Chip Johnson is the general manager for Vision at Garner TV.  Known by his friends as the high-tech redneck, Chip points out what you need know to be ready for the Feb. 17 digital conversion.

“They'll have basically one of three choices.  They'll get a converter box to receive the digital signal, they'll get a digital TV with a digital tuner built in which was mandated starting about two years ago or they can subscribe to one of the services cable or satellite service which is a digital service so they'll be able to use they're existing television.”

And this means all TV’s, even portables.

“Yes, the tailgate TV's, the little handheld ones you can take in the stadium to watch the game, they're not out with the built in digital tuner yet, “said Johnson.  “The emergency TV's and you may have seen some with the crank arm...those are all analog with that little antenna you pull up.”

Many of us have battery operated portable TV's we can use in case of an emergency when the power goes out or at a tailgate party or outside. But in February of 2009 when the signal goes digital, those old analog TVs will basically be static.

But can you actually get an adaptor for those old portable TVs?

Yes.  There is an adaptor on the market for portable TV's.  The company Winegard has a battery pack that is compatible with Venturer digital converter boxes sold at Target stores.  The box will cost you about $33 after you use the $40 government coupon and the battery pack is about $20. It runs on six "D" size batteries which will cost you another $15 or $20.

If you don't want to mess with the extra wires, batteries and the digital converter box connected to what's supposed to be a portable TV, you can just spend the extra money and buy one that's digital ready. 

There are a couple of brands of portable TV's on the market now with built in digital tuners.  NBC17 found them on line at Amazon.com and in the big box electronic stores.  Right now the smallest ones out there have seven inch screens and they'll cost anywhere from $130 to $150.  They have a built digital tuner, a rechargeable battery and you can plug them up at home or with a car adaptor.

There will be more options on the market; it's just going to take some time for manufacturers to get them out.

If you watch an older analog TV just using an antenna, you'll need a digital converter box.  Depending on how far you live from the TV stations' broadcast towers in your area, you can determine what kind of antenna you need.

“Right now we have two TV's...one of them gets the top tier channels and then another on the smaller one gets all the channels,” said Benita Budd.

Like Budd, if you find that you're not picking up all the stations, you may need a stronger antenna, maybe even one that has an amplifier.  What works for some might not work for others.  

It’s all trial and error.  Some will work and some won't and in certain areas of your house.  If you live further away form the TV stations' towers in your area, you'll need a stronger antenna.

The good thing is you can figure this out now because stations are broadcasting digital signals along with the analog.  So, if you already have your digital converter box or you have a digital TV, it's a good time to test out antennas before the permanent switch in February.

There are two websites that'll help. One is Antennaweb.org.  It shows you exactly how far away you live from your local TV station's broadcast towers. The consumer electronics association's Web site is simple to use.  You enter your address and select digital signal stations.  You'll see street level mapping of your home and directions for setting up your antenna. The same goes for those who have a new HD digital TV but don't want to pay for programming.  The other Web site is TVfool.com and it shows you the signal strength in the area you live. This will change if you live in a hilly area, especially west of Raleigh where there are many peaks and valleys in the landscape.  

You may be surprised to find out what works to receive that perfect picture.  And in some cases something old may even work better than something new.