When was the last time you bought a new TV?

This blog was spurred by the fact that on October 1st, 2007, Best Buy pulled all analog TV's from it's store shelves and stopped selling them. See: Best Buy pulls plug on analog TVs.

When was the last time you bought a new TV? Do you have a high definition receiver? If you do, then well good for you. But if you do not, then I might suggest that you get one sometime in 2008. Why the rush? Well, it's because your big, boxy television set will be of no use to you after February 18th, 2009. This is the date mandated to be the cut-off point for your analog television signal. Without a converter set-top box or a television that can handle a digital signal, you're going to miss the boat.

Do you remember when they used to call TVs television sets? A set of what? I thought maybe it was a set because it had a received and an antenna, but I could be wrong. Now in today's world, the only people with antenna are those with the satellite subscriber service. When was the last time your friends talked about installing a big, bulky black wire mesh bowl of a satellite dish in the back yard? Personally, I've only seen one in my lifetime up close and that's because my father loved that kind of cutting edge stuff as much as I now do.

Probably in 2001, I think, I purchase a rear projection TV from Howard's as a Christmas gift to me. It was delivered on NYE, and for my first full day of use, I sat on the couch mesmerized by the sight of the Pasadena Rose Parade on my 47 inch screen.

This past summer, I got itchy for HD radio, but my son talked me out of it. So instead, I looked for a HD digital receiver set-top box to accompany my huge ass TV. I found one at Circuit City in Brea for less than $200. Took it home and hooked it up and again, it was that same gaze in my eyes of wondering how the make the picture so amazing.

What is going to top this, I wonder. The highest picture quality now available to the consumer is achieved at 1080i.