Antenna TV: A Review.

I've been getting the new "Antenna TV" network for about a month now, and for the most part, I'm liking what I see. But as with any new channel - if a channel that shows only old retro programming could be called "NEW" - there are a number of rough edges that could use some polishing. I get Antenna TV locally on Fox13Now.com Salt Lake City - KSTU on their upper sub-channel, 13.2, since mid January. 

Does OTA TV have a Program Guide Like Cable? ( YES, it does! )

DTVpal converter box program guide. A number of former pay TV users have lamented the lack of a program guide when they switched to free OTA TV. The problem doesn't lie so much with OTA Digital TV as much as it does with the manufacturers of televisions and converter boxes. You see, the Digital TV standards provide for a rich set of features, including an EPG - an electronic program guide. Most TV stations broadcast their EPG info, which is embedded in the DTV signal. The information they provide includes the time, program name and a description. Some stations are very good at providing EPG info, while others fail miserably. Some stations will provide several days of EPG with detailed descriptions, while others provide only a few hours of program names or nothing at all. The worst offenders are LPT - Low Power Television - and independent TV stations. PBS stations generally do the best job with their EPGs.

Be Prepared: A TV for Use in Power Outages and Emergencies.

Q: Will my old portable DC TV work after the digital transition?

I was recently asked this question, so I set about doing some research about what options are available if you need a TV for use on a power outage.

A: Do you mean, an old analog portable - battery operated - TV? The short answer, in most cases, is NO.

However, do have a number of options that will get you TV in an emergency, even when nobody else has power or TV. You can even get that old analog TV to work if you have time (and money) on your hands. 

Read on...

Missing In Action: Channel 9 KUEN from Mt. Pisgah, Cache Valley

Sometime on weekend of January 8, 2011 , KUEN-TV 9 - broadcasting on Cache County Translator K46JK-D disappeared. It's still down as of today, 01/12/11, with no services and no signal. But I think I have a clue: I now have 3 instances of channel 5, KSL. One is the original KSL 5 signal from Mt. Pisgah, and one is from the Franklin County Translator District. And now - there's a third. I am assuming - because as usual, nobody here knows anything, so I am making this up as I go along - that somehow KUEN's translator got switched over to broadcast KSL's signal. I have also been having issues with FOX13's signal breaking up, both on the Cache and Franklin transmitters. The problem is more pronounced on the Cache translator, rendering it unwatchable at times. I will try to contact the county about this, but I don't expect them to be of much help. I'll let you know if I do get any information.

UPDATE: I did a rescan on my TVs on 1/18/2011, and channel 9 is back up, after a one and a half week outage. And nobody at the County offices could tell me a thing about it.

Fox 13 announces AntennaTV starts Jan. 5, 2011

Fox 13 Utah tonight announces (officially) AntennaTV on it's 13.2 subchannel:

SALT LAKE CITY —

Coming Wednesday, FOX 13 will air "Antenna TV" so viewers in the area can view classic American television shows.
It will be a step back in time for nostalgia t.v. viewers. Benny Hill, Three's Company, Sanford and Sons, these are some of the series titles Antenna TV viewers can see starting at 1 p.m. MST Jan. 5.
"It's all about family friendly television," says KSTU FOX 13's General Manager, Tim Ermish. Ermish says that although Antenna TV in not affiliated with FOX, it is a digital sub-channel that KSTU got licensed to air.

The cost? Antenna TV is free for cable subscribers.
For Comcast subscribers the channel will be 1-06 and will switch to channel 1-1-1 Jan. 20.
Other cable providers will have Antenna TV on channel 13-2.

Satellite customers will not have access, for now.

 

Notice no mention in the print article that it's also FREE OTA with an ANTENNA, what? And if you have satellite, you can add an OTA antenna to your dish setup and get not only antennaTV, but a bunch of other channels you can't get on cable or satellite!

Simplify Your Life With a Universal Remote!

Dad, tell me again how when you were my age you had
to walk all the way across the room to change a channel?

So, you finally got that ginormous big screen TV you've been drooling all over. And an awesome network enabled Blu-ray player. After a week in wiring hell, you've finally got it all hooked up with your antenna, network cables, Xbox, PS3, the cable or satellite box, surround sound system and DVR. And here's what you've got sitting on the arm of your La-Z-Boy recliner: 7 remote controls that completely won't get along, much like your totally dysfunctional family on Thanksgiving. Everybody hates you, and it's all your fault. The only time they even talk to you is when they want to change the channel - because you're the only one that knows exactly which remote does what.

 Fear not, for the solution to your woes is as near as your favorite electronics or discount store, or or online retailer. It's a  universal remote control, and it can cost you less than $20 for a basic learning remote up to several hundreds of dollars for a remote that will do everything but mow your lawn.

But before you rush out and buy something, here's a few things you should know...

Make Your Own TV Antenna

If you want to try free OTA digital TV, but don't want to spend a lot of money, here's a project that will only cost you a few dollars and about a half hour of your time. Keep in mind that this antenna is NOT for outdoor use, but it is great for mounting in a closet, in your attic, or it could even be hidden in a picture frame with a little modification. It's also a great way to see how many TV channels you can get for free before investing in a commercial antenna.

You could easily re-design this antenna using durable materials to make it suitable for outdoor use.

Watch the video here:

Weigel Broadcasting Co. Seeks Affiliates For its Classic TV Network, ‘Me-TV’

If you broadcasters out there in TV Land are listening (and I know you are) here's yet another opportunity to add subchannel programming to your revenue stream: The Me-TV Network, featuring classic television programming. Me-TV is from one of the partners who created the ThisTV Network that features mostly movies.

Here is Weigel Broadcasting's press release:

AntennaTV Network: Commercial

Antenna TV: Announcement / Commercial

All the greatest shows from the golden age of TV will soon be coming to a TV antenna near most of you, on The AntennaTV Network in January! See their 1st quarter 2011 schedule HERE

What, you say you don't have an antenna? Time to get one!

Northern Utah viewers, AntennaTV will be a sub-channel of FOX 13. Viewers in other parts of the country, check to see if there is an affiliate in your area HERE.

External Link: Classic TV Returns with new Antenna TV Channel

Previously on Cache Free TV: Antenna TV Coming Soon to Fox13

Netflix vs Blockbuster: ...and the Winner Is? (as if you didn't know)

Here's a review I wrote for www.DTVusaforum.com:

About a month ago, I started a one month free trial on both Netflix and Blockbuster. Guess Who won?

Save money... get HDTV for free!

Here's a local news story about families that have cut the cable,
News Report that ran on KGW Channel 8 Portland, Oregon:




"Ugly mass of metal"? hmm, to me an antenna is beautiful. It screams "FREEDOM!"

My favorite quote, though, is "I didn't know you could still use them". Yes, you can!

Antenna TV... coming soon to FOX13!

Antenna TV, a Tribune Broadcasting Over-The Air (OTA) network, is coming to Utah, according to the Antenna TV website. It will be broadcast as a subchannel of FOX-13 KSTU, Salt Lake.

From the AntennaTV.tv website:

Tribune Broadcasting announces the launch of Antenna TV, a classic television and general entertainment movie network to air as a digital multicast on Tribune's broadcast stations beginning January 3, 2011. Antenna TV will also be offered for national distribution to non-Tribune stations.
Antenna TV will offer a combination of movies and classic television shows including: Three's Company, All in the Family, Sanford and Son, Benny Hill, Maude, The Nanny and Married with Children. Classic television series will air overnight, including: Dennis the Menace, The Donna Reed Show and The Three Stooges.

There has been no official announcement from  KSTU or the stations owners, Local TV, LLC regarding the new addition.