Converter Box

May 12, 2009 – With only one month to go until full-power analog TV broadcasters across the nation go all-digital, people are starting to realize that it's not just their old analog TVs that will be affected by the transition but their trusty VCRs, too.

How to keep your VCR running in the digital age is just one of many questions answered on www.ConnectYourBox.com and its Spanish counterpart www.ConecteSuConvertidor.com. The informational Web sites were created by Zenith, one of the most popular digital-to-analog converter box brands.

"With the transition to digital broadcasting, a VCR's built-in analog tuner becomes obsolete," explained Zenith Senior VP Richard Lewis. "So if you want to continue using an old VCR to record TV shows off the air through your antenna, you'll need a digital TV converter box that produces analog signals that the VCR can record." Read more

April 22, 2009 – With less than two months remaining until full-power analog TV broadcasts go digital across the nation, www.ConnectYourBox.com and www.ConecteSuConvertidor.com were launched today. Sponsored by one of the most popular digital-to-analog converter box brands, Zenith, the new Web sites answer common questions about setting up the boxes.

"We're taking thousands of phone calls each day from consumers who have purchased the Zenith DTT901 converter box but don't understand how best to connect it to their analog TV," said Zenith Senior VP Richard Lewis. "And while it's not difficult to hook up a converter box to an analog TV, more than one out of four callers had connectivity questions, which is similar to what the FCC is experiencing with its DTV Hotline.

"The new ConnectYourBox.com and ConecteSuConvertidor.com Web sites are specifically designed to answer the most common questions, providing step-by-step instructions with photos on how to connect an analog-to-digital TV converter box to an existing TV set," Lewis continued. "And a lot of people have questions about how to keep using an old VCR—we cover that as well."

Among the top connectivity questions asked by DTT901 customers on the Zenith help line (1-877-9ZENITH) are "what kind of cables should I use?" and "how, exactly, do I connect my converter box to a TV or VCR?" Read more

March 9, 2009 – With less than 100 days remaining until all full-power analog television broadcasts are switched off across the nation, experts urge budget-minded viewers to consider an Energy Star-rated digital-to-analog converter box as the ideal way to keep their favorite channels after midnight on June 12.

According to the U.S. Commerce Department, which manages the government's digital TV coupon program, the Zenith DTT901 converter box consumes less energy in "on mode" than any other converter eligible for the $40 federal government discount coupons. The Zenith DTT901 also performs better than the guidelines of the Energy Star program, which stipulates conservative energy use in both the "on mode," when the box is in use, and in the "sleep mode," when the converter box is not in use. Read more