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New Contributor
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Mini Box - better solution?
Requiring boxes on each TV seems to be a bad idea for consumers and the environment. Why not decrypt the signal one time as it enters each home, and then let each TV's tuner handle the rest? Wouldn't this require less hardware, and less energy to be consumed? Are there drawbacks to this solution?
The current solution adds to the already growing electronic waste (cable boxes, coax / HDMI cables, remote controls, power cords), and it requires more energy consumption. This appears to be anti-green method and will require more costs for the consumers.
Are there better or different solutions than adding a mini box to each TV? If so, maybe Cox will listen and re-consider their approach...
Please explain why the single decrypting method would not suffice?
Thanks.
Domino
Valued Contributor III
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What tier gets decrypted? The reason a "mini-box" is used is to convert the incoming digital signals for the older analog TVs Did you really intend for this single box to convert D/A and decrypt?
The big difficulty is you would need an input box with hundreds of outputs. Otherwise, there would be no way for TV #1 to tune to channel 8, TV #2 to tune to channel 26, TV #3 to tune to channel 104, etc.
What you would need is a box to decrypt each incoming channel coming into it at 54MHz-1.0GHz, convert certain ones to analog, and modulate them all again in the 54MHz-1.0GHz bandwidth. And if that box has a problem, ALL TVs in the house lose their picture.
No thanks.
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Mini_Box_-_bett
New Contributor
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AllenP
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Valued Contributor
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Yes, there are two things going on:
1. Cox is converting all stations to digital. No more analog. If you have an analog only tv, you need a box to convert digital > analog.
2. Cox is encrypting all channels. Even if you have a digital tuner in your tv, you need a box to decrypt the digital signal. Open analog & QAM digital will be things of the past.
therefor, at a minimum you will require a box or cablecard to decrypt any programming. The minibox also has RF (coax) output for analog TVs in addition to an HDMI digital output.
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Domino
Valued Contributor III
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Not much more. The signals are encrypted. Your TV can't decrypt them (unless it has a cable card.)
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Mini_Box_-_bett
New Contributor
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Maxflash5
New Contributor
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I received my mini boxes today and activated them. I have now lost channels! Fx Cartoon Network, bravo and syfy! What gives
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Dina
Contributor III
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The subscription to the mini boxes should not affect your line-up at all. We'd like to look at this for you. Please email us at cox.help@cox.com with your full name, address, Cox PIN and a link to your forum post. Once received, we will investigate further.
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Mini_Box_-_bett
New Contributor
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New Contributor III
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Here is what I built to get a box so small that I just mount it behind a flat screen on the wall. I don't NEED wires for my set-top boxes, but I have them in place just in case someone sets up a WiFi that interferes with mine. :) I can watch live or recorded TV, any channel, any where, at anytime on pretty much anything. On the flip side, I had to learn a lot, and I support it myself.
Chromebox dimensions 4.96 x 4.88 x 1.54 in - Best solution for me.
Amazon FireTV dimensions 4.53 × 4.53 × 0.69 in - Okay, interlaced HD (Discovery Family had some issues, I might have it fixed..but I need to test it)
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bryaninphx
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Valued Contributor
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Do the Mini boxes support Switched Digital Video (SDV) Channels?
My guess would be No.
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Domino
Valued Contributor III
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Since it was meant to act as a way of getting analog customers their channels back, and since they don't support VOD, IPPV, etc., my guess would be NO as well.
Now, if we could only convince Cox of the necessity of providing a list of SDV channels in each location. I could figure them out in the Passport diagnostics, but not so with the Contour diagnostics.
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