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Controversy About Having A HDTV Antenna

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There has been a lot of hype lately about having a HDTV antenna. Is it just hype or should you really get it?

First, what is the hype about having a HDTV antenna? The hype is that with the antenna, you can watch 1080i resolution broadcasts and will get better quality than satellite TV. The truth is going to hurt if you already have bought a HDTV antenna. There is really no such as a HDTV antenna.

HOW AN ANTENNA WORKS

All an antenna does is pick up frequencies. The frequencies that you pick up for your TV are Ultra High Frequencies (UHF) and Very High Frequencies (VHF). All TV broadcasts take place in the VHF and UHF bands. High definition can be part of these frequencies and you do not need a special HDTV antenna to pick them up. Your regular antenna could do the job just as well. …show more content…

They must have directivity, high front-to-back (F/B) ratio and low-noise amplification when the antenna has an amplifier. If they have the same properties, why pay more to get something that is the same?

People have this perception that they need a more powerful HDTV antenna because of directivity and amplification. This is not true. HDTV is actually more noise immune than analog television and will be able to produce high quality video at significantly lower signal-to-noise ratios. Digital TV needs less antenna gain and can tolerate higher noise levels. A HDTV antenna and a regular antenna have similar directivity/gain properties so you should receive analog or digital broadcasts with the same good quality.

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