Over the Air (O.T.A)
Over the Air (OTA) is the oldest technology that has been used in
Canada, USA , Europe and Asia since the 1950's. With technology changes
OTA (over the air) has taken a huge leap forward since 2008. The major
change is that the old style analogue (analog) transmitters that used to broadcast the
signals over the air (OTA) has gone digital making a dramatic
improvement in reception now known as DTV (Digital TV). This new digital
feed is so good it is far superior to cable and satellite TV. These
signals have changed so dramatically from VHF (snowy) to UHF digital
(DTV) that over the air (OTA) HD is even better then any digital cable
box or satellite could offer, as OTA HDTV has little to no compression
and the picture quality is breath taking. Here in our new Mississauga
Toronto GTA retail store we have connected a roof top
Antennas Direct DB4e
Antenna to our 2008 Sony LCD HDTV with a built in ATSC tuner and are
receiving over 30 digital channels in crystal clear vibrant picture
quality and most of these channels come in on stunning HDTV quality!
Channels like CityTV, CTV, CTV2, Global, CHCH, CBC, Omni 1, Omni 2, TVO,
CTS, NBC, NBC Justice channel, NBC Retro TV, CBS, ABC, Laff, Fox 29, Fox
Music, CW23, Bounce, WNED (PBS), Think Bright, MY Buffalo, Ion Life, ION
Shopping Channel, Qubo and many more most in HD. Becoming subscription
free paying no subscriptions monthly has never been easier. These broadcasts are
coming from towers in Toronto, Hamilton and various towers in Buffalo.
When it comes to paying for basic cable and still not getting a digital
picture or HD, and then paying monthly for HD and still not getting the
quality of OTA, it makes no sense. Once you have made the investment in
OTA then you have no monthly bills, and you will receive your basic
local networks at much higher quality and if you have a HDTV you will
bring out the best picture capability from your expensive TV. Finally
Over the Air ( OTA ) gives us a real alternative to paying for basic
cable or satellite services. Not only does it give us another choice for basic
networks but the picture quality is far superior to and cable or
satellite service. The greatest advantage of OTA is there is no monthly
fees and you get HDTV! With the digital transition that has taken place,
currently the number of DTV channels being broadcasted over the air has
slowly increased in numbers and broadcasting power. Welcome to the wonderful
world of over the air OTA HDTV. More and more people are taking the leap
into OTA and saying goodbye to monthly bills for basic television
services and are grabbing what is free and in the air in stunning
digital and High definition quality. Cutting the cord is easy. Our motto is an antenna on every
house in Canada. Come to our Mississauga Toronto GTA
HD TV Antenna retail store and see our OTA
HDTV Antenna setup and get ready to see breath taking HDTV. Our retail
location is powered by Save and replay's OTA HDTV solution. With no
monthly bills from television companies and stunning digital quality
that brings cable and satellite providers to shame. Furthermore our OTA
solution is running in our showroom with a full EPG (Electronic program
guide) on our TV. Yes OTA broadcasts a program guide. Be warned if you
do come to our showroom this experience will be shocking and extreme and
will make you wonder why you are paying for basic cable services and why
you are not receiving the same quality we are.
What do i need to take advantage of OVER THE AIR ( OTA ) digital
or HDTV?
Firstly you need an Antenna optimized for UHF not the old fashion VHF,
then you need a television to receive these signals, a newer branded
name TV purchased after 2007 usually has a built in
ATSC tuner to receive these newer digital signals, sometimes also
referred to as a QAM tuner. If your TV does not come equipped with an
ATSC tuner then you can purchase a digital converter box which acts as
an ATSC tuner to allow you to receive Over the Air ( OTA ) UHF signals
or DTV (Digital TV).
 |
 |
| 99% of newer brand name HDTV's should have a built in ATSC
tuner sometimes referred to as QAM tuners. This is different
from the older traditional NTSC TVs. An ATSC tuner allows you to
receive UHF broadcasts once connected to a good quality antenna
and receive digital over the air (OTA) HDTV. HD quality better
then any satellite provider or cable provider can ever currently
bring to your screen. That's right OTA HDTV is better then any
other form of broadcast currently as it has little to no
compression. |
If your TV is an older TV, without an
ATSC tuner and even a
regular non HD tv, then you cannot receive UHF broadcasts in
digital and will only get any VHF broadcasts over the air (OTA),
which means you will get a snowy picture. However if you connect
your antenna to a digital converter box like the Zinwell ZAT
970A, then connect your converter box to your TV. You will
receive these UHF broadcasts in Digital crystal clear picture,
better then cable or satellite, but not in HD as your TV is non
HD. |
What Channels can i pick up?
To see what is possible for you area by postal code, go to tvfool.com enter your postal code or zip code
and how high you can put an antenna from the ground and you will receive
a report of the amount of possible channels you can
receive with an OTA (Over the Air Antenna) . Please note that tvfool
does not show all canadian channels like CBC nor does in how the many
sub channels Alternatively see our link what channels i can get from my
area.
Does the antenna i choose matter?
Yes of course it matters, You can in essence, get a coat hanger and put
it at the back of your TV into your antenna in of your TV and you maybe
lucky and get some OTA (over the Air) TV, also buying a cheap antenna
usually sold anywhere between $25 - $50 like the digiwave (Antra),
Eaglestar or multistar may get you some stations if you are lucky, but
these are very poorly constructed and cheaply made antenna's from a
company that makes and tries to copy every solid product. Selecting an
Antennas Direct,
Channel Master or
Winegard antenna and dealing with a
companies that celebrates 65+ years in making nothing but Antenna's the
quality and the difference in price is minor compared to the substantial
difference in results. The cheaper made antenna's work only slightly
better then the coat hanger method. Choosing between a 4 bay antenna and
8 bay antenna varies depending on distance factors, and terrain (high or
low ground). The
Antennas Direct extended 4 bay antenna DB4e is rated at
60+ miles and 60 degree beam width which they over exceed especially when going across water like
a lake and their 8 bay Extended range
DB8e antenna extends to 70+ miles.
Going back to TV antenna's sounds so old fashion something grandpa used
to do or people that live in the sticks? Yes it does bring back some
memories of the old days, but those used to give terrible picture
quality looking very snowy and not digital quality, well we are in a new
era, now you can get better quality then regular cable providers that
try and get as many channels through one cable and now also the internet
and even the phone from one single coax cable. OTA is digital quality and far
superior then regular cable providers and because it is uncompressed it
is even better then satellite quality. where stuffing too many channels
into a cable causes too much loss and poor quality. Yes there is some
loss in OTA and weather can effect it but it is digital quality and
reception does vary from area to area. Nonetheless its all Digital
quality and its absolutely free with no subscription! Not only is it free and legal but you
can also get some HD as well as digital standard definition Television
with better quality then your cable provider can deliver to your home.
Antennas very and some people have reported great success with some of
the old fashioned style antenna's that grandpa used to use with a signal
amplifier known as a preamp. To Guarantee even better success with OTA
the outdoor antenna's either 4 bay or 8 bay have dramatic results from
major manufacturers like
Antennas Direct,
Channel Master and
Winegard.
To see the Antennas Direct bay technology antenna running in
Mississauga, visit our showroom and take a deep breath as this will
change your view on these HDTV antenna's and make you wonder why you are
paying for cable TV.
What does OTA mean?
It stands for Over The Air television reception, as has been available
free-of-charge in Canada since the early 1950s. It is not to be confused
with FTA, which is a form of satellite TV reception. OTA is broadcast
either in old-style Analog or in new Digital television (DTV, which
includes HDTV). The quality improvement of DTV is huge. The Government
of Canada has set the date by which OTA broadcasters must convert their
old-style analogue transmitters to new digital OTA broadcasting: August
31, 2011. Canada uses the ATSC (8VSB) standard used in the U.S.A.,
Mexico, South Korea, and Taiwan, with more Western Hemisphere nations
expected. ATSC is not compatible with the DVB-T standard used in all
other countries except Japan, which has its own ISDB-T standard.
Is OTA expensive?
Most of our Canadian customers that have purchased a decent Antenna,
have spent between $50 to $150 to receive over the air broadcasts in UHF
Digital format. These customers have already made the investment in a
New HDTV, and most TV's purchased in the last 18 - 24 months have a
built in ATSC tuner and the purchase of a good quality Antenna is all
that they needed for this TV. So is it expensive is the question? For
one TV to get HDTV and local TV compared to basic Cable, this expense
covers itself within 6 Months and you get major networks in HD. And as
for our fellow Americans we Canadians love you guys, we live in a colder
country and living across the border means we can also get your local TV
in DTV and HDTV free of monthly bills from other subscribed providers.
If you don't have a newer TV that does not have an ATSC tuner then you
would need to also purchase a digital converter box which brings your
average cost for one TV between $150 - $300. That's usually 5 - 10
months of basic cable services to get Digital DTV and / or HDTV
broadcasts. There have been a subset of our customers that have spent
over $300 - $600 and purchased additional equipment like distribution
amplifiers and digital converter boxes to enable the whole house to
receive DTV on multiple TVs and free yourself from paying for basic TV
services and get to watch the best HDTV you have ever seen, with less
compression then satellite and higher quality HD!
For commercial buildings like motels, hotels, lodging houses and nursing
homes the savings have been huge, usually the cost of converting to Over
the Air (OTA) digital tv is covered in around 6 months of what they are
paying their cable provider for. Also for dental, doctors and the
medical offices waiting rooms the cost is very easily justified within 6
months and giving their customers HDTV has worked very well.
Top selling over the air Products
|
