First, it's not your tax dollars - it is paid for by the auction of the 700MHz spectrum freed by killing analog TV. And the picture you get would probably be better than you can get over cable or satellite, even if it's just displayed on an SDTV.
Cable can be quite expensive for anyone on fixed or limited income.
Another, I think the only thing new about these boxes is the cost. There used to be external ATSC tuner boxes available that would downconvert as far down as composite, maybe RF, but those were very expensive.
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First, it's not your tax dollars - it is paid for by the auction of the 700MHz spectrum freed by killing analog TV. And the picture you get would probably be better than you can get over cable or satellite, even if it's just displayed on an SDTV.
Cable can be quite expensive for anyone on fixed or limited income.
Another, I think the only thing new about these boxes is the cost. There used to be external ATSC tuner boxes available that would downconvert as far down as composite, maybe RF, but those were very expensive.