Poll: Do you tune into OTA programming?

by Darren Murph posted Jun 28th 2008 at 12:00PM

So we've invaded your personal space before by asking how many options you have for HD programming, and we've also wondered about the primary medium of delivery, but this week's question hovers around the tried-and-true antenna. We're simply curious to know how many of you out there still rely on OTA programming for some or all of your HDTV consumption? Are there enough locals to keep you from shelling out to a pay-TV provider every month? Do you supplement your service with OTA offerings? Or do you tune into OTA locals just because they look better than what's delivered via cable? Deposit your vote below.

[Image courtesy of HMSTV]

Filed under: Polls, Tuners, ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox, MyNetworkTV, NBC, OTA

Tags: antenna, choice, hd locals, HdLocals, locals, ota, poll, polls, programming

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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)

Neutral

Michael @ Jun 28th 2008 12:08PM

You're asking about OTA channel use and THAT is the picture you use to go with the story?!

Neutral

James @ Jun 28th 2008 1:27PM

Yes, they used a picture that is sourced from a public access channel's website. What a travesty for Engadget to have used a picture from a station that is most likely a big supporter of OTA broadcasting.

Seriously though, I don't understand the incredulous nature of your comment.

Neutral

JimC @ Jun 28th 2008 4:36PM

James,

Most likely because it features the evil "SONY" corp....so many casualties along the way at the evil hands of the evil doers that is Sony....

Neutral

why not the LS2LS7? @ Jun 28th 2008 12:28PM

I use it a little. I used to use it a lot, but DirecTV now has HD locals over satellite in my area and they look almost as good as the OTA channels.

I still use it for PBS, for one local station that isn't carried in HD in DirecTV and I use it to record CSI because I think I can see the quality difference when recording that show (but not in any others).

DirectTV's MPEG-4 re-encoded satellite locals take up a lot less space on the PVR than the MPEG-2 OTA locals.

Neutral

kcmurphy88 @ Jun 28th 2008 4:25PM

I'd say much the same thing except I still have an older HR10-250 attached with OTA in, so I use that for backup recording of series shows. I find that the DirecTV HD feed to my HR20 sometimes fails, so I still need the backup. Oh, and PBS, too.

Neutral

chuckf1 @ Jun 28th 2008 12:36PM

I use OTA a little. Either during football season, the PQ seems to be a bit better than cable, or if I'm DVRing two shows at once and there's a third show I want to watch.

Highly Ranked

Nelson Cheung @ Jun 28th 2008 1:02PM

I still use OTA because Time Warner still sucks. Sometimes I wish Cable companies didn't exist and everything was just OTA. The quality is much better and you don't have to pay for service that seems to mysteriously increase every year let alone every month.

Neutral

Rob @ Jun 28th 2008 1:08PM

That's how I get my HD-TV. Actually, I made my own antenna and got a signal booster from Amazon = HD nirvana for under $45. I've seen the HD my cable company sends, and that thing is way over compressed. I'm not paying for that.

Neutral

Scott @ Jun 28th 2008 1:13PM

I don't use OTA at all. Can't get them. Dish does a good job with my locals anyway.

Neutral

James @ Jun 28th 2008 1:29PM

I've never used OTA.

Neutral

Pingmeister @ Jun 28th 2008 1:34PM

Not willing to pay DirecTV for HD local broadcasts so I would LOVE to get HD over the air.

Unfortunately we live in a low-lying area with broadcast towers behind a range of hills. I have never been able to pick up ONE station, even in SD.

Neutral

UnnDunn @ Jun 28th 2008 1:39PM

I used to rely on OTA, then I got cable, now i'm back to OTA for the foreseeable future.

Neutral

paul @ Jun 28th 2008 1:43PM

I use mine when my DirecTV signal goes away, so it comes in handy then but otherwise I don't use it

Neutral

Travis @ Jun 28th 2008 1:46PM

We use OTA when Comcast goes down.

Neutral

William C Bonner @ Jun 28th 2008 2:11PM

I switched to OTA a few years ago, when I first got a HD tuner. Saving myself $50 a month in basic cable fees is nice. Laughing at the ComCast mailers that I get telling me how much I can save if I switch to them is good for my attitude.

Not spending quite so much of my time searching for thigns to watch is nice. I'm much more likely to give up and godo somethign productive.

The biggest thing I miss is knowing that there will be something on at 3am when I can't sleep. "Paid Programming" is just a reason to hit the channel changer.

Neutral

Galley @ Jun 28th 2008 2:06PM

I dropped my DirecTV subscription back in January, but haven't gotten around to hooking up an antenna yet. I watch all my TV shows online.

Neutral

Ben Wraith @ Jun 28th 2008 2:11PM

I was thinking of setting up OTA for the picture quality, but I hardly ever watch any of those channels anyway.

Neutral

Robin Murphy @ Jun 28th 2008 2:31PM

I love the buried OTA channels that the providers don't carry... the __-2's, __-3's, etc... that have like 24-7 local news, 24-7 radar/weather, etc. For us, our PBS has 3 or 4 subchannels with different things on so that's cool. The only thing now is the OTA's aren't available to me while I use Uverse, where the OTA's could be run in through the DirecTV receivers.

Neutral

BIZKeT @ Jun 28th 2008 2:43PM

I refuse to give Comcast money for their crappy quality service and my land lord doesn't want a dish attached to the house so I am OTA all the way.

Neutral

minimalist @ Jun 28th 2008 2:45PM

I only watch a few shows so OTA digital gets me half way there. If I miss it when it airs, I download it on the Xbox or through iTunes or stream it on Hulu or the network's site. If I don't need to see it right away I just wait till Netflix gets the DVD's. Basically I will use any route possible to avoid paying cable and satellite companies for hundreds of channels of crap I could care less about just to see 4 or 5 shows.

With the money I save not having cable or satellite I could even buy the box sets of the shows I care about on DVD and still come out ahead.

Neutral

Garst @ Jun 28th 2008 3:48PM

AHHH!!! BELL CURVES, EVERYWHERE!!!

Neutral

Dennis @ Jun 28th 2008 4:28PM

It was all I had at first, but I wanted Discovery and ESPN, so I upgraded my Directv. Now, I primarily use it for when Directv goes out or to watch PBS in HD, which isn't carried in my Directv local package. The coolest thing is sports. It works great for picture in picture where I can watch both in HD, especially during football season. Also, during March Madness, my local CBS affiliate multicast all the games over the air, so I can catch the first round on *-1,*-2, and *-3. They are all in SD, but at least I don't have to go to a sports bar.

Neutral

dhconsult @ Jun 28th 2008 5:35PM

We use OTA all the time. We have DirecTV, and can get the locals over DirecTV, however the OTA is much much better. In addition, in the Dallas area there are some local weather stations with radar that are a must have.

Neutral

Mitchell @ Jun 28th 2008 7:02PM

I use OTA exclusively. I record all the good shows with MythTV so i have more than enough content to satisfy my needs. Then, with the extra money I save I buy extra Home Theater gear, like my newly purchased Samsung BD-P1500, which btw is amazing!

Mitchell

Neutral

Eric Garlinghouse @ Jun 28th 2008 8:07PM

If you don't use OTA + have an HD tv + are CAPABLE of getting channels OTA.. you are seriously missing out. I have Dish and the locals look like garbage compared to my antenna channels.

If you don't have an antenna in your attic, roof or on your set top, I highly recommend getting one of these. They're cheap and so much better than the highly compressed crap that cable or satellite gives you.

Neutral

bill @ Jun 28th 2008 11:02PM

We put an antenna in the attic and also have full Cox cable. The OTA stuff is absolutely stunning. Far better then either the Cable or our Moms Satellite.

Much less compression , crisper...the best Ive ever seen on anything.

Neutral

djbarry @ Jun 29th 2008 3:22AM

Unable to receive OTA programming in my area.

http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/welcome.aspx shows that most of US can't get OTA.

Highly Ranked

air12ick @ Jun 29th 2008 1:48AM

I use OTA even though I have cable due to the fact that OTA has a clearer picture. Compression was not an issue before the roll out of all these other HD channels. But I only get 5 of the 11 channels available in my area.

Neutral

Justin @ Jun 29th 2008 11:11AM

OTA is the way to go even if you have access to a multichannel provider. (I have access to both sat providers, cable and IPTV.) Most of the multichannel providers don't carry all the HD and digital stations. None of them carry all of the subchannels. I don't think any multichannel provider provides the CW affiliate in HD in Austin. That's our best looking station (no subchannels and 1080i). Nope, Blu-Ray/HDM has the best PQ. That is closely followed by C-band and OTA. OTA is free and a no brainer.

Neutral

riverside_guy @ Jun 29th 2008 11:15AM

Live in big urban city (Manhattan, NY) no possibility of OTA. One of the reasons why Crime Warner sticks it to us on rates/service, we pay more for 1/2 as much (HD) as the outer boroughs that mostly CAN get OTA.

Neutral

I-Fan @ Jun 29th 2008 2:57PM

Most of the responses repeat the obvious benefits of having an OTA antenna, for free almost completely uncompressed digital signals, unlike cable or satellite; local HD programming not carried, sub-channel broadcasts and as a backup for lost service.

You may also be able to receive out-of-town channels, carrying blacked out sports programs, or network broadcasts not available locally. As an added benefit, an OTA antenna provides reception for second sets in homes or apartments not wired for whole-house signal distribution.

Considering the investment in TV entertainment already made by many viewers, except for location problems, why would they not have a Digital Off-Air Antennas as a second signal source?

If you don't have one, buy it from a source that will refund your purchase price, no questions asked, until you find the right antenna.

Neutral

Dr Zais @ Jun 30th 2008 10:16PM

I have a Dish Network VIP 622 w/OTA tuner. The OTA allows me to record 3 shows at once along with the 2 satellite tuners. the picture is slightly better than the satellites.

Neutral

WilfBrim @ Jun 29th 2008 11:50PM

I use OTA (rooftop ChannelMaster 4228). The local cable provider (Cox) compresses pretty heavily. The OTA quality is usually significantly better, especially when during football season. NBC is bad enough by itself, but squeezed even more by Cox it hurts my eyes. Unless there is absolutely no reasonable way to get it (which doesn't include many) there isn't any reason not to take the time to get OTA in your setup.

Neutral

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