What's the difference between an Analogue and Digital Television?

Question

I've been told that there will be a switchover shortly in my area and I'm really confused as to what it all means. Will my Televisoin that I have just now work? I get Satelitte TV through it no hassle, but I've been told that it will be useless once the switchover occurs.

Thanks.

Answer 1

If you've got satellite (Sky, Virgin etc) you've got nothing to worry about. If you didn't you would need a freeview box or a t.v with freeview built in.

Answer 2

A "digital television" is just an analogue television with a built in digital tuner.  Your current tv will continue to work fine as long as you are on Satellite, cable or using a digital stb.  All it means is that you won't be able to pick up "terrestrial" channels via an aerial without a digital set top box.

Answer 3

Analog is the old method where each part of the signal is somewhat separate.  There is a video carrier on which the video signal is modulated and an audio sub-carrier on which the audio is modulated.  The closed captions are hidden in the video.  And an extra sub-carrier or two may exist for stereo and secondary audio program.

Digital has all these signals encoded in one signal as levels with numeric value.  Within the numeric values which digitally represent the video, audio, captions, program description and possibly up to five more sets of the same are numeric identifiers which allow your digital receiver to reconstruct all these signals and convert them back into a TV signal for picture and sound to come from your TV.

Because digital can now show multiple programs or one great HDTV program most countries will switch to it to over better pictures and sound and to reduce the number of necessary free over the air broadcast channels.  Which in the US leads to new Emergency Services Channels and Wireless Service channels.  The latter being auctioned off to reduce the national debt.

Only people who receive their TV without satellite or cable will need to make a change.  Cable and satellite companies have to make the change but most likely have already done so.

If you use an antenna - indoor or outdoor - you need either a converter box (US residents)/Freeview box(Europe) or a new TV with digital tuning built in. -- This is government mandated in all countries it applies to currently and in the near future.

If you live in the US you are protected by law to be able to use a TV with cable or satellite until 2012 without any converter box.

But many cable customers are finding that cable is moving all non broadcast channels (antenna channels) and some digital broadcast channels (those which cannot be received with an analog TV) to their digital service (which is incompatible with over the air digital).  When cable operators do this you end up buying a new TV or renting a cable box. This is because they use QAM digital which is different from ATSC digital broadcast signals.  And sometimes they scramble the QAM signals (you need a box or a special card for your new digital HDTV called a cable card, either of which you rent from the cable company).  -- This is a different form of digital switchover and is not government mandated.