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
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.
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
Consumer Reports has just upgraded their ratings on some of the available converter boxes at:
ReplyDeletehttp://blogs.consumerreports.org/electronics/2008/08/ratings-of-dtv.html
While cable and satellite program providers will continue to serve the great majority of homes as the primary signal source, missing HD local reception, compression issues, higher costs, billing add-ons, service outages, contact difficulties, in-home service waits and no shows have left many of these subscribers looking to OTA antennas as a good, alternative and Off-Air viewers happy with their free programming.
But TV reception starts with the right antenna.
Viewers should certainly try their old antenna first. It’s true that any of these older antennas will pick up some signals, maybe all the broadcast signals a viewer wants to receive, depending on their location. If they’re getting all the OTA channels they want, than they’re good to go.
While Antennas can’t tell the difference between analog and digital signals, there are definitely certain models which have higher DTV batting averages than others. Not all antennas are equally suited for DTV. A percentage of viewers will require something a little more tailored for DTV reception.
With one of the newer and smaller OTA antennas, with greatly improved performance, power and aesthetics, viewers may also be able to receive out-of-town channels, carrying blacked out sports programs, several additional sub-channels or network broadcasts not available locally. And for those with an HDTV, almost completely uncompressed HD broadcasts (unlike cable or satellite).
OTA viewers can go to antennapoint.com to see quickly what stations are available to them, the distance, and compass heading to help in choosing and aiming their antenna. And if they decide to buy a newer antenna, they should buy it from a source that will completely refund their purchase price, no questions asked, if it doesn’t do the job.
This box sucks hind tit.
ReplyDeleteYou can not set it to record, it shuts off after a couple of hours, it flickers constantly.
Another thing is that i have another product using electicity just to watch the news. It is so bad that all i want to do is watch the news to see how bad this economy is. It is a good thing my tax dollars subsidized this product, otherwise i might think that i was bent over and not kissed.
It is a horrible piece of junk. If worked for less than one hour. Its horrible quality is equaled by the horrible “Warranty” that is called a “Fast Return” policy (6-8 weeks turn-around time).
ReplyDeleteFunai Corp. signed for my non-working TB100MW9 converter more than 11 weeks ago. To date, I have not received a firm date for its return. They have been jerking me around for over 12 weeks, and put me off by “should receive it in one, week,… within two weeks, etc. The last email communications states:
“You are on the expadited list and you should be receiving your unit soon.” If there is such a huge backlog of non-working units, the product should be declared a Lemon.
This box is probably one of the worst out there. Use caution... I bought this box as my first and thought everything was fine. When i purchased my second box which was a different band, I found out that I don't have half the channels of the new box. DO NOT BUY THIS BOX unless you want only half of what you can receive.
ReplyDeleteBought this box at Walmart and it worked for one day, although not well. On second day it no longer responds to setup command - tried reboot but no go. Must agree with other reviews that this box is poor quality.
ReplyDeleteTom C ....Rhode Island
ReplyDeleteI'm on my second box and it's going back to where I bought it. After the initial set up it would not let me back into the set up mode. I called their "helpline" and got no help there. I was told it was a defective box and they could repair it. I opted to take it back and get a replacement So I'm going to try a third time. Stay tuned.......I wish I could
I have never been so disappointed in Magnavox.
ReplyDeleteIt USED TO BE a good company with good products.
This converter box was a joke. It did'nt last 9 months before it crapped out. Never did come in that great, and on a windy day, forget it.
Magnavox needs to improve drastically, or call it quits along with the inferior products
We have 2 Magnavox tv converter boxes. I must agree with most of the comments but I think RCA is much worse. At least we can get most fo the channels available in our area with an upgraded antenna that cost $43.00 at Best Buy. The second convertrer box has gone bad on us as it only wants to turn off not on, so that's why I said I would agree with not so good a product. To make matters worse all the local stores do not carry the Magnavox tv converter boxes anymore. I have been unhooking the only usable one we own to carry it into the livingroom in the daytime and to the bedroom at night so we can watch tv . Oh well, if they had just left things as they were we would not be having any problems with tv reception would we??
ReplyDeleteThis converter box is probably the worst piece of equipment I ever bought. Please, stay away of this box.
ReplyDeleteit was good a year four free cant say a bad thing aboult it
ReplyDeleteI haven't had aproblem with it like the ones above but my issue is that I can not turn it on or off manually. If you lose the remote for it and you're trying to program a universal remote and the box has been turned off your screwed. When I bought mine it was still in the box and had no idea about this but I would like to slap the crap out of the people who designed this. Thanks now I have a $60 piece of plastic to put on top of my tv I can only watch DVD's on now.
ReplyDeleteI purchased 2 of these boxes 2 years ago and after a few months the remote control for one stopped working completely. I called the number on the back of the remote and they basically said it would cost about $17.00 (including shipping) to replace each remote. I thought I would wait and see how the second remote control faired- and the same thing has happened. Now the unit (not the television) stays on all the time because if the power is shut off, it cannot be turned on again without the remote control. This is a poorly designed product that Magnavox has provided for consumers. Would it have been that difficult to design a product that could be operated manually as a backup plan? I guess it was!!
ReplyDeleteJanuary 13,2011. I received converter box when offered with coupon. I have never been able to receive local channel 12. Now I cannot receive a strong signal to hold a channel. I have programmed so many times. NOTHING! I have bought so many antennas,walked over entire room holding antennas, fell and broke my nose trying to get a picture. Is their a solution or should I throw this piece of junk out the door?. I knew if government was involved something was not right.
ReplyDeletei set it toi sum other chan and now its static all day can go bk and reset
ReplyDeleteI agree! In the period of time since the conversion, my son has "gone thru" four of these and working on #5!!! that I bought in a garage sale. The four $l.00 ones not even worth that! What a bargin!
ReplyDelete