I've paid for basic cable for years and have felt ripped off the whole time. Not because the content sucked, but because it felt overpriced based on what I watched, and how much. Why pay for around 60 channels when I'm only going to routinely watch 4 or 5?
I decided to try out a little DIY project that had been on my mind for a while: an over-the-air (OTA) digital antenna. With some simple household items and a few google searches, could I be watching TV for free?
I decided to test it out first with the simplest of designs. First I picked up a coaxial to antenna transformer at the dollar store for about $1.50. It looks likes this:
If some paperclips slapped together can pick up a few channels, what could I get with a more advanced antenna? The next design I tried involved aluminum foil. Following a fractal pattern I printed from the web, I cut out the aluminum foil and carefully inserted it into a plastic sleeve. Here was the final look:
The foil antenna picked up 5-6 channels. I was thrilled, but still not completely satisfied. Antennas work better the higher up they are, and my apartment is on the 15th floor. The Internet tells me that numerous channels are being transmitted in my area. My final design would have to be serious to get serious results.
I swung by a Home Depot and picked up a piece of wood, some steel wire, washers, and screws. Using another design I found online I measured out and built my very own bowtie antenna:
After fiddling with the positioning of the antenna and doing various channel scans, I began picking up 15-20 channels. Again, nearly all of them in HD. It's nice to have something so simple work out so well.
Of course, bad weather will occasionally mess with the signal and antennas have to be shifted around sometimes. I recommend giving it a shot ... but your success will depend on the reception of the channels broadcast near you. If you're interested, search out the reception in your area, and then you'll know if it's going to be worth your time to screw some coat hangers to boards.
So to wrap up, before I was paying around $50 a month for TV service, and now I'm enjoying all the same shows with an antenna that cost $10 to make. Between my homemade antenna, Netflix and the Internet, I feel like my TV needs are covered.
Thanks for reading and Happy Holidays!
2 comments:
Interesting. The channels you get, though, are they the low ones that come in the standard, most basic of cable packages, or do you get some of the higher number, more interesting specialty stuff too?
My big beef with the notion of cable TV is that, although they've had the ability for years, they still won't allow you to make your own package. I know the idea is to get you paying for all those 60 channels just so you can get the specific half dozen or so you actually want, but I feel like people might actually be willing to pay for, say, a 10-channel package where they actually got to pick the channels. Probably even you would be, but instead, they've lost you entirely to the hardware store. Doesn't seem like good business to me.
The channels I pick up are mostly ones being broadcast from Toronto (CN Tower specifically) and from Buffalo. They are pretty standard channels like CTV, CBC, ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, FOX, CITYTV, and so on. No specialty channels really, but these channels cover the shows I watch, and other stuff like "Breaking Bad", "Walking Dead", etc can be covered with Netflix or the Internet.
I agree that it's a huge piss off that we can't pick and choose channels we want in a package. It seems like a no brainer.
In the last few months I've finally ended a three year cellphone contract with Rogers and moved to a cheaper provider. And now I've found a TV alternative to Rogers. I feel elated.
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