When Kenya officially launched its journey into the new realm of digital TV four months ago, consumers became increasingly aware of a new technology term— the set-top box.

Without the gadget, one cannot access the digital signals, rendering the analogue TV obsolete.

Analysts say that over 3.5 million television owners in Kenya will have to buy the gadget to preserve their televisions.

One of the easiest methods of transition for Kenyan consumers is to attach a set-top box (STB) to their analogue television sets, which allow televisions to receive digital signals.

This has sparked hurried purchases of STBs, most of which are expensive and of dubious quality.

Digital Kenya, a state department set up to ensure the country’s smooth transition from analogue to digital broadcasting, has published desired requirements for the signal converters, but consumers complain that it is embedded in a maze of technical jargon .

One of the features that Digital Kenya is telling anyone who cares to hear is that the STB should be Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG)-4.

“MPEG -4 is a compression technique of both visual and audio signals that enable high channel capacity, such that it can accommodate at least 16 channels in one outlet,” said Njoroge Ngige, an engineer with Digital Kenya.

“This means it will enhance spectrum efficiency.”

Already MPEG-2 set-top boxes are available in the market.

But consumers should steer away from it because it does not meet the country’s standards.

Digital Kenya says this type of set-top box will not receive most of the digital signals since Kenya’s transmitters are on newer generation of MPEG.

They are therefore advocating that consumers purchase MPEG 4 devices, which have backward compatibility such that it can read MPEG 2 signals.

Consumers will also need to consider the type of STB to buy— whether its High Definition or Standard Definition.

Kenya has chosen the latter as most television sets in the country are set to receive standard broadcasts.