Clearview HDTV Antenna

Those TV and Magazine ADS are a BIG SCAM. They make you think you can buy something ,THAT HAS NEVER BEEN OFFERED BEFORE! All they are selling is a standard TV antenna that does not look like a TV antenna on your roof or the old rabbit ears. What they claim is NOTHING NEW. Those OTA (Over The Air) signal are NOW digital instead on Analog from 1948 until 2008. Digital does NOT extend in miles as far as the old Analog signals. So, while you may have received TV stations over the air at your residence before 2008, the distance may be too great for digital which those Clearviews ALSO will not receive. THEY are limited to mileage range also. The basic rule is, IF over 50 miles from the Broadcast Towers, you probably will NOT receive OTA reception unless you have a roof top powerfull Digital type antenna. The CLEARVIEW is NOT magic. The tone of the ad is to scare people into thinking someone is conspiring to keep "FREE" TV from you. ALL HYPE. Doug

We have a Clearview that was given to us by a friend that had tried it out at his house. We tried it at our house - we do live on the side of the mountain facing the stations, but there are mountains between us. We pick up NOTHING! We are only 30 air miles from the stations. Then again, we can't really pick up much of anything with our bat wing here at home, either. Occasionally at night, we can find a signal.

Elwoodj wrote:
I just read an article about how great the clearview hdtv antenna is and how it is better than cable or satellite. Further it could be free for seniors. Does anybody know anything this?

As others have said there is no such thing as an HDTV antenna. just a Radio antenna (Television, be it digital or analog is really radio).

And "Free to seniors".. more like free to everyone. After the what 29.95 initial purchase.

What is it worth. closer to the 0.95.

How it works, Simple over the air radio antenna. no gain to speak of, nothing to recommend it over a good antenna. also no height less you are on like the 10th floor of a building.

What is better?
Most any OUTDOOR Tv antenna. HEIGHT IS MIGHT when it comes to VHF/UHF radio (Television is in teh VHF and UHF bands) and an antenna with GAIN (Directional) can see farther in the direction it is pointed and has other benefits as well.

For a house I'd recommend a big channel master atop a tower or mast

For an RV a Winegard Sensar IV with Sensar PRO indoor module.

rk911 is absolutely correct. Those new smaller antennas pick up nothing but radio waves, just like those old rabbit ears do. What information is carried on those radio waves, whether analog or digital is irrelevant to the antenna.

The changes that theoldwizard1 referred to are the broadcast channel changes that have already begun as part of an FCC mandated shrinking of the TV broadcast frequency spectrum, allowing more room for other wireless services. If you are purchasing a new antenna, make very sure it's capable of receiving both the low and high VHF channels, as well as UHF, since a number of stations are moving from UHF to VHF, including the low 2-6 channels. Some OTA antennas, such as the King RV units, are not very good for VHF reception, particularly the lowest channels.

rk911 wrote:
there is no such thing as an HDTV antenna. a 50-yr old TV antenna in good physical condition with the proper cable will receive the new digital signals perfectly well. lots of snake oil out there. an indoor amplified antenna may be adequate in urban areas but the farther out you get from the transmit site the less effective that antenna may be.

Basically correct !

Outdoor "HDTV antennas" are typically smaller than their much older cousins (I won't try to explain why). My inlaws went "Over The Air" OTA a few months ago using indoor antennas even though the close broadcast station are over 20 miles away.

Window antennas work well. Even if you are inside, try to mount your antenna as high as possible, like on the top of a tall bookcase. It DOES make a difference. Walmart and Target have a reasonable selection at good prices.


EDIT

For those of you new to OTA television, there will be some changes coming later this year. Don't worry about having to learn new channel numbers, but if one day you old favorite channels start work, just go through the process of "scanning for channels" like you did when you first hooked up your antenna (not worth disillusioning the details).

here are the channels you could get in Decatur, Ga with a good antenna antenna web station finder a indoor antenna will not get all of these and the Clearview is junk in my opinion they will tell you any thing to sell there antenna. 50 mile range haha only if you live on a mountain side facing the transmitters.

If someone wants to give you a free antenna, get the deal in writing.

I doubt it will be better than the batwing but for free, worth a shot. Don't spend too much on installation.

Elwoodj wrote:
I just read an article about how great the clearview hdtv antenna is and how it is better than cable or satellite. Further it could be free for seniors. Does anybody know anything this?

It's just another form of rabbit ears, a simple indoor antenna like was used for the past 60+ years. All kinds of these antennas are available. Yes, over the air TV is free for seniors and everyone else, always has been.

Elwoodj wrote:
I just read an article about how great the clearview hdtv antenna is and how it is better than cable or satellite. Further it could be free for seniors. Does anybody know anything this?

Just junk. If you want over the air TV then you want a Batwing.

there is no such thing as an HDTV antenna. a 50-yr old TV antenna in good physical condition with the proper cable will receive the new digital signals perfectly well. lots of snake oil out there. an indoor amplified antenna may be adequte in urban areas but the farther out you get from the transmit site the less effective that antenna may be.