swapping over

[jimmonas]

can anyone explain the analog to digital aireal switch means in laymans terms

[vehelpfulguy]

Currently TV is sent to your house as an analogue signal and you can pick up 5 channels via your aerial (BBC, BBC2, ITV, Ch4, Ch5)

Gradually, and more so in the future, TV will be sent to the aerial in your house as a digital signal, and you can get more than 5 channels.

Over the next few years the analogue signal will be turned off and ONLY the digital signal will be available.

Because most TVs can currently only accept analogue you need a special box (a freeview box) to pick up the digital signal and convert it to analogue so it can be displayed on your TV.

Once the analogue signal is switched off ONLY the digital signal will be available.

So if you have ANY analogue TVs they would need a freeview box so you can watch TV (this applies to ALL TVs, such as portables, ones in your bedroom or caravan and so on).

If you have a VHS video with an analogue tuner in it then it will not work as their will be no analogue signal (when you record on your VHS you are often recording from the TV tuner inside the VHS).

Many modern TVs already have a freeview box built in (IDTV) so they are already setup to get the digital signal.

This does NOT apply to Sky or cable TV whiich is already digital (and does not come thorugh your aerial anyway)

Ask again if there is anything you do not understand.

More here

http://www.digitaltelevision.gov.uk/

[vehelpfulguy]

One other thing.

This is all part of a gradual move from analogue to digital in all walks of life.

If you do not know what digital is then do not worry, it is just a more accurate way to store information, meaning no loss of quality as it is moved from place to place.

For music the old 45s and LPs we had were analogue, but CDs are now digital.

For movies the VHS tapes we had were analogue, but DVDs are now digital.

For cameras the film that we used to use was analogue but digital cameras (as the name suggests) are digital.

For camcorders, the tapes we used were analogue but most camcorders are now digital.

For phones, the old analogue phones we had are now all digital.

And now TV is moving from analogue to digital.

Computers have not changed because they were always digital, all information being stored in digital format on a computer.

In fact it could be argued that the computer has driven this move to digital as now everything, whatever it is, can be stored on a computer hard disk.

[jimmonas]

thanks vehelpfulguy. very well explained and understood.