NHacker Next
  • new
  • past
  • show
  • ask
  • show
  • jobs
  • submit
TV Fool: See OTA channels you can receive (tvfool.com)
jakedata 240 days ago [-]
"can receive" has a different meaning with encrypted ATSC 3.0 signals. My HD Homerun TV tuner happily displays ATSC 1.0 signals and also the single unencrypted ATSC 3.0 signal from PBS. The rest of them are infected with Widevine DRM and unwatchable on a network tuner. Obviously DVR functionality is disabled as well.

Public airwaves carrying TV channels that can only be viewed with an Internet connection to deliver a decryption key is one of the dumbest things I have ever encountered. It is a blatant privatization of a public resource, so naturally I expect the current administration's FCC to bless it despite lawsuits and public comments ahead of their final rulemaking.

Check out Lon Seidman's coverage of the issue for more information. https://blog.lon.tv/

aidenn0 240 days ago [-]
I was hoping that, since it takes terrain into account, it might be more accurate than other sites I've used. I'm in a bit of a valley and get zero channels. Everyone near me that watches OTA has a antenna elevated to at least 20 feet. This lists 5 channels as "green."

It also seems to use licensed ERP rather than actual ERP. There is a VHF station near me licensed for 300W that only broadcasts at 100W ERP; this site lists it as 300W.

johng 240 days ago [-]
Ran this at my address and it said database last updated in 2017 :( But the site is cool!!!
tzs 240 days ago [-]
Try https://www.rabbitears.info/ for a similar but more up to date site.
239 days ago [-]
toomuchtodo 239 days ago [-]
m0d0nne11 240 days ago [-]
Why does this tvfool.com site seem so determined to have me install browser plugins? No, thank you...
1317 240 days ago [-]
Is there not some official site for this?

e.g. in the uk we have https://www.freeview.co.uk/ which has a reception checker and full tv guide

iqfareez 240 days ago [-]
Available in which countries?
skissane 240 days ago [-]
It has a State/Province dropdown with entries for US states and Canadian provinces, so that suggests it only handles the US and Canada

It is an annoying habit of many North American websites to fail to clearly and explicitly label their region-specific nature

Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact
Rendered at 13:35:13 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time) with Vercel.