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Old 10-06-2008, 09:57 AM
 
925 posts, read 4,711,632 times
Reputation: 720

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Hi,

We recently moved to our new house and wanted to get cable TV. The main reason is that the Antenna does not catch any signals so we cannot access the basic channels.

I checked the prices of UVerse packages but they were starting at $50 a month which I think is too much since we don't really watch that much TV.

What do you think are the good alternates. What about Direct TV and how is it?

Any comments!
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Old 10-06-2008, 10:03 AM
 
Location: Houston, TX (Bellaire)
4,900 posts, read 13,740,597 times
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You can watch most shows online now via the networks sites or hulu.com so you might be better off investing in high speed internet and a large monitor if you don't watch tv that much.
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Old 10-06-2008, 10:07 AM
 
925 posts, read 4,711,632 times
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Well, that is true but I guess searching for the channels online and sometimes the sites are down. There are many things that can go wrong these days.

I prefer TV for news, food channel, discovery, WB 39, Fox, UPN etc
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Old 10-06-2008, 11:08 AM
 
Location: Clear Lake, Houston TX
8,376 posts, read 30,709,877 times
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Get one of those DTV convertor boxes and your antenna should catch all of the channels. Crystal clear reception. Get the govt to pay for most of it:

https://www.dtv2009.gov/
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Old 10-06-2008, 11:30 AM
 
925 posts, read 4,711,632 times
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Thanks tstone,

We do have HDTV but we are not able to receive the signals. The signals are weak maybe because of our house location.

What can you advice us on this issue?
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Old 10-06-2008, 11:35 AM
 
Location: Clear Lake, Houston TX
8,376 posts, read 30,709,877 times
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HDTV and DTV are two separate things.

How far out is your house from town?
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Old 10-06-2008, 11:45 AM
 
925 posts, read 4,711,632 times
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We live in North West Houston near Champions Forest Drive.

I will research on DTV and what it is!

Thanks,
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Old 10-06-2008, 11:58 AM
 
1,416 posts, read 4,440,324 times
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If you are too far away from the network antenna's for over the air (which allows access to local analog, digital, and high definition), then cable/satellite are your best bet. However, home antennas are usually pretty good at picking up our stations, so unless your home's antenna is broken, I would think you would be able to access most of the locals. If you want to go with a pay service, then it really is all about what types of channels you want to watch. You mentioned food network and discovery, both of which require cable or satellite.

If you have a high definition television and you want to watch high definition shows (not just digital, which is a step down in quality), then you want to make sure that whatever package you go for has access to at least a few HD channels. You also need to inform yourself of any upfront costs (installation or converter boxes/DVRs), and ongoing rental charges. Keep in mind that no service is cheap; I'm not sure that getting HD and keeping the cost under $50 is possible (though I welcome the opportunity to be proven wrong on this one).

FWIW, I have DirecTV and have been very satisfied. I had cable for a short while, but the non-HD picture quality was pretty poor. I think we probably pay a bit more for DirecTV, but we get a lot more out of it (better DVR, better overall picture quality, more channel choices). I know people with Uverse and I like the idea of it, but I haven't been impressed with the HD quality. After paying so much for HD televisions, so scrimp on the picture quality of the broadcasts seems silly to me, LOL.
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Old 10-06-2008, 12:06 PM
 
925 posts, read 4,711,632 times
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Thanks TravelGuy_73,

Well, it would be nice if we can just get basic cable. We used to have this in our apartment. We have HDTV and an antenna. The antenna is little small.

When I say basic channel I mean UPN 20, WB 39, FOX 26, NBC. The owner of the house told us that they were not able to capture the signals using their antenna. Not sure what kind of antenna they used.

I would like if I don't sign up for any service and get the antenna working. I will buy a new antenna maybe more powerful and then try to catch the channels. The good thing about the antenna is that I can always return to Wallmart if it does not work.
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Old 10-06-2008, 12:32 PM
 
Location: Clear Lake, Houston TX
8,376 posts, read 30,709,877 times
Reputation: 4720
Quote:
Originally Posted by marykate1 View Post
We live in North West Houston near Champions Forest Drive.

I will research on DTV and what it is!

Thanks,

Rabbit ears about 3 feet long each + one of those boxes on that website I gave you should work fine for you.

DTV = digital TV. The antennas pick up the new digital signal, feed it to the converter box and then it outputs to your TV screen. It is as crystal clear as dish. This will be the new standard in Feb 2009, when analog TV goes away.
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