Looking for Advise....

Try going without for a month and see how you like it. Having a "no tv" household is quite countercultural but you really should give it a try. We cut our cable when our youngest was about 2. We live in a rural community and couldn't get any reception without an antenna. We used our tv to play videos so we didn't go totally without electronic entertainment. We had much more control over what our kids viewed. They now range in age from 25-18 and are all avid readers, good students, and are able to carry on a conversation. It was difficult at first and I sometimes feel a bit "out of it" as I've never seen an episode of "Friends" but from what I see when surfing the channels at Grandma's house, we really haven't missed much and have given our kids so much by not giving them television. You can always visit a friend's house to watch the superbowl. (:

If you are in SE WI & in an area that will be effected by change in signals (02/09) that will take place, you'd better go high definition. We will need to start looking ourselves. I believe that American matches prices. Good luck.

I'd look at the local pawn shops for something, especially around the UNL campus, us college students get pretty desperate for cash-haha. Craigslist.org is also a great source. And if you're able to travel to Omaha, Nebraska Furniture Mart always has great deals, especially on the used floor models if you don't mind a little wear and tear on the high tech TVs. We purchased 2 HD 40" flat screens for $900 about 6 months ago. Good luck on the search!

If you decide replace your TV, I'd highly recommend considering replacing it with an HD tv, as the broadcasters are switching over 100% to HD within the next couple of years. Our TV died within the past year or so, and while we researched our options, it just didn't make sense to replace it with a non-HD tv if we were going to have to buy an HD tv or converter anyway much sooner than we'd otherwise replace a tv.

I dont have any advice on the plug in but I just wanted to say that if you are buying a new tv make sure it is HD because every tv will have to be in HD by 2010 and if they arent you have to buy a box that hooks up to your tv.

If you (or anyone you know) has a Costco membership, they carry a pretty good brand called Visio which hold a pretty good digital picture for screens up to around 36". (Anything more than 36" gets a little grainy.) We bought a 36" flat screen digital 1080i Visio at Costco and it was I believe only a few hundred bucks...which a bigger named brand like Sony, Mitsubishi, etc...would run you around 800.00 for the same size and picture quality.

Just to clarify one thing - you don't need to get a high definition TV in order to receive the digital signal when the Digital TV Transition takes place in Feb. 2009. It only has to be digital - HD is totally different. (All high definition TVs are digital, but not all digital TVs are high definition.)So you can still get a tube-TV, and as long as it has a digital tuner in it, you'll be fine.

Make sure you get a digital one. As of 2009 all stations are broadcasting in digital and if you don't have digital, you will have to buy a converter box.

L. :)

Hi M. - sorry to hear about the tv. If you are just looking for a cost effective replacement you may want to consider just checking your classified ads or even craigslist.com for a used one. If you are going new, well there are so many options depending on what you want. To save money you could get one that isn't the latest technology and that will save you a lot. For example, HD LCD with 1080p is very high end, but if you get the 1080i or lower you can save some money.

Good luck and make sure you get a good surge protector with whatever you guys go with :) or just unplug during a storm.

M. J,
My husband works with and sells tv's and if you aren't looking for the wonderful plasma or the 10,000.00 home theatre than Best Buy is your best bet. Even him getting tv's at cost you can pretty much get the same deal with Best Buy. If you are looking for something more extravagent, then you need to go to the upper stores.

C. H

Dear M.

Depending on where you live, and if you are a Sam's Club member,(and if you have the extra cash) try a Sam's Club 46 inch HDTV (flatscreen is the best).

something you may want to take into consideration is the analog is going digital soon...you may just want to look into getting a new tv with the surge protector already built in and one that will be digital, otherwise you may just end up spending more money later...

my wife asked me to respond to this. I work for a major electronic manufactuer as a regional sales manager. the transmission changes feb 2009. You can get by with a tube TV but you will be much happier with a flat panel TV because they save space and you will be "future proof" if the technology changes again. The fcc is giving out 2 million coupons for the entire united states so if you want a converter box you might want to register now. The best thing you can do is shop at a small indepedent retailer. They have the best service and about the same price and you will most likely get them to install it and they generally service it if something happens to it.(Big box stores don't service they send them to small retailers) Buy a name brand IE: LG,hitachi,panasonic,pioneer. They offer the best pictures available. DONT BUY IT AT A BIG BOX STORE! It you have problems with flat panels you buy at discount retailers you fist off would have to keep the original box and send it back to the manufacturer at your expense and hope they can fix it.If they can't fix it you are out the cost of te TV. If you don't have the original box they will sell you one. Don't buy it on the internet, there are alot of scams with TVs on the internet (stolen tvs). Don't buy a refurbished TV. What ever was originally wrong with it most likely will happen again. And with refubs you cannot get extended warranties. The manufacturers warranty is typically only three months.Good Luck!

Just make sure it is Digital!!!!

We just bought a tv for the first time in years when ours suddenly gave out. We got a flat screen HD Vizio 42 inch(our teenage son wanted a 50 inch!!). Costco had the best deal and we really looked around first. They also had a $150 off coupon for this specific tv which really made it reasonable. It has a fantastic picture!! We also bought a wall mount at Costco which is a nice way to display it....Good luck!! J.

If you have homeowners insurance, check to see if they will help cover a replacement. It depends on what your policy says, but it never hurts to check. That's why we buy insurance, isn't it?