The end is near - 29% of Americans dont know you can get free tv through an antenna

But the reception sucks during a rainstorm. I don't know about snow or even a thunderstorm yet as I just got it to replace my DVR that the cable company blocked. The reception is great during good weather and I even get HD.

Little Doper 🌌 wrote:

Depends on where you live, but I've watched tv over rabbit ears that was better than any picture I've gotten through cable.

I've always used an antenna, never had cable, and currently get 32 channels with great reception.

Who wants those free channels? Maybe for some sports a few times a year, but that's about it.

Larry Dickman wrote:

Who wants those free channels? Maybe for some sports a few times a year, but that's about it.

The real question is, why would you pay for them????

I'm sure plenty of Americans don't know you can listen to sports on fm radio either. It doesn't make then less intelligent, it just means they are lucky enough not to have any need for such archaic technology. Seriously, who gives a **** about free cable?

lrcrealistguy wrote:

Is it free if I have to buy an antennae? Shouldn't the government pay for that?

Oh.

You.

Are.

So.

Clever.

Going the way of Blockbuster wrote:

Bad Wigins wrote:

I see morans standing at the Red Box and I want to tell them, but then I think maybe they really believe they should pay and would get offended. People are suckers.

Where on earth do you live?!!?! I live in one of the poorest, least educated states in the South, and never see people standing at Red Boxes anymore. The ones around here are deserted.

Poor people are not stupid with money like rich people are.

Little Doper 🌌 wrote:

john utah wrote:

cheap indoor antennas don't work for tvs as they typically do for raio...I don't know the technical reasons why (transmission power, location, etc.), but that's the fact

Depends on where you live, but I've watched tv over rabbit ears that was better than any picture I've gotten through cable.

This has always worked perfectly for me too. I have never paid for cable tv because of all the crappy channels bundled into their subscriptions.

Bad Wigins wrote:

Poor people are not stupid with money like rich people are.

Poor people spend massive amounts of money on cigarettes, and they eat out constantly. I could make burgers for my family with quality beef, good cheese, and fresh veggies for half the money poor people spend getting a meal at McDonald's.

Also, all the stuff they do to their health isn't exactly cost free. Someone who isn't stupid with money would realize that while the sticker price of junk food is low, a lifetime of diabetes is incredibly expensive.

john utah wrote:

ok engineers, in as few words as possible tell us why it's so hard to get a good TV signal vs. radio signal.

Because it's a sh!tload more data.

I think its more of an issue that a large number of Americans don't realize you can get tv through THE INTERNET. If you try hard enough, you can get it for free even, in some countries tv is considered a public good. We should be moving into the future where access to information is increasingly supported by tax dollars and made accessible to all.

We should be less worried if people don't know about tv antennas and whatever other archaic technologies and more worried that there are entire generations barely competent in using the internet.

somebody summarize why this thread has four pages of replies so I don't have to read through all of it. Seriously, not sure why this is so interesting.

Sara Palin wrote:

The rabbit ears antennas you are buying at the dollar store are the same as the ones included with the TV's. These $20 antennas are a racket. They don't work any better, and they are counting on people not knowing they can go to the dollar store and buy them.

I never knew people were unaware of broadcast, until I started seeing those commercials for the $20 antennas. Glad your people are catching up.

Rabbit ear antennas aren't included with TVs.

I was born in 1995. My family never had cable, only antenna.

The media needs free broadcasting to be available so that they can spread their brainwashing and propaganda to those who don't pay for cable.

We cut the cable for a year when we lived outside (45min) of Baltimore.

Indoor antennas suck unless you live 20 miles or less from the station. Outdoor antennas are expensive.

Signal strength has to be at a certain level for you to even pick up a digital channel. In the days of analog you could still get a watchable fuzzy picture. Now it's all or nothing.

Streaming apps add up in price and are so so on reliability. Especially if you live close to others.

Alan

JoBros are often clueless about the real world that does not involve track, xc, and road running.

Runningart2004 is correct, not everyone in USA gets a broadcast signal of sufficient quality to be worthwhile, or even display anything other than noise.

This is 2017.

Ummmm ever heard a Firestick with Kodi?

You can only get lame channels that way. And it is not any more free than a radio. You still have to buy the device, electricity, ...