If you ask someone, “How would you go about getting programs on your TV?” most people would reply, “Subscribe to cable or satellite service.” And if you ask, “How would you go about getting HD programs?” the answer will certainly be the same. You may be surprised to find out that you don’t need either cable or satellite to get HD programming, and you don’t have to pay a penny on sub scri ptions either!
For the past few decades we have been conditioned by advertising to think that we need to have cable or satellite service to receive TV programming. The fact is that all this time TV programs have been broadcast over-the-air (OTA) and can be received with an antenna. Better yet, all broadcast stations are mandated by the government to broadcast only in HD by February 17, 2009. This means that you can get full HD programming with a simple antenna attached to your HDTV. No cable or satellite needed!
In fact, our household switched over to antenna since August this year and we watched the Olympics in full HD resolution this way. Like many others these days we get most of our news through the Internet, which obviates the need for stations like CNN and MSNBC, which you cannot receive through an antenna.
Available Channels
The stations available through an antenna generally include all major networks (ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox), plus PBS and local stations. And as a feature of stations being broadcast digitally, each station usually broadcasts multiple channels with different programming simultaneously. For example, if your local ABC station is on channel 7, you could receive different programs on channels 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, etc. The stations with the largest selection via antenna are usually the PBS stations, where you can normally get up to four different programs at the same time.
One thing to note is that you will not be able to receive stations that are only broadcast via cable or satellite, like CNN, CNBC, ESPN, etc. But if you generally don’t watch those channels, you’ll be fine with an antenna.
What You Need
All you need to receive this type of programming is an antenna, and a TV that can receive and display HD programming. If you’ve bought your TV in the past 3 years, it likely has an HD tuner, which means it can receive HD programming directly from an antenna. Even if you have an older TV that cannot receive or display HD programs, you can still benefit from all of this (see my article in the June 2008 issue of this magazine.) By the way, the TiVo also works well with an antenna, and the HD versions of the box also include an HD tuner; so no need to give up your DVR either.
About the Antenna
Over-the-air (OTA) HD broadcasts are transmitted over the same frequencies as the old analog channels, which means that a simple TV antenna would work just fine, as long as it can receive UHF (Ultra-High Frequency) signals. Given that the antenna technology has improved significantly in the past few decades, you can get compact antennas that perform very well.
After looking at a few choices, I ended up using the Philips MANT940 Digital & Analog Indoor/Outdoor Antenna. The reason I selected it was that it comes with an integrated signal amplifier, and that it can be installed indoors or outdoors.
When choosing an antenna, keep in mind that placing your antenna outdoors will always give you better reception. Don’t be fooled by antennas that claim they have great reception indoors because they have an amplifier.
Optimizing Reception
Here are a few simple rules to ensure you have a pleasant TV experience using an antenna.
Determine the transmitter direction: The best direction for your antenna is based on where you are in relation to the local transmission towers.
To find this out, go to "http://antennaweb.org" or http://antennaweb.org and click on the “Choose an Antenna” button on the front page. This tool allows you to enter your address and get instructions on which direction to point your antenna, assuming you’ll be installing your antenna outdoors.
Install the antenna outdoors if at all possible. That will ensure the best reception. Also make sure that there are no other buildings or structures in front of the antenna. If you’re behind hills or large buildings, you most likely won’t be able to receive a signal.
Ensure that you remove the channels with weak reception from your channel selection. Once your TV scans the available channels through your antenna, it gives you all the channels it can receive, regardless of their signal quality.
You’ll need to de-select those channels with weak reception through the TV’s setup menu.
There are also many resources on antennaweg.org for self installation or professional installation, so make sure you take advantage of them.
Enjoy your new free HDTV programming!
