Dish Network DTVPal Digital TV Converter Box Reviews

This is honestly one of the best TV converter boxes that money can buy. It comes with an incredible set of features, along with the best program guide out there, and the best picture quality we've seen as of yet. Unfortunately it is no longer available from retailers but if you are lucky you just might be able to snag one on eBay or Amazon being sold by private sellers. If you can I wouldn't hesitate to pull the trigger.

Product Details: Out of all the different converter boxes we have looked at this one provides its views with one of the best pictures that we have seen. It's just as good as you'd get with cable or a new digital TV. It it extremely close to the quality you get while watching a DVD. If you want picture quality more than any other feature you can't go wrong with this. It's overall upgrade from analog is astronomical. Don't be fooled though, it's not 1080P, no converter box is going to give you that. As far as sound quality is considered this Dish Network box again rates out just as good as any other that we've seen. It is 1005%top notch and you can't ask for better than crystal clear sound. It's sure to give you whatever quality your television speakers will allow. It's so good it may remind you of the sound quality you get from cable It is one of the best boxes available and it is sold by a large number of retailers for around $55. After using the coupon you can get it for $15, not much to complain about there. The DTVPal is no longer available but a very good alternative is its upgraded version, the Dish Network DTVPal Plus.

In regards to the features that come with your purchase it again stands out with excellent features that are sure to impress you. It comes with the clear cut, far and away best EPG (electronic programming guide) out there. With this guy you get all of the same guide information that comes with a paid service like Dish Network Satellite. You get the shows length of time, show title, extended show description and more. You even get this same information for all shows that are scheduled over the next several days. It also comes with 3 different aspect ratio settings so you can set the picture to fit your TV screen. Finally, it comes with a robust closed captioning setup that can be adjusted and also provides the pass-through feature so you don't lose your favorite small town analog channel that doesn't have to make the digital switch yet.

This TV converter box is one of the most thought out boxes on the market. Clearly the guys at Dish knew what they were doing when they planned this out. My assumption is they plan to make a little bit of money on the box but also use it to market and get converter box users to eventually subscribe to their paid service. Whether it be within a few months or a few year. Overall, it provides viewers with an amazing viewing experience that can't be rivaled by anything other than other versions of it's own. We highly recommend this converter box and in tandem with a good digital antenna the sky is the limit here.

Features & Specs

Analog Pass-Through

V-Chip Lock Parental Control Setting

Configurable Closed Captioning

Electronic Program Guide

Compact Size

What Is Included With Your Purchase?

Converter Box

Remote Control

RF Cable

Installation Guide

Power Cord

Magnavox TB100MG9 Digital TV Converter Box Reviews

As with most other converter boxes on the market this one has been discontinued and is no longer available for sale. As an alternative you can check out the upgraded version, the Magnavox TB100MW9, for all intensive purposes it is exactly the same, except for that fact that it now is equipped with the analog pass-through feature.

Unfortunately a lot of people have reported channel loss with this product. This is not good for those that made the purchase but I also want to reiterate again that channel loss and reception issues are normal. Basically put, analog TV allows a signal to go through at a low signal strength and you get a very blurry picture. The nature of digital TV is that you either get all or none, that's why it's so good. But that also means that sometimes you will lose channels. It's no different than analog though in that getting a good antenna will greatly improve reception. The Magnavox TB100MG9 has been discontinued and replaced by an upgraded version the 

Product Details: When looking at and reviewing this product we found out that its picture quality of very high quality. It ranks up there with the best in regard to this feature and could be a good buy for those looking for the sharpest of pictures, smoothest movements, and deep rich colors. People that use it will be pleasantly surprised with how much of an upgrade they are getting from their old analog signals. As far as the sound quality goes this converter box has actually reported to be pretty bad. Sound quality is something that almost all companies seemed to nail but they've got something wrong here. The L/R sound output is excellent, as good as you'll find with any, but the RF output  produces a clear and obvious hissing type of noise that can get very annoying. Not something we figure most people would be okay with. At a steep price of $65 as compared to other boxes this isn't the best of deals.

As far as features and functions go it rates near the best of the best. It's TV guide for current programs shows the show title, length of broadcast, and a short little description of the show. For upcoming programs it shows the same information an can come in handy for those that like to plan in advance what they want to watch. As far as setting up channels goes it comes with the typical auto scanning function and also the ability to individually add channels one-by-one. One good difference relative to its counterpart is it's included pass-through ability.

Overall, this product is pretty good but did not get the best rating. Its analog pass-through upgrade made it a significantly better choice but it is simply not as good as other boxes that are being sold for quite a bit less. Instead of purchasing this box we recommend that you check out the best TV converter boxes based on our reviews and then pick on that sells for around $40 so that you can get it for free after using your coupon.

Features & Specs 

Analog Pass-Through

Parental Control Setting

Configurable Closed Captioning

Electronic Program Guide

On Screen Signal Strength Meter

Energy Star Compliant

English, French, and Spanish Language Support

What Is Included With Your Purchase?

Converter Box

Remote Control

Remote Control Batteries

Coaxial Cable

Power Cord

Digital Stream DSP7700T Digital TV Converter Box Reviews

This product is not recommended for purchase or us due to the fact that there are many other options that work better, last longer, and come at a significantly cheaper price. However if you do have this box in possession already and can't return it you will indeed need a digital TV antenna in order to get good reception.

The box has now been upgraded to the Digital Stream DSP7700P. We do not recommend the old version, check out or review of the new version to see what we think of it. However, we are not privy to the Digital Stream line of boxes and are still waiting for them to impress us with something better. With their big name you would think that they would come out with better products but that simply has not been the case up to this point.

Product Details: Not surprisingly at all this guy has a picture quality that is just average, and it should certainly be a lot better than it is, coming from DS. Its picture quality when in HD is very good but it is stretched out and noticeably blurry while watching standard definition content. When we hooked  it up and got it running it was still an upgrade over our analog picture but honestly, that's something that you get with every single TV converter box on the market, even the cheapest worst performing one out there. It rates out roughly similar to all others in regards to sound quality. That's one thing that all companies seem to have gotten right, so that doesn't help it to stand out in any way from other options. It's better than analog sound, but really, what isn't? It sells for $65 which is a lot when considering that some that rate out near the top cost only $40 (free after using the government coupon card). As stated above, this box is no longer available at most retail locations, which is a good thing in our opinion.

It does come with a scheduling and program guide that is above average. That's the only place where it shines. But for most that have never had a guide anyway, this isn't all that important. It's guide provides views with information on the current shows title, length of time airing, and a short snippet/summary of what the show it. It also shows all of the same exact information for the next schedule show and out forward for several hours. It comes with the standard auto tuning function that all converter boxes have so that you can get all of your favorite channels programmed. You can also add channels one at a time if you are having any issues. Finally also comes with the ability to view an on screen signal strength meter to help with adjusting your antenna and setting channels, along with a universal remote control for easy surfacing of channels, and a fully adjustable closed captioning function so that can also be personalize. It didn't originally come with analog pass-through but has now been upgrade to include that feature.

Overall, it comes with a decent set of features and will certainly supply you with a better viewing experience than you get with analog TV but flat out there are better options out there that also cost less money.

Features & Specs

Analog Pass-Through

V-Chip Lock Parental Control Setting

Configurable Closed Captioning

Electronic Program Guide

On Screen Signal Strength Meter

Energy Star Compliant

English, French, and Spanish Language Support

What Is Included With Your Purchase?

Converter Box

Universal Remote Control

Remote Control Batteries

Coaxial Cable