Indoor TV Antennas Compared: Cheap vs Expensive
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 26 ก.ย. 2024
- Is there a difference between cheap and expensive indoor TV antennas? Here is my comparison of three indoor antennas: a $3 model bought at a 99-Cent Store, the As Seen on TV Clear TV, and a highly rated Amazon indoor antenna called U Must Have. Follow Brandon and Noah!
INFO
• Follow Brandon: bit.ly/2PA5SON
• Follow Noah: bit.ly/2NMMA9c
• A short update after 1 year: • 10 Previously Reviewed...
EXCLUSIVES
• CHANNEL MEMBERS get Exclusive content and priority replies: bit.ly/3Dk76IW
• Email newsletter for video alerts & giveaway announcements: geni.us/newsle...
• Join my Discord where I give away at lot of my unused products: geni.us/discor...
• I give away new stuff from Amazon every month - enter here: bit.ly/3dLbkK4
• Follow my CLIPS/SHORTS Channel: / @freakinreviewsshorts
SOCIAL
• Facebook: / freakinreviews
• Snapchat: baldvegas
• Threads: www.threads.ne...
• Instagram: / freakinreviews
• TikTok: / freakinreviews
MY GEAR
• My Camera: geni.us/rx100v-fr
• Lapel Mic: geni.us/lapelm...
• Audio Recorder: geni.us/frzoomh1
MUSIC
Music by Epidemic Sound
"Key To The City" by Christian Nanzell
#indoorantenna #cleartv #tvantenna
Great video! Thanks for actually testing out these antennas. I can't stand when websites (or TH-camrs) claim certain antennas are the best with no data to back it up.
I would to sèe it show me
This is far from scientific as to start with there's no such thing as an HD or digital antenna. You could use a paperclip as an antenna if you really wanted to.
@@Unknown_Ooh Is an antenna really just 100% metal? I thought there might be some internal electrics on them. There seem to be some on others.
It's just pieces of metal that picks up frequencies. Similar to a FM/AM radio.
You can even use a coax cable as an antenna. Remember mobile phones used to have FM radios in them? The headphone cable needs to be connected because the phone uses the headphone cable as an antenna.
Thanks! You mentioned that a signal amplifier can cause worse reception. I live 26 miles from my tv broadcast tower. By unplugging the amplifier I went from 34 stations to 72 and the quality of the picture improved immensely!
Why did I spend 20 mins watching this, I don't Even need an antenna
Me neither 😂
Thank god for the Pirate bay
Did you ask yourself that
😅😂. . I’m buying a cheap antenna just to watch NFL games
Well, be my guest when the Wi-Fi goes out or for Gabriel, when the FBI catches you, just recently Weigel Broadcasting just launched a new OTA network for cartoons. It’s called MeTV Toons. It’s basically Boomerang 2.0.
We’ve got
The Flintstones
Scooby Doo
Tom & Jerry
The Real Ghostbusters
The Jetsons
Merrie Melodies
Bugs Bunny and Friends
Casper the Friendly Ghost
Rocky & Bullwinkle
Woody Woodpecker
The Smurfs
and more!
Remember those monster cable ads, where they tried to convince you that you needed their $200 hdmi cables, rather than the regular $6 ones?
@Wesley Hester: The Magic HDMI cable scam has to do with gold plates pins. The best antenna is the classic aerial. Basically all you need to do is toss a coat hanger in a tree with some wire connecting it to the TV .
@@gotsm9959 You have no clue what you're talking about.
@@carlosoliveira-rc2xt No it's true try it! If single is bad then then try it at higher elevation. Not that I watch TV anymore since I have everything I could ever want on my ipad.
@@gotsm9959 No I was referring to the HDMI cables. Gold plating was never a scam. Almost all exposed connectors on cables are flash plated gold merely so they don't tarnish, nothing more. Only teens fabricated nonsense as they always do. Monster was at the forefront of cable design when most people were using lamp cord. The cable industry has blown up since then. Some of Monster's gear was designed by very reputable people in the industry. In case you missed it HDMI cables carry audio as well as video and those $6 cables sound like shit. If you have reference quality audio/video worth as much as some homes, you would know what I mean.
@@carlosoliveira-rc2xt Well I know that people like to argue and disagree.
Your reaction to the antenna falling from the window was priceless! Perfect timing! I laughed out loud!! Keep up the good work buddy.
You work your butt off on these reviews. Lots of time and effort. Good job!
he works his but off because he injoys doing it and gets paid for it by watchers... God bless him..hope he does well.
First time watching your channel. Really enjoyed the dialogue between you and the kids. Good content
Definitely a change from his other vids where he has them just standing there as props. They're actually involved in this one.
It's awesome seeing a family doing stuff together and enjoying each other's company. No to mention the good info/review. Job well done guys! ^_^
♥️ I agree.
I heard james got married to a antenna installer, the wedding was average, but the reception was excellent !
Lol
lololol
LOL...that was a bit funny i must say all in the name of love fun and games😂🙌🙏
I heard that joke over 50 years ago!
They got divorced after he was caught watching cable.
I only get 18 channels in my backwood area. But luckily one of them plays that 70s show every night from beginning to end then it starts over
This was such a pleasure to watch. Your kids are great. This was so fun to and giggle along with you and your family! Thanks, James! And Noah and Brandon!!
Ty
Hi James,
I just wanted to say you and your daughter pair so well together in videos she has such a great personality and your humor is always welcome.
No offense but I thought that was a dude. Because I haven't seen a girl with the name Noah.😂
You shouldn’t use the amplifier to scan for channels, but you can use it once the scan is complete to boost the signal. That will increase your “usable channels” metric. Good video.
Ty
If the TV transmission antenna(s) are close to your home (ie, under 25 miles), most of the indoor antennas that come with a built-in power amplifier, will do worse... they can actually over power the antenna input on your TV, which means the channels won't be able to lock on/come in properly even if a scan is done without the power being turned on. The built-in USB powered amp (some will come with a local/distant switch on the little box), is only useful for transmission antennas that are more than 30 miles away, or the indoor antenna location you decide to use is located in an area of your home that has interference from thick walls (ie, steal, drywall/wood or concrete), and/or the powered antenna can't be easily pointed in the direction of the TV transmission towers; or you don't have any windows that are actually facing the towers.
@@CoroaEntertainment Like in a brick apartment building.
James always love your reviews, and love the fact your good family life spills into the videos . Keep up the good work good sir
I've been cable free since 2010, and I have both a rooftop OTA antenna for the main living room TV, and a powered indoor one similar to the Amazon one you guys tested for a bedroom TV (I wasn't able to connect it to my main rooftop antenna for various reasons). My rooftop antenna (which is an un-powered Channel Master 4221) kills it when it comes to the amount of channels in can pick up, but then again, it doesn't have to deal with thick walls, and it's pointed in the general direction of TV transmission towers I wanted to catch. It's also placed high on the roof, which is at least 15' higher than the inside powered antenna. In the OTA (over the air) TV channel world, height and line of sight is your friend.
Another great review, thank you. Loved the interaction between all of you, so fun to watch.
We have used the amplified antenna from amazon. The antenna was placed directly behind the TV so to keep it hidden and not in a window. Without the amplifier it did not work well, but with it on we were able to pickup all of the local channels with excellent clarity. Very satisfied.
Which one?
The brand said Range Xperts. I looked up the old order and says it is currently unavailable.
15:57 the movie is called "Solarbabies" and it's from 1986. Classic cheesy 80s movie.
Yep the movie is definitely cheesy - but it's still kinda fun.
Thanks... just looked it up. Sounds cheesy.. but Jami Gertz is in it.. so I'll check it out Haha
Right crap movie Yor is a classic in comparison
Definitely cheesy and fun. Mad Max on rollerskates.
good to kno
We have a cheap flat (indoor) antenna similar to the larger one mounted on the outside of our house with push pins and hooked up to our old coax cable line into the house that feeds all 5 of our TV’s with crystal clear pictures on each tv!
One cheap antenna = 5 TV’s 👍🏼
Nice video. I had the same experience with amplified attenaes and those plug in amplifiers. They made reception worse. Went through about 8 attenaes. The flat ones do need a window otherwise they are crap. I wasnt going to relocate my tv by a window. The only attenae that actually worked very well in my situation was the Clearstream 2 max indoor outdoor attenae. Its rather big and its $70 but it works. The higher the better. Using it inside gives me 36 channels and the one in the attic 48. The flat ones gave me 5 to 7 channels. Rabbit ear type just as bad.
It's all about where you can mount it in your tv space.
I love your family participating! Keep up the great work! 😁God bless y'all!❤
Hey that movie was Solar Babies....from 1986 Jamie Gertz,Jason Patric,Lukas Haas,Peter DeLuise (yes Dom's son)
THAT'S WHY IT LOOKED FAMILIAR! I haven't seen that movie in decades and remember loving it when I was a kid.
One of my favorites as a kid. I'm glad I wasn't the only one who knew what it was lol
Thanks! I came to the comments just for this!
I love that movie. It wasn't the best but it was awesome.
I came here to see if anyone else remembered Solarbabies!
My antenna works better on the wall, not in a window. That's the best place to get the clearest reception here. Also we looked up where most of the stations near us broadcast from and tried pointing it in the direction of those signals using our phone compass, but that actually wasn't overly helpful. It was mostly trial and error to figure out the best spot in the room.
The Star Trek episode was "Balance of Terror" with Mark Leonard who later became Spocks father in next generation. Great episode.
Before playing Sarek (Spock's father) in The Next Generation, he first played Spock's father in the original series episode Journey to Babel as well as in the Star Trek films The Search for Spock, and The Voyage Home. He also played The Klingon commander in Star Trek The Motion Picture.
Still one of my favorites! That and "What Are Little Girls Made Of?"
@The Butcher I agree, what a turd!
Trippy, insightful and keeps the family together! Good review....Kudos !
When you said “twins” I for some reason thought you had brothers that looked like you.
I’m disappointed. Lol
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAAHHAHAHAHA
me too lol
same! ahahahahahag
Me too! 😂
I THOUGHT THE SAME THING!!!
I was actually looking to get one of these. Thank you for the freakin' review!
James your so cool. Thank you for these videos. I love getting your notifications. I hope you never run out of products to review.
you are* / you're*
Gosh, go to a school
@@AyAy008 I bet you have alot of friends...
I have a set of 1977 rabbit ears sitting on a 5 foot pole outside my house about 40 miles north of Minneapolis. It powers 2 TVs and gets 34 channels. Good enough for me.
I still use rabbit ears and I get channels that are hard to get.
ROBLOX Gaming Mastah I’m fixing to pull out my collection of rabbit ears! Y’all got me all nostalgic.
i have mine inside and the only channel I have problem with is Kare 11
@@Happy78704gal Rabbit ears are good for the VHF part of the spectrum. The round element in between is for the UHF. Thinking about going back to those myself. BTW, wondering if there are any functional elements at all inside those flat, rectangular sheets of plastic mounted on the window glass.
That was fun! I've got to disconnect from cable - we are paying about $100 for the channels and HBO. And we don't watch much tv! Thanks for this!
The movie is "Solarbabies"! I didn't have many channels growing up and this was in the approved movie list for the house.
Next comparison video should be package openers.
I second that
I bought a tape breaking knife so I wouldn't cut anything inside the boxes I open... it sucks so bad lol. Turns out amazon tape as well as packing tape both prefer a sharp blade to a "safety nub".
Box knifes are available at dollar stores
@@ebuff57 Right... Even a dang pair of scissors needs to always be at the ready...
Many years ago there was a clamshell package opener "as seen on TV." In addition to the opener there was both a flathead and a Phillips screwdrivers. There may have been a box cutter, too.
The package opening scissors were fantastic! I wish I had grabbed them before we were thrown on the street.
Even though others have said it, I'll say it again, sound levels come from the studios level it was recorded at. Not your antennas quality.
I majored in technical electronics in high school over 50 years ago. One of the circuits we studied was an automatic volume adjuster for TVs and radios, so the sound level heard from the set was the same, no matter what the different stations were broadcasting. I sometimes ask myself why modern TVs don't have the feature.
@@mgbeheler Mine do. 2 are late model 1080s, and 2 are 4Ks.
@@mgbeheler these people that have videos on TH-cam get to choose from more than one choice of audio levels that TH-cam gives you
Oh Lord 😂, the $3 antenna hanged with the UMH antenna so closely while Clear TV is clearly not what's advertised. IMO, the $3 antenna is the winner for bargain hunters.
A 12inch piece of WIRE will probably work as well as ANY of these "DIGITAL" (VERY important) antennas..
@Linda Holbrook - I picked one up at the 99 Cent Only store two days ago. Now I'm more excited out installing it. I have streaming services, just want to see what it can do.
PS: "99 Cent" my butt. Those jerks price things at 99.99 cents, so it's really a dollar unless you buy 100 items. And so many things at $1.9999, $2.9999, $3.9999 and so on. Still good deals on some stuff, though!
Why am I ranting this rant here?
@@FuzzyElf stay off the meth
Terry Turner AGREE!
@@FuzzyElf Rant all you want! Xx L
I noticed, the Shopping Channels, always come through clearly.. Bc they want you to, "BUY STUFF".. Yes I have, and since I hardly watch Television, the channels: NBC 4, ABC, CourtTV, PIX 11, Old Classics TV, Bravo, Grit, ION, COZI TV, AntennaTV, and my favorite was New Detective.. Also different versions of channel 2, 2.1, 2.3.. It wasn't bad, like I said for someone who didn't watch much television.. Some times your best signals were not near the windows, but against some walls for me..😂😁🤣 Thank you for the laughs, this was fun!
These reviews are awesome! Love your channel and especially this video because it's super fun too just watch you and your kids make fun off stuff on TV
Do I need an antenna? No. Do I need a watermelon slicer? No. But I will watch every video you post. 💙
Lol. Seriously the same
Me too, brother
I'm exactly the same. Sure most of the reviews aren't things I'd buy, but I like to watch anyway.
Me too.......
One thing I'm starting to think I DON'T need anymore is my video portion of my cable bill
Hi James,
I use to work for a big TV company (Zenith Electronics) from 1984 to 1992, but every since I was born I've helped my Dad in his TV & VCR repair shop. So I've used about every antenna out there. The best ones that we used in the repair shop was just straight rabbit ears that use to come w/every TV sold. It's just a shame we have to buy an antenna these days. Still to this day I use rabbit ears on every TV I have. Around 7 including the camper. There the type that sets on the TV. Nothing fancy @ all.
Good video. Thanks to you & the twins,
Chris from Missouri
And if you really can't find a rabbit ear around the house, then a straightened out coat hanger bent in a V shape with some tin foil in between will do the job too. xD Not the best solution, but it will pull in some local channels.
You're so right I have some old rabbit ears and it picks up more channels than the new ones I bought so I switched them to my room and keep the new ones in the other rooms.
I am glad you adjust the amount of channels. For me I would rather have no channel than to have a channel that freezes or fuzzies up even if it just lasts a second and only happens a few times. It would drive me nuts because I have to hear and see everything from beginning to end when I’m watching something. Thanks for the reviews. I think I live too far from the city to get any channels.
I love James’s energy when he’s with his kids
Your reviews are always so entertaining, hope you keep doing them.
You and your kids should start a channel where you rip on bad movies.🤣
Freakin' Theater? Kind of like Mystery Science Theater 3000?
@@Crochet_kittyheck yeah I'd watch that!
Probably feel like a more casual version of Red Letter Media's Best of the Worst series
That would be awesome.
@@Crochet_kitty I like that title freaking theater.
Your attention to detail and the depths you go to , to provide honest and accurate reviews is godlike
Also, THANK YOU
Hi James... I just love your reviews!! You've got class, dude. 🤗
★My Experience:
I personally have tried 3 different antennas on my lil flat screen TV (not a smart TV BTW), and my results are as follows:
1. Paid $30 @ Fam Dollar for a black, flat, hard plastic antenna that sits on a countertop surface... Claims to bring nice quality tuning to all broadcast channels.
• Horrible picture quality on most of my 69 channels with broken pixels everywhere. Always having to readjust the placement. 😫
2. Standard Rabbit Ears antenna from Goodwill for $10...
•Not so good; had to constantly go & adjust ears & placement for many different channels! One channel is good, the next NO SIGNAL, the next Broken Pixels... No fun. 😵
3. The $3 Flat Antenna from 99¢ Only Store...
•The suction cup DOES SUCK! Doesn't stay where you stick it... JUST LIKE YOURS! *However; I was able to lay it wherever, its small & flat, & it literally gives me clear channels on all 69 channels I get {In the other desert 🌵🌴... Phx}. 😉
So in this case, for me, the cheapest was the BEST. The $3 !! 💜
BTW, Fam Dollar will not refund for their electronics, even with receipt... I boycott places like this. Bad mgmt. Who treats their customers like that?! Family Dollar does...
→ So I have 2 extra antennas ($40) on standby I'll prolly never use!
••• Hope this review helps others! 😘
Understanding, of course, that everyone has variables to consider...
It helps tremendously. Thank you.
As I am about to cut the cord, I have been tinkering with my old antennas around the house. The reception is actually okay for most of the major network channels, but I can't get ABC to come in at all. Both antennas are 25-30 years old.
I will head to the dollar store and take my chances.
The best unspoken review here is the one that shows how well you've raised your kids! Well done, great dad in = great kids out.
He wouldn't upload if he was cursing or beating kids. He is doing what a responsible father is suppose to do. You don't congratulate a fish for swimming.
@@wileecoyote5749 So because he did what he was supposed to do, this in some fashion means that one cannot say "Well done". A fish swimming is doing what comes naturally to a fish. Raising kids is much more involved, and not at all a natural and instinctive process for many people. I understand that most analogies don't bear close scrutiny, but yours is not even germane.
I love the interaction between your kids; it's so fluid and natural. I hope they show up more often!
Admirable man
That was Solarbabies. Dystopian future movie with competitive rollerblading.
Correct on the movie, but those are not Rollerblades. Those skates are Quads. When the movie was made, I'm not even sure if Rollerblades were available yet.
I'd like to see the Original ClearTV go up against the new and improved to see if it's really "improved" in comparison, when tested "scientifically" ;)
Fantastic (family inclusive) review, as always~! :)
ENP I would love a whole Series of this
I'd like to see this garbage up against a channel master 4221 antenna even a clone , guaranteed it would blow these away 24/7
Something to keep in mind regarding the more expensive amplified antenna - Just as a television signal may be unusable because the signal is too weak, so, too, can a television signal be unusable if it is too strong. I don't know how close you are to the TV transmitters in your area, but it is possible that some of the signals were overboosted by the amplified antenna. Consider re-testing the most expensive antenna without the amplifier installed. You might receive more usable signals that way, maybe not. But it would be worth testing to find out.
That's exactly what he did,he mentioned it like 20 times.
what video did you see?
love your children seem like fun and well brought up also really like Noah's hair really great video
With digital TV: The picture is either breaking up or it's not. There is no subjective quality.
Yep. And the channels being quiet or loud were just based on what the channels were showing at the time, nothing to do with the antenna.
A RTL-SDR makes a cheap spectrum analyzer to get actual readings.
I know that some TVs you can find out the signal strength, though I think it's in 'number of bars', instead of db.
What @flagpoleeip said. With digital TVs and antennas, you either get enough signal (in Mbps) to display a picture and souond, or you don't. If you don't get enough signal, then the picture will either freeze, or contain artifacts. This isn't like Analog antennas where you can get static. The ClearTV rabbit ears have very little surface area, so they would pull in the least amount of signal. Hence why you scanned fewer channels with it. Channels that you DO receive enough signal for should all look identical regardless of antenna, as it's just a digital data stream.
Absolutely incorrect when you are receiving a poor signal you can have all kinds of bizarre digital effects happen on a digital TV.
Over the last ten years, we've tried at least 4 digital antennas. We've struggled with all of them. Even though most of the stations in the area are 15 to 25 miles away to the southeast, the window closest to our TV faces southwest, so we have difficulty pointing the antenna in the best direction. For our location, we must use the amplifier and we need to relocate the antenna for half the stations we watch. Sometimes we lose what seemed to be a strong signal in the middle of a program (especially when it's windy outside) and need to relocate the antenna to watch the remainder of the show.
No such thing as a digital antenna.
Cable producing crap like reality tv have me going back to watch free TV. Saves money.
I haven't had cable in a long time. The last time I saw cable TV was when I stayed in a hotel in Tampa 3 years ago. When I saw what cable was showing, I couldn't believe people actually pay for this stuff. I'm happy with the 24 channels I get off air plus the free channels Samsung TV+ gives me on my SmartTV.
Also... Cable TV is so bogged down with long, annoying, overkill commercials!!
Which is worse, commercials or kardashian?!?
Uggg, 🤢
@@desertflower5724 - Which is worse, stabbed in the eye or stabbed in the ear? :-)
When the US abandoned analog TV, I made an antenna out of a wire coat hanger as well as ordered a $50 antenna. They both gave me the same signal strengths. Elevating and orientating the antenna makes a bigger difference so get an antenna with a long cord and preferably some kind of wall mount that still allows you to tilt the antenna rather than just lie flat on the wall, that is not just a sticky strip or picture hanger.
Well, yes, the signal changed, but the way it's broadcasted didn't. You should have been able to stay with the same antenna, there was no reason to change. Only the TV requires it to be digital (or converter box).
@@honolulublues5548 I had cable prior so I had no antennas. Indeed, tv's haven't come with antennas for quite some time, it's not as if rabbit ears and the UHF wire loop come by default with TV's since the 70's.
I think your review and comparisons were very accurate. I have a 12" x 12" RCA (UMH similar) antenna on one TV and an old fashion rabbit ears on the other. The rabbit ears are the winner.
the frank Sinatra movie was "Suddenly" great movie on a assassination attempt on the president. and awesome team review . best of luck sir. side note the second Duke movie was " McLintock"
Ironically, a TV (the old CRT type) was a crucial part of the story line.
"Suddenly" is a great film from 1953, also stars Sterling Hayden..
I always watched forensic files before sleeping. Dunno why I stopped
Xbox 360 1953 Me too. For some reason, it helped me fall asleep.😁
Thats me right now went through every season twice on my third now
Yeah my hubby and I got a good laugh at that too because we literally fell asleep to forensic files last night!
@@lindaholmes4166 omg. I always go to sleep to Forensic Files. I think it's that guy's voice. It's all deep and sedating.
Haven't watched that in a while. Even though I think it's a great show, will admit it often put me to sleep too.
I just bought an antenna I needed this video like a week ago lol
I also purchased a new antenna specifically made for an RV highly recommended for a receiving radius of 40 miles marketed under the KIng brand ..something I wanted to point out with respect to James antenna reviews was that two were specifically geared to the uhf frequency spectrum and the clear tv appeared to receive vhf frequencies only ideally an antenna should be able to decode vhf and uhf however it seems that if the signal is strong enough whether it be vhf or uhf some degree of reception may be obtained . I am located in Waterloo Ontario Canada so roughly 110 miles from the Canada US border living in a region of roughly 400 thousand people the antenna is perched in my window facing east at roughly 100 feet off the ground and I able to receive on average 8 channels my antenna is optimized for uhf and vhf hi so essentially 9 thru 13 during tropospheric weather events I am able to snag 28 channels
i remember way back in 2003 when digital TV was mainstream and i had to buy a new ariel/antenna ,still was only £15 with an amplifier :)
Me too. Gave my daughter our non- smart tv, not hooked up to our Sattelite. Bought the more expensive antenna from Walmart good for 50 miles (I think). We live behind a hill. And orchards. We get 13 channels. Thinking it will be good enough for her until she leaves for college, because I don't want to put that dang 30 foot antenna back on the roof. And she is rarely home long enough to watch TV anyway. But yes I'll try the cheap one next time!
Live N Learn Folks....
Always, always ALWAYS ...READ OR WATCH REVIEWS BEFORE PURCHASING ANYTHING!!
Word of mouth is best advertisements & reviews...ALWAYS.
@@debbierhode6291 she'll be on her phone most of the time anyway. 🤣
Enjoy this video and your ratings. I have a ClearStream 2Max (UHF-VHF elements) and use it indoors-also use an amplifier. Being in the Chicago area I get 58 channels. Reception WILL VARY depending on weather and windy days. Antenna is aimed out the patio window towards Chicago and is on a movable cart to adjust how OTA antenna is aimed (makes a reception difference sometimes). Allot of the time, all the channels come in great and then on bad weather days, certain channel bands either pixelate or off completely. All in all though, I like the Clearstream Antenna. This could be used as an outdoor antenna, but chose to use in indoors.
No matter which indoor antenna you use, just keeping it in one aimed position all the time does not work. you will have to re-position the antenna to get certain channels locked in. Also depends on if any structures are blocking your antenna receptions. Certain Amplifiers do work to boost the weaker channel signals, at least mine worked good.
TV ad antennas that claim 4k channel reception is a bunch of nonsense. All TV channels now are all digital reception, not 4k.
Thanks for your video and take care.
Indeed, it was a mind-mangling, 🧠boggling, and 💣💥 epiphany to find out that even the state-of-the-art 7680x4320 panels until this year could merely extrapolate a 8k image from what is still a 1080i broadcast unless it's created at a higher resolution and Next Gen ATSC 3.0 is only now being introduced in the elite, flagship models costing four or five figures to score in conjunction with TV stations starting their decades-long transition towards it assuming that the Burros & Pachyderms in DC can ultimately behave enough to make that happen of course!
You should compare to a wire bent coat hanger too 😆
Would be nice. I believe the FCC requires companies broadcast digital signals now. Analog is a thing of the past. If I recall, you need a converter between the antennae and TV to get a picture from digital signal. If you have a converter then should be no issue to hook up a wire hanger to that and it work. This is just a thought, no clue if it would.
@kevin no, that's not how it works. The antenna is just a wire, old antennas work fine on new tvs.
All the decoding happens in the tv tuner, so you might need a conversion box to watch digital tv on a really old analog CRT. But if you have a flat screen you don't need anything special
@@SparkY0 diggydog018 thank you for clarifying. You're essentially agreeing with me. Need a converter/decoder between the antennae and TV for it to work, just so happens newer TVs have it built in. I know the signal can be captured by a wire antenna, new or old, that wasnt in question. I wasnt aware new TVs had the decoder built in is all. Good to know.
@@overyourheadtampa TV without a tuner is just a [computer] monitor.
Prices of LED TVs have come way down. Recommend 55" diagonal, 4K resolution, 120 Hz refresh rate. That's about the best performance to price ratio today.
No one is satisfied with a 60 Hz refresh rate.
Specifically, there are so many different 55" models, that should run up the competition and push down the prices. Not 54", not 56".
I use Newegg.com for a breakdown of how many models are available for each and every size. I'd choose a size with a lot of different available models.
You'll be going from a CRT with 480 horizontal lines to an LED with 2160 lines, which also allows for the bigger display without the picture breaking up into individual dots. Going HDTV also means a 16:9 aspect ratio instead of the Standard Def 4:3, which provides a lower center of gravity.
That's what I'd get if my 27" CRT stopped working. But it gave my brother a hernia setting it up, and I don't want to get a hernia disposing of it.
I'd also get a Refurb, to keep the price under $500. You can save 10% getting LED 1st generation 1080 lines. but 4K (2160 lines) is so ubiquitous, and that's the direction the video world is going, it's not worth going 1080.
Check online customer reviews for any particular model you're looking at. Newegg / Amazon. If you choose to purchase from a live salesman, beg their tolerance if you take minutes or hours to check out those online reviews and compare the possibilities.
The on-screen menus on these TVs have a toggle between Antenna / Cable. Newfangled over-the-air broadcasts have the least digital compression for the best video quality. Worse are cable signals. Worst is satellite TV. Also, antenna signals are free, although who knows how big an antenna you'll need. But cable and satellite have the worst customer satisfaction anywhere in the Milky Way.
Also, there is the "Smart TV" option. If you have WiFi around the house, a smart TV makes it easy to watch TH-cam and stuff on the TV. It's hard to find a new TV that isn't a smart TV.
you’re my kinda people.
The "Desert version of Tron" is actually a movie called Solar Babies. I grew up watching that movie. Definitely brings back memories. Great review as always.
The main guy that was showing at the moment he turned to this movie is Done DeLuise's son. He also got his start with a couple of other well know stars,now, on an 80's show called 21Jumpstreet.
@@jonlynch9089 Dom's son Peter!
@@FuzzyElf , I actually typed Dom but autocorrect changed it. Does Peter have a son who is acting? I've seen reruns of NYPD Blue and I swear one of the detectives, Cipawits-the heavier one, had a son that left the military and joined the force but was killed before he attended the academy. I swear that kid's name was Deluise!
What a wonderful family.
A family that laughs together....stays together.
Family that laughs together, should get their haircuts together.
I have an indoor digital antenna (Clear TV) I bought from Walgreens for around $20. It occasionally glitches on some channels, but it beats having a cable bill by a long run.
80s kid, reminds me of the good ol days rabbit ears, aluminum foil, and stand on the side of the the tv with one arm up and don't move.
I'm a 2000s kid, but i feel like the whole antenna ritual of waving your arms and not moving transferred over to dvds or a vhs when they weren't working. Granted, as a kid we didn't really understand how things like dvds worked. They were definitely just scratched and dirty.
Yeah, you should review the litter box! 😸
Yes! This litter box needs a Freakin' Reviews, review!
While youve been reviewing products, I've been reviewing you, and so far 10/10
THAT is totally creepy! You and Bill Cosby would be good cellmates!
great review.i have one of the cheap ones in each of my tvs and they work great.channels sometimes are different because the antenna is in different sides of the house and some channels will be bad sometimes but i also found out that a cheap one works as good or even better than an expensive one.now i would like to know if one of the the outdoor ones for the roof will be much better
Two aerials got married. The reception was excellent 😀
You did a fine job. I'm glad you didn't fall for the advertisements of HD or Digital antenna that everybody seems to use when searching for an antenna. Those things don't mean anything when it comes to antennas as you are picking up frequencies on three bands, which is probably why each antenna provided different results. The three bands are VHF, High VHF and UHF - just like the old days before cable. One thing to note, what the frequency a TV station broadcasts on may be different than what it shows on your TV.
To pickup VHF you need longer antenna elements while UHF needs shorter elements. There are usually more channels broadcasting in UHF, that's why I think the Clear TV did so poorly. I think it's only picking up VHF better because it doesn't have shorter elements. The $3 antenna seems to pick up the UHF channels really well and probably has the shortest elements. The "must have" probably has the most long and short elements and that is why it picks up a few more over the $3 antenna.
Another thing people should not fall for is when they advertise that they can pick up stations from 150 miles away. It would be impossible to do so because of the curvature of the earth. Most people would be limited to about 70 miles max.
For anybody interested in seeing other reviews of antennas, check out the antenna Man on TH-cam. He is extremely knowledgeable and he is the reason why I know what I just said.
16:00 Solarbabies (1986)
OMG! I have wanted to see that again so bad! ...watch it be stupid now.... But, hey, 80's rule!
@@GlitteryPegasusgo watch : Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films
I've been looking for a cheap indoor antenna so I very much appreciated this video. I'm a new subscriber..As a Hoosier I love your IU shirt.
Depending on where your located, rabbit ears from Walmart at about $10 will do it.
I actually put Forensic Files on Netflix specifically for naps.
We do too!
Same. Peter Thomas voice is just that soothing.
I thought I was the only one who went to sleep to that show.
Buncha damn psychos overhear...
@@metalmoth6608 I'll take that as a compliment.
For each antenna, you should've scanned two or three times towards different directions each scan. Each scan, for that particular antenna would have given you a higher or lower number of channels. I did that (scanned four times, four different directions) on an RCA amplified antenna, and got four different number of channels each time. Total number of channels I got first was 57. Then, 49. Third time, 81. Last fourth direction placement got 78 total number of channels. So, I placed the antenna again towards the direction I get 81 channels. Several of those channels are blank. There's no broadcasting signal at all, but the "call letters" are there. Also, some garbage channels too. By-the-way, it was a $20.00 antenna! Think it was a sale price.
The TV antenna reviews with your children was fun to watch. 👍
I bought a $30 G.E. amplified TV anttena from walmart , it pulls in about 60 channels when the weather is good. Added Netflix, Hulu & Brit Box , this better than paying for cable or satellite tv services.
You really need to go side by side. Things can actually change your picture quite quickly such as atmospherics
“Use Proactiv and you’ll have roast beef face!” 😂
ms_enj ... I’ve used proactiv with great results. You really have to play around with it to see what works for you. For me, every other day was what worked best. Every day was to much and would dry out my face and lead to more problems. I didn’t have a huge problem to begin with but Proactiv, took care of it.
Cool. I was just quoting his daughter. I’ve never used it.
The Balance of Terror, my favorite ST episode!
Loved your kids' reaction to the old movies:) I think you just saved me from getting the clear tv antenna. Not sure which one to get though because of my location; I'm about 40 miles outside the towers but still not getting but a few with the one I have.
I live in a rural area with the closest broadcast station over 50 miles away and I ran similar tests on 8 (so far) of these antennas ranging from $9.95 to $149.00 my results were much the same. I did notice that after the first test run my expectations were lower and I started giving higher numbers to similar performances on the later reviewed antennas.
Here in the middle of nowhere (AZ) we get 38 usable channels using just a rabbit ear antenna, which I'm delighted with. No complaints.
I tried a lot of em from $60 to a Walmart GE $10 one. Guess which one was the best. Yup, you guessed it the GE Walmart won out. All the other expensive ones were retuned.
Do you get any PBS channels?
Felicia K Yeah. I get all of them in my area. Come in very clear.
Which GE model did you get from Walmart?
Which GE model from Walmart?
I built a "coat-hanger" antenna, using some stripped 12 gauge "Romex" wire intended for house wiring. It outperformed every store bought antenna I've purchased. It worked even better when I added an amplifier. Ugly though. Really ugly.
New husband hated looks of wire one, so I bought the best pretty antenna I could find after I got married. Only lost a few channels, and Roku has brought those back.
Can I just say, Noah's hair is AMAZING!
Noah is the girl rigth? I just come here to say the same xd
I have an 8 year old that's tired of having long hair. We tried short hair and they weren't happy with that, so we just showed them Noah's hair in this video. Their reply :"i dont want green hair"
not the color just the cut.
"Another color?"
No.
"Nah"
Like can you even color a kid's hair? I heard thats bad for them. :/
is noah a boy or girl?
@@YourOldUncleNoongah well her dad refers to her as a she. So i guess she's a girl
I enjoy watching reviews because I appreciate Reviewers such as yourself who spend the money and take the time to do this for consumers. To be frank, I subscribed and quickly unsubscribed to your channel because I pressed the Subscribed button much too quickly. I want to thank you so much for the service you provide at no cost, and the enjoyment I felt watching you and listening to your comments and then the additional bonus when your twins where added to the mix. You your children did a great job reviewing these antennas and provided a fantastic service to us consumers. Oh, and I Subscribed to your channel and look forward to your future additional videos where i can watch reviews on popular products the majority of us use every day. Be well and again, Thanks so much!
I’m gonna try to be brief. There are two other major factors here that must be taken into account. This a BASIC reason for the results you got.
1. Transmitter power. Some stations may only put out 5,000 watts. Others transmit 1,000,000 or more.
This makes a massive difference in the quality of reception. It’s like you can see a brighter flashlight from farther away.
2. Transmitting frequency. It used to be, say channel 5 transmitted on channel 5.
You have three bands:
Lo-VHF, ch 2-6.
In this range, you need a wide antenna to pick up that huge radio wave.
(As frequency goes up, the narrower the antenna needed)
Next is the entire FM radio band.
We now get to the Hi-VHF BAND. Ch 7-13. Higher frequency a bit, so smaller antenna needed.
Next up is the UHF channels. In the old day, that was for Ch 14-83.
The FCC killed those channels above ch 51.
So what?
Nearly 90% of the tv stations were moved to the UHF (channels).
Why, so people can use a smaller antenna to pick them up. The FCC sold off many of the low and high channels so they could be used for other communications.
These small antennas are going to suck at receiving the the VHF Hi and Lo bands.
That showed up precisely in the results.
The small “mousepad” antenna has so much area to present to the transmitted signal.
The seen on tv only presents the area of those skinny rods to the signal. Result, worse reception.
The big “mousepad” presented the largest surface of all. Good results and they will be noticeably better during bad weather.
So what do you need?
Many Home Owners Associations restrict the size of the antenna you can use.
The entire antenna must fit within a 1 meter circle. That’s why satellite antennas are small today, higher frequencies.
They used to be 10-12 feet across.
Considering your location and ability to see the transmitters, I can recommend a compact antenna that will blow those away.
RCA ANT-751
It will pick up Hi-VHF and UHF signals with ease . I’ve installed tons of them.
Finally, how do you know what frequencies are being used in your area?
Simple, go to www.tvfool.com. Type in your address and all local stations will be listed from most likely to receive to worst.
The old channel, is listed as the Virtual channel. The new frequency will be listed as real. It even shows you what direction the transmitter is from you.
With your transmitters clustered together. Aim for the middle direction.
I write this so you can take into account these important factors.
Sorry so long
Doing this test in a small media market (say, Alpena, MI and being 50 miles from the stations) it'll be a more fair comparison for the chap vs expensive.
Great review James! I really got a kick out of the interaction between you 3 when watching all the channels. Funny stuff, lol.
Interesting as I've also tried similar flat indoor antenna. I found that quite small adjustments to the position and orientation of the antenna would produce dramatic changes in the signal strength and therefore the number of channels found when rescanned. The positioning of the antenna for Digital TV is more difficult than Analogue TV as you really have to rescan to know if one position is better or worst unless you use a Signal Meter to find best position before rescanning for channels. Fortunately, you should find in the TV settings a signal strength indicator and using this on one or two of the weaker channels should help get the best performance from any of theses test antenna. The poor performance of the Clear TV antenna could be down to the variability of the fine adjustment of the "rabbit ears" which for the reasons above would be really difficult to get right. Comments on the sound levels in the tests is unfortunately quite erroneous as the signal strength and performance of the antenna will affect the signal to noise ratio and hence error rate which shows up as broken up and blocky picture along with sound dropping in and out but NOT the sound level. Sound level is set by the broadcaster and adverts are generally set at a higher level (volume) than the shows they are inserted into so as to grab attention.
Barry Haegar: I found the same as you, if you have a broadcast picture that's spotty or Frozen all you have to do is move that floppy antenna upside down or inside or lay it down or hold a different way and the channel will come in perfectly clear and if you rescan it you'll get different channels every time depending on where you put it
You only need a frequency table for the closest TV tower to you which only provides TV channels on some channels, not all
For example I live in Hungary in Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg county close to the Romanian border so the closest TV tower for me is located in Penyige
In Hungary the digital TV provider is called MinDig TV who gives you 18 FTA channels (14 TV and 4 radio) so you can watch TV for free without having to pay for any cable or satellite providers
MinDig TV has 5 muxes (A, B, C, D and E) and the first two are free
These two muxes air on DVB-T
CH24 (498 MHz) is where A mux is
CH41 (624 MHz) is where B mux is
Before scanning for channels in a set-top-box you can look at the signal strength. You have to do manual scanning for this
Forensic Files is like a lullaby to me. Peter Thomas' voice was so soothing. :)
Eric Kunz His son does movie trailers. Sounds like his father.
Thought I was the only one.
I like forensic files .. i also like the voice for New Detectives & FBI Files.. its all about the voice 😉
I just purchased the clear tv. But I’ve found that moving the rabbit ears and placing it higher had a significant different result
The clear antenna worked great at first. A few weeks later, half of the channels disappeared
What is the brand name of the $3 antenna? My Dollar store doesn't sell antenna. Can this antenna be ordered online?
Some TVs have a signal strength meter. This can be helpful when adjusting an antenna for best reception.
When you have problems with reception close to the towers, it's NOT signal strength, but MULTIPATH interference as the problems, analogous to "ghosting" that we had with the old analog TVs. Reflecting signals from buildings, hills, etc, cause phase cancellation (dropped data bit stream) which the "error correction" circuitry in the TV tuner has trouble correcting. Some TVs also has a "quality of signal" meter which shows how much "multipath" there is so you can adjust the position of the antenna for BEST signal quality. FYI, IF you want the BEST image CONSISTENTLY on that fancy flat panel TV, your best bet is a DIRECTIONAL roof antenna WITH a rotor!
A $27 antenna isn't expensive for an antenna. A quick look at indoor antennas on Amazon shows $27 to be quite low. It's also important to remember that the amplifier shouldn't be used for stations that have a strong signal. It will actually have the opposite effect and cause a poor signal. It's best to use an antenna with an amplifier that's easily turned off or unplugged as you switch between towers of varying distances.
Also, when placing an antenna I suggest Googling "over the air antenna direction". There are several sites that use your location to show the directions of the local towers for each station. It's not uncommon for local channels to have towers in one direction while others will be in the opposite direction. I live in the city limits of St. Louis, but I have city channels that actually broadcast from outside the city to the south and to the north. Don't forget that different types of antennas, for example multi-directional "leaf" antennas vs directional antennas require different placement and orientation. No matter what type is used don't be surprised if you have to play around with height and direction before finding the sweet spot.
Don't forget every movement with an antenna picks up different channels so placement depends on each antenna. I did enjoy your video! Been living with America for about 7yrs now & love it
Good review, you and family did a great job! Not sure if anyone else has answered this, but the movie with the guy rollerskating in the dessert is Solorbabies from 1986, it's a B movie 80's classic!
I have the "U must have" antenna, I live waaay out in the country in a small town, 30 mins from Nashville and I get over 50 channels... i would say only 2-5 are unusable. I consider that pretty dang good :)
@ I live in the mountains
Javier Hernandez How could you possibly live far away from something that’s nearby? I don’t believe you.
Can you get an antenna that I can watch Breaking Bad,you just reminded me of one certain character.😂
walter white
That movie wih the rollerblading is called "Solar Babies"
Maxamillionaire I came to the comments looking for exactly this piece of information, thank you.
Dude, thank you so much. I HAVE to see it.
This is the best ratings...cause the ratings are done as a family !!!!
Good Job!!!!
The comment regarding removing the amplifier help me greatly. Went from 9 channels to 45. Thanks as always for your reviews.
Should have turned the amplifier on for a second round to see if any of the bad channels improved
I wondered if it only caused trouble in finding channels and would help with reception... somehow.
You’re officially my favorite channel