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[-] andyburke@fedia.io 12 points 2 days ago

Don't do this. You can get a tuner and a little PC to get HDTV over the air with no accounts or ongoing costs.

You can do it for less than you would spend on a single year of a similar cable package.

HDHomeRun, a linux PC, and Jellyfin and you're good to go.

[-] schwim@piefed.zip 21 points 2 days ago

I agree with not doing it but suggesting OTA as a realistic replacement for the vast majority of viewers is...... not rooted in reality.

I for one can't even get a channel's signal in my rural area. I'd have to switch to listening to HAM radio operators for my fun time.

[-] SaveTheTuaHawk@lemmy.ca 3 points 2 days ago

You can get a tuner and a little PC to get HDTV over the air

but TV sucks, 80% ads for drugs.

[-] andyburke@fedia.io 1 points 1 day ago

Sure, that's what the DVR bit on the pc is for. ๐Ÿ‘

[-] halcyoncmdr@piefed.social 7 points 2 days ago

Welcome to 1950 again... except broadcast channels are a small portion of modern content. You're not getting anything offered through the cable/satellite channels, or any of the streaming services which increasingly have nothing to do with broadcast companies.

[-] RedMari@reddthat.com 5 points 2 days ago

Looks like that only gets you public channels though?

[-] andyburke@fedia.io 5 points 2 days ago

I live in a major metro in the US. I get something like 100+ digital HD channels. Most of it I have never looked at to know what it is. I get the major broadcast networks, which means I can see most sports.

For me, when I bought the antenna, tuner and pc, there wasn't wild price gouging, so I was done for < $500, a one-time cost that netted me essentially a broadcast HDTV DVR setup. The only ongoing cost is $35 a year for guide data if you want to be able to schedule recordings.

YMMV.

[-] BurgerBaron@piefed.social 3 points 2 days ago

YMMV indeed. There's 8 total here. One is in french. One is dedicated to Christian slopganda.

Except only 3 actually reach my house. Of them I only like CBC. That's it.

[-] RedMari@reddthat.com 3 points 2 days ago

Lol I live in a very rural area. Would not get anywhere close to 100 channels based on what I checked. Glad the set up works for you though. Now a days, people are way more spoiled by variety and on demand viewing as well to switch to that instead of paid or unpaid streaming.

[-] andyburke@fedia.io 1 points 2 days ago

I mean ... I didn't disconnect my internet.

If you want a project, you could check if your TV already has an antenna input (usually a coax input) and grab a $40 indoor HDTV antenna - if it looked interesting you could always invest more for a roof antenna and/or stuff for doing DVR with it.

this post was submitted on 05 Feb 2026
111 points (97.4% liked)

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