.
MrSatyre @ Mar 16th 2007 3:59PM
Tim, it IS illegal to sell them, which is why all retailers were required by federal law to pull any and all analog TVs without ATSC tuners from their shelves at midnight 2/28. If they were still allowed to sell them, they would be. But they aren't, so they don't.
Bob Colby @ Mar 15th 2007 6:26PM
Follow-up question for Ben - what was the store, and what brands were the small digital sets?
Ben @ Mar 15th 2007 9:39PM
No, brand I ever heard of. Can't remember.
Bob Colby @ Mar 16th 2007 6:51PM
Ben, I'm guessing that Mr. Satyr is basing his incorrect info on this (incorrect) article by George Leopold at EE Times:
http://www.eetimes.com/showArticle.jhtml;jsessionid=50W2ROB145HZKQSNDLRSKHSCJUNN2JVN?articleID=197009202
(He's the only one who talked about pulling things from shelves.) Mr. Leopold simply misread the FCC mandate, which only mentions importation and interstate shipping, not retail. Mr Satyr, I am looking *right now* at the Best Buy, Circuit City and Target Sunday circulars for MARCH ELEVENTH - all of them feature at least one "illegal" TV on sale. Go to their dotcoms and you'll see many more (the vast majority of sets listed under 25" still lack ATSC tuners, and will until most of those older models sell out).
If I'm wrong, there's a lot of very open criminality out there!
Bob Colby @ Mar 16th 2007 7:05PM
Mr. aplogies to Mr. Satyre for mispelling his handle (twice!) as Satyr - totally unintentional and no implications involved.