Consumer Reports rates digital TV converter boxes

Every time I write about the upcoming conversion to digital TV, readers e-mail asking if there are any ratings of the various converter boxes that all older analog sets will have to use to receive the new signals after the switchover happens in February. The answer now is yes. Consumer Reports has just rated 14 of the models.

Surprisingly, the magazine found that some of the less expensive boxes offered better picture quality than the higher-priced ones. Their top-rated box was the Tivax STB-9, which Consumer Reports said sold for $50 online (though the best price I could find was $59.99). All the boxes are eligible for the $40 coupons that the federal government is distributing.

-- Jim Puzzanghera

Puzzanghera, a Times staff writer, covers tech and media policy from Washington, D.C.

Photo: From left, Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez and RadioShack Chief Executive Julian Day discuss the digital TV converter box program at a Fort Worth store. Credit: Holly Kuper / Fort Worth Star-Telegram