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Let's say I don't really want DirecTV or Dish....


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I quit watching TV a long time ago after realizing I was paying $150/month to actually watch maybe 4 hours of TV a month. I switched over to a Roku box (topic for another thread). But when I get on the road, it occurs to me it might be good to be able to see what's going on locally. What's a good antenna to have for picking up local TV? Preferably one that's pretty idiot-proof. LOL

Do any of the Winegard offerings that Newmar has as options fit the bill?

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We went with tow rooftop Antennas: 1) The RAYZR AUTO (We use this one the most, probably 97%+ of the time. Push a button, and walk away, and the unit scans and locks on available channel signals.) 2) Also have a new crank up Sensar antenna. (I had that installed, as I wanted to have a raisable mount, to add cellular antennas to.) (When in the fringes of coverage, and with digital, you're either on/or pretty much off with a signal now a days. (No longer getting to watch the snowy outlines and try to imagine what the picture is:)!). We've tried A/B testing between the antennas when a good distance from larger city sources. And have found now probably 7-9 times, that the Sensar would pull in a channel that the RAYZR Auto would not. 

Best of luck to you on the road ahead,

Smitty

Be safe, have fun,

Smitty

04 CC Allure "RooII" - Our "E" ride for life!

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13 hours ago, Smitty77_7 said:

We went with tow rooftop Antennas: 1) The RAYZR AUTO (We use this one the most, probably 97%+ of the time. Push a button, and walk away, and the unit scans and locks on available channel signals.) 2) Also have a new crank up Sensar antenna. (I had that installed, as I wanted to have a raisable mount, to add cellular antennas to.) (When in the fringes of coverage, and with digital, you're either on/or pretty much off with a signal now a days. (No longer getting to watch the snowy outlines and try to imagine what the picture is:)!). We've tried A/B testing between the antennas when a good distance from larger city sources. And have found now probably 7-9 times, that the Sensar would pull in a channel that the RAYZR Auto would not. 

Best of luck to you on the road ahead,

Smitty

Agree with you, but after I sacrificed my last crank up to the tree gods, decided to try the Rayzar auto. Did not expect much, but pulled in all the locals [35 miles] that my directional Sensar did. It is not cheap, [$299], but because it only use one coax lead, and no inside crank, you can put it any place you want. Gave me room for another solar panel.

 

Foretravel 40ft tag 500hp Cummins ISM  1455 watts on the roof, 600 a/h's lithium in the basement.

 

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On ‎7‎/‎10‎/‎2018 at 7:24 PM, Allentc2 said:

I quit watching TV a long time ago after realizing I was paying $150/month to actually watch maybe 4 hours of TV a month. I switched over to a Roku box (topic for another thread). But when I get on the road, it occurs to me it might be good to be able to see what's going on locally. What's a good antenna to have for picking up local TV? Preferably one that's pretty idiot-proof. LOL

Do any of the Winegard offerings that Newmar has as options fit the bill?

When you purchase your coach or RV you will have something on top for locals.  Depending on the year of RV it may be a crank up batwing or it could be some type of enclosed dome.  I would see how it does after you are in your unit for awhile. It is easy to upgrade and most upgrades utilize the same hole in the roof.

Joe & Cindy

Newmar 4369 Ventana

Pulling 24' enclosed (Mini Cooper, Harley, 2 Kayaks)

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  • 3 weeks later...

We use satellite radio as a substitute for paid TV. Costs less, simpler to use, and commercial free music.

When we get a signal, local stations are good for local and national news.Otherwise I don't watch much TV 

 

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On 7/10/2018 at 6:36 PM, chirakawa said:

IMO, the Winegard Sensar batwing antenna is the best you can get.

I agree chirakawa. I have the Winegard Rayzr Auto on my Fifth wheel and I have talked neighbors in RV parks about channels received. I may get 3 nothing channels  (meaning no weather or warning) and others will tell at least 2 of the 4 networks plus a number of nothing channels.

 

Clay & Marcie Too old to play in the snow

Diesel pusher and previously 2 FW and small Class C

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TV should be for entertainment only . That includes whatever the stations want to feed us as 'news' .

Digital signals can not be relied upon to be there when the weather gets bad . 

That's the reason a good weather radio is a must have .

Goes around , comes around .

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  • 4 weeks later...

We are going full time starting this Saturday. So far we’ve got Apple TV that we have been using exclusively for about 4 months while still in house. As we start our adventures going further we got a Verizon hot spot with unlimited data for $20/month. Yes expensive but still cheaper than cable internet and/or. We think it will be worth the expense for my wife is a starting up virtual assistant business, so internet is important to us. As far as local broadcast  goes our Rv was fitted with an antenna and we’ll see how that works out Saturday night. Not sure of brand. 

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29 minutes ago, SDDamm said:

We are going full time starting this Saturday. So far we’ve got Apple TV that we have been using exclusively for about 4 months while still in house. As we start our adventures going further we got a Verizon hot spot with unlimited data for $20/month. Yes expensive but still cheaper than cable internet and/or. We think it will be worth the expense for my wife is a starting up virtual assistant business, so internet is important to us. 

$20 a month covers the MiFi, you still have to have a data plan.  The "unlimited" plans start at $40 a line and if you read the fine print, hotspots/modem are data speed capped at 15 GB/month.  If you think you are going to stream anything at 600 kps, or even surf the web, you have a rude awaking coming.

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15 GB a month will be about 1/2 hour a day streaming. I heard that the ATT plan with the Mobley was sometimes available again. That $20 plan is worth getting and is really unlimited. 200 gb on mine so far this month.

Foretravel 40ft tag 500hp Cummins ISM  1455 watts on the roof, 600 a/h's lithium in the basement.

 

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Yes, if you get a chance to grab an AT&T Mobley with the $20 unlimited 4G/LTE Connected Car data plan when it's offered, go for it. We rarely hit 200 GB, but 100-150 GB is pretty common for us. Our monthly bill including fees is $23.24.

Dutch
2001 GBM Landau 34' Class A
F-53 Chassis, Triton V10, TST TPMS
2011 Toyota RAV4 4WD/Remco pump
ReadyBrute Elite tow bar/brake system

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2 hours ago, Dutch_12078 said:

Yes, if you get a chance to grab an AT&T Mobley with the $20 unlimited 4G/LTE Connected Car data plan when it's offered, go for it. We rarely hit 200 GB, but 100-150 GB is pretty common for us. Our monthly bill including fees is $23.24.

Aren't there like 20 posts on here that say the whole Mobley thing has been dead and buried for quite some time now?

Also, it would be great if absolute words like "will" and "is" when speaking of data throttling. The language in the paperwork is that your data MAY be capped, MAY be throttled, all based on the amount of users on the tower you are hitting. There are as many users who say they have NEVER been throttled as there are who say you WILL be. Apparently this is far from black and white.

We all know that every carrier uses the word "unlimited" and they all lie. Unlimited to me means that I can watch TV 24/7 if I choose to and my data stream will never change. We all know that the reality is quite different.

How about a roll call of people who have and have not seen data capping or slowdowns? With no qualifier of 720 vs 480 and all that stuff. If they throttle like the tales of doom and gloom say the stream rate will drop to, streaming would be impossible.

Everyone's use requirements are going to be SO different that there really doesn't seem to be much value to vanilla discussions. I hear a lot of people talk about Hulu and Netflix, some care about local stations. For my use, I really don't care about local news in a city I do not live full time. (Hell, I don't even care about local news where I live NOW! I haven't watched the news for decades. ) I just want to watch football on Sunday, Monday and Thursday. And Big Bang Theory (for this one last season.) And Live PD on Friday and Saturday, which is on A&E. And Women On Patrol which is on Lifetime. So I need a service like Sling that is "cable-like" and enough data to watch it. 

That all may be moot because if I want football on my terms I may have to donate a kidney and spend a fortune for DirecTv so I can have Sunday Ticket. I am going to see my Cleveland Browns games no matter what it takes. Yes, they have been awful since returning to the league in 1999, but it's been my team since I was born in 1951 and brought home from the hospital in a Browns t-shirt.

So this discussion is quite multi-faceted based on individual use.

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Apparently the Mobley has been offered for brief periods more recently, although I haven't looked for it.

As far as capping/throttling goes, my Connected Car Plan is not subject either one, but it is subject to being priority managed on congested towers after the first 22 GB, but only during the period of congestion. In my day to day experience, I've never seen any slowdowns on busy towers that seemed any worse after I hit 22GB than they did before. Either way, the slowdowns haven't been enough to affect streaming. A tower that's been giving me 25-30 Mbps might drop down to 15-20 Mbps, but rarely any lower in the times I've checked. 

Dutch
2001 GBM Landau 34' Class A
F-53 Chassis, Triton V10, TST TPMS
2011 Toyota RAV4 4WD/Remco pump
ReadyBrute Elite tow bar/brake system

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My only reference is netflix, prime and slingplayer. Have noticed some problems in remote areas even with my weboost, but with a good signal am getting a 720p signal most of the time. Have moved the sim to a netgear 811, and have had 4 or 5 months of 200 gb+ usage this year. I realize all good things must come to an end, but I will use it while I can. ATT mobley is well worth the $22 if you can find it.

Foretravel 40ft tag 500hp Cummins ISM  1455 watts on the roof, 600 a/h's lithium in the basement.

 

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We camp in areas many times with no antenna reception.  We have Dish with an X2 and the Flex plan.  Cost just under $50 and we get plenty of channels.  We also had a ton of DVDs.  We ripped them and put on small Windows 7 PC I had laying around.  Has an HDMI port.  With free Windows Media Center provides a good interface. 

Jerry and Joan

2014 Ford F350 with 6.7 turbo, TrailerSaver

2014 40' Heartland Gateway Fifth wheel

iLoveRVlife.com

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  • 2 months later...
On 8/29/2018 at 10:39 PM, jerryneal said:

We have Dish with an X2 and the Flex plan

jerryneal,

as explained in another post we are getting ready to switch from Dir TV to Dish TV for reasons beyond my control mostly!  So can you tell me what you are saying in the quote above? What is X2 and Flex Plan? Appreciate any help you can give me?

Bob & BJ
On the road (part time) to ournextstop!
2019 Bounder 35P
2013 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited (Oscar)

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34 minutes ago, bobsea43 said:

jerryneal,

as explained in another post we are getting ready to switch from Dir TV to Dish TV for reasons beyond my control mostly!  So can you tell me what you are saying in the quote above? What is X2 and Flex Plan? Appreciate any help you can give me?

I am not jerryneal, but an X2 is a Winegard Pathway X2 which is a portable dome satellite dish.  A flex plan refers to Dish’s pay as you go service plan that requires no contract.  It can be turned on and off as needed when traveling or storing the RV.

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On 7/10/2018 at 4:24 PM, Allentc2 said:

I quit watching TV a long time ago after realizing I was paying $150/month to actually watch maybe 4 hours of TV a month. 

You sound like me.  I have no interest in any of today's TV programming, excepting local weather forecasts and the occasional...ahem..."news" headlines.

 

I have written a free program that turns your computer into a personal TV station.  You can find it at https://github.com/oregonjim/leetv .

 

Works best with Linux, but also MacOS and Windows.  If you have a laptop with HDMI output, you can throw it on the big screen.  You do  need to be fairly computer literate to set it up, but then it's done and requires no further effort.  No antenna needed.  No Internet needed (but it will show you local weather and news headlines every 1/2 hour if you DO have Internet).  Just thought I'd throw it out for those fulltimers who are also somewhat techy and want their own, self-contained TV station...

 

-Jim

 

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4 hours ago, OregonJim said:

I have written a free program that turns your computer into a personal TV station.  You can find it at https://github.com/oregonjim/leetv .

Your project sounds pretty amazing and ambitious, but much the same thing can be done with Kodi. One feature of Kodi is that it will automatically catalog all your movies and TV shows. I use a Raspberry Pi running Kodi which is connected to a 4TB hard drive with all my movies and TV shows. I also have Kodi installed on my Windows 10 laptop.

Check it out here: https://kodi.tv/

Tom
—————————————————
2005 Born Free 24' Rear Bath
Towing 1978 VW Bug convertible
Minneapolis, MN

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5 hours ago, OregonJim said:

You sound like me.  I have no interest in any of today's TV programming, excepting local weather forecasts and the occasional...ahem..."news" headlines.

 

I have written a free program that turns your computer into a personal TV station.  You can find it at https://github.com/oregonjim/leetv .

 

Works best with Linux, but also MacOS and Windows.  If you have a laptop with HDMI output, you can throw it on the big screen.  You do  need to be fairly computer literate to set it up, but then it's done and requires no further effort.  No antenna needed.  No Internet needed (but it will show you local weather and news headlines every 1/2 hour if you DO have Internet).  Just thought I'd throw it out for those fulltimers who are also somewhat techy and want their own, self-contained TV station...

 

-Jim

 

Thanks for making this Jim.  Interesting concept that is very practical.  Have WIN10 so have not tried to set it up.  Use all your own internal database of random movies played on a random basis 24/7, and tie in some news.  Good to go. 

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4 hours ago, Tom_M said:

Your project sounds pretty amazing and ambitious, but much the same thing can be done with Kodi. One feature of Kodi is that it will automatically catalog all your movies and TV shows. I use a Raspberry Pi running Kodi which is connected to a 4TB hard drive with all my movies and TV shows. I also have Kodi installed on my Windows 10 laptop.

Check it out here: https://kodi.tv/

Using Kodi is a manual process, much like watching Roku or AppleTV - you pick a video, watch it, when it's over, pick something else.  That's great if you want to watch a movie now and then, or a specific episode of your favorite show. 

 

My program creates an automated daily schedule, and plays it without any need for your input, just like a real TV station.  You can set it up so that the same program (series) plays at the same time every day, in episode order, just like real TV.  In addition, it (optionally) inserts bumper videos, weather, news, and commercials (of your choosing - I like vintage ones) to fill time slots.  There is even a separate GUI program to change the scheduling.   It makes you forget that you're NOT watching "real" TV.

 

The whole reason I created this was because Kodi can't do anything like it, even with all the available extensions.  However, for someone who just wants to watch a specific video now and then, and wants a nice catalog to choose from with metadata, then Kodi is the better option.

 

-Jim

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5 hours ago, offroad said:

Thanks for making this Jim.  Interesting concept that is very practical.  Have WIN10 so have not tried to set it up.  Use all your own internal database of random movies played on a random basis 24/7, and tie in some news.  Good to go. 

Thank you.  Random is only one of many options.  I've been using this program exclusively for my TV watching since I created it 6 months ago.  I forgot to mention the hard part: converting (ripping) your DVD/BluRay collection to video.  That took me the better part of 3 months - but it's a one-time effort.  And one I needed to do anyway for fulltiming.  I have a spare laptop with Linux on it all set to go for when the day comes that we find our ideal motorhome...

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