Thousands of Bay of Plenty homes will be left without television when the analogue signal is switched off.
Latest figures from Going Digital show there were about 8500 Bay of Plenty homes at the end of September that were yet to install a new aerial or satellite dish and buy a new receiver before analogue broadcasts cease on December 1.
Digital television installers have been busy readying people for the change for the past month and expect to get even busier.
Mount Maunganui resident Dawn Marshall had a Freeview aerial installed ahead of the switch over for her bedroom television.
"I knew as soon as the switch over occurred I wouldn't have TV because I always get relegated to the bedroom while my husband watches westerns on Sky on the main TV," she said. The TV Guy owner/operator Alan Meyrick said he had been working until 9pm some nights picking up extra business and was considering hiring another person to help deal with the workload.