The Solid Signal Blog

Cutting the cord is more popular than ever. If you follow the trends, it’s possible that by 2020, more people will be using TV antennas than ever before. Let that sink in. More people will be using TV antennas than they did in the 1950s, when there was literally no other choice. Wow. Antenna TV gives people options they never knew they had. Most areas have more than 20 different TV stations, and only a handful are on cable or satellite. The picture is pure and pristine, looking better than all but the best streaming or disc images. A lot of people look at antenna TV and assume that it’s already 4K, since they’re used to the pseudo-HD provided by their cable companies. Of course, with the rise in antenna TV comes a rise in problems...

Yes, it’s fun to be wrong on the internet. Because, the internet never forgets. When I said in 2013 that NBC was on the verge of collapsing, I may have been right. But when I asked if they would be the first broadcast network to collapse, and if that collapse would be soon that turned out to be dead wrong. Flash forward 10 years and you can see that NBC’s been up and down, but they seem to be in a bit of a pickle in 2023 as well: RANK PROGRAM NETWORK AUDIENCE (millions) 1 NCIS CBS 9.9 2 FBI CBS 9.4 3 Young Sheldon CBS 9.3 4 Young Sheldon Special CBS 9.3 5 Blue Bloods CBS 9.3 6 Night Court (Jan. 17 Broadcast) NBC 9.1 7 Chicago Fire NBC 9.1 8 Ghosts CBS 9.0 9 Young Sheldon Thanksgiving Special CBS 8.6 10 Fire...

Let’s say you are going to have an RV parked in your driveway for a while. Maybe mom’s come to town. Maybe you’re having some plumbing issues and you’ve moved the fam into temporary quarters. Perhaps your kid just got back from college and needs a place to stay. There are lots of reasons why you would have an RV at home instead of parked at a storage facility. So as long as that RV is there, the people in it should be able to enjoy the same entertainment as the people in the house, am I right? Let’s talk first about internet and streaming Obviously folks are going to want to use the internet in their RVs. I mean, it’s something we do all the time. But RVs aren’t terribly good for receiving cell signals or Wi-Fi. You can put in a cell...

Well, you’ve been hearing me talk about ATSC 3.0, the proposed next generation of TV broadcasting in the US, for about a decade now. Seriously. Check out all these articles. If it becomes the law of the land, ATSC 3.0 offers on-demand programming, 4K, and interactive features using an off-the-air antenna. (More on that in a minute.) But what kind of antenna will you need? What if you’ve been using the same antenna that a previous homeowner put up in 1960? How could that possibly work for something as technologically advanced as ATSC 3.0? Surprise, surprise, you won’t need a new antenna Most people won’t need a new antenna in order to enjoy ATSC 3.0 if it does happen. An antenna is a surprisingly simple thing. It’s really just a piece...

I have this conversation about once a week, and I’ve had it hundreds of times in the last 30 years or so. It goes like this: This is one of the biggest problems with consumer electronics that no one talks about. It’s not new, either. I remember it from the late 1980s. A wealthy fellow hired me to replace his computer, which he had built into an expensive mahogany desk. It took a lot of careful work with a small prybar and several other tools to get that computer out of there, but when I was done the damage to the desk was minimal. Of course, after I replaced the computer I am sure this guy hired his carpenter to enshroud it again, but what are you going to do. Too late to fix the past Today, you’re seeing a lot of people who want to...

September 19-26, 1998 This week Ken welcomes BACK to the show author of the new book “99 Episodes That Defined the ‘90s: Television Milestones from Arsenio to Homer to Yada Yada Yada, Chris Morgan” Ken and Chris discuss his book, Detroit, Tim Allen, Jack Kavorkian’s lawyer, Cigarette ads, Heidi Klum, Spin City, French Stewart, 3rd Rock from the Sun, Sex with Cindy Crawford, reality TV, the classic SNICK line up, Celebrity Death Match, Mad TV, Baywatch, Night Man, the frequency of Evil, Rising Star Barbie Alan Jackson, commemorative plates, Will & Grace, That 70s Show, Monday Night Football, Holding the Baby, The Marriage Fool, King of Queens, Brian Benben Show, Say What MTV, Superman II, King of the Hill, the greatness of...

KVH is a company with a long history of innovation. Beginning in 1984, they’ve been on the forefront of marine satellite tech. They debuted their first marine satellite antenna in 1994, just as the direct-to-consumer satellite market was starting to take shape in the United States. Since then, they’ve been on the forefront of satellite communication, not just for marine use and definitely not just for television use. If you look at their timeline, something they have every right to be very proud of, you’ll see that they’ve been right there for every single advancement in marine communications for over 40 years. KVH is well known for creating systems that withstand time and the elements. Chances are if you put in a KVH system during the...

Commercial cell phone signal booster systems are an economical and easy-to-install way to add great cell service to commercial buildings. If you’re a facilities manager for a commercial building, call 888-233-7563 to find out more about how this technology can work for you. Listen to the podcast your way! Just choose one of the following: Option 1: Click on the image above to stream the podcast in your browser. If you use the YouTube player above, be sure to subscribe to get future videos delivered to you! Option 2: The Solid Signal Podcast is available on several podcast aggregators. Search for us, or tap on the links below on your mobile device. If you want us to add another aggregator leave a comment below. Amazon iTunes Overcast...

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you’re probably convinced that cell phone boosters are a great idea. They’re real, they work, and they’re not that expensive. I certainly don’t need to sell you on the idea of having better signal, and cell phone signal boosters provide it. They take weak signal from outside, amplify it, and pump it back to you inside. It’s that simple. If you’re putting together a cell booster system you’ll be happy to know that consumer cell phone booster systems are required by law to give you everything you need. You’ll get cables, antennas, whatever it takes to install on the average building. But let’s say you’re thinking bigger. Commercial customers often upgrade their systems with more antennas or...

I’m always amazed by how well marine satellite systems work. Think about this for a second. You have a satellite in space 22,000 miles away. It’s hard enough to aim at that if you’re in a house. Now think about your boat constantly moving in 3D space, and the fact that your satellite system may be tracking three satellite locations at once. I understand how it’s done and it still boggles my mind. Satellite TV, even marine satellite TV, has an amazing 99% uptime record. But occasionally, you’ll have problems that need looking into. Often times, these can be solved with a quick call to Signal Connect. But even before you do that, there’s something you must do that might help you understand what the problem is. Let’s make sure you have...

If you’ve ever aimed a satellite dish you’ll know it has to be very precise. Even a slight misalignment can cause the dish to be aimed miles off course. It should seem amazing to you that a satellite dish can work on a boat that’s always moving. Truth is, it is amazing. How can a dish stay aimed when the boat’s in motion? The real key to an “in-motion” dish is the ability to move the dish in real time, with very little delay. Marine dishes use fast computers to make sure that they’re able to respond quickly when the boat moves unexpectedly. They use powerful, instant-on motors that can move the dish in tiny, tiny steps when it’s called for. The whole package is within a weatherproof enclosure that lets the dish move on three axes...

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There’s little escaping the fact that climate conditions are changing. The result is that many homeowners are experiencing more frequent and more extreme weather events than they may be used to. Unfortunately, this can lead to property damage and safety issues, among other issues. The good news is that you can safeguard your home and your family with technology. Advances in electronic devices in recent years have produced a range of solutions. Some of these are tools you can install throughout your home, while others operate on an infrastructural level. We’re going to guide you through a few of the elements worth knowing about. Sensors and safety Keeping your property secure and everyone in it safe is a priority when looking at how...

Now’s the time to be on the water enjoying the best of what life has to offer. Of course, you went out on the water to enjoy the sun, the privacy, and the peaceful days. But, when the day is over, you probably still want to be connected. Satellite internet is great, but you’ve already figured out that data caps make it a bad choice for streaming. After all, you can run into overage charges in under 4 days! That’s why satellite TV for marine is having what the kids call “a moment.” Folks who were rushing last year to disconnect their older systems are rushing this year to reconnect them. There’s a lot of great content on satellite TV and it all comes in without affecting your bandwidth allotment. DIRECTV Genie seems like the way to go...

Friends, a lot of times I tell you that the idea for an article came from one of our customers. This time, it came straight from my life. The other day I noticed that one room in my house had really poor internet performance. That room had a wireless access point in it, and obviously it had to be functioning at some level. I mean, I did have some internet. Well, it took me a little bit of time but I actually traced down an Ethernet cable that looked like it was plugged in all the way but wasn’t. And this brought up an important lesson: 90% of the problem with your installation is probably somewhere in the cabling. I wish I could turn that into a snappy slogan. I’d make millions selling T-shirts with it. Well maybe not millions but a...