The Solid Signal Blog

I love to say it, and I’ve said it in several articles: In the 2020s, getting away from it all doesn’t mean being disconnected. RV life is more popular than ever, but the idea that you could take off and leave the world behind … that belongs more in the 1920s. Today it’s all about bringing the comforts of home with you. That why so many people outfit their RVs with satellite TV, cell phone signal boosters, and wireless internet. There are so many excellent options out there and you’ll really want to take advantage of them. I’ll tell you how at the bottom of this article, but for now let’s talk about internet access. How to get internet in your RV When you’re ready to connect (and of course you’re always ready to connect, there are...

I’ve read over the years that buying a home is one of the most stressful things a person can do in their lifetime. It’s definitely the most expensive thing most people will ever do, and it’s full of confusing and time-consuming bits. There’s always that fear that you’ll forget something important, and it seems like you never quite finish dealing with different companies. The last thing you want to worry about when you’re buying a home is talking to one more company. That’s especially true when it comes to live TV and internet companies. Some of those companies — you know who you are — have the worst customer service scores of any company in the world. Trust me, you don’t want that hassle after you’ve spent a day with inspectors, loan...

It’s not often you see a new pro-grade signal meter out there. Personally, I’m always looking for a new, easier way to measure the things I measure on my test bench. For TV, I use a Televes spectrum analyzer that does an amazing job. But, it doesn’t do ATSC 3.0 and so I generally can’t report on the performance of that kind of device. That’s why I was excited to review this Toner Signal Level Meter model TSLM-AI1. It promises to bring a lot of capabilities that I didn’t have on the test bench before. To me, the most exciting one is the ability to measure ATSC 3.0 signals. Let’s see how this meter shapes up. Unboxing I’m always pleased to see a nice presentation box even when a product isn’t going to go to retail. The box is...

If you owned or operated a yacht in 2023, one thing probably surprised you more than anything else. Like other folks, you probably stampeded to get a new satellite internet system as soon as they were available. And then, you quickly realized that it wasn’t going to replace your satellite TV system. Most marine satellite internet plans have data caps that are just too low to stream live TV. They’ll do fine for the occasional streamed movie, but if you plan on keeping the TV on a lot, they’re not very well suited. And that’s why a lot of yacht owners have either kept their live TV service or turned it back on. Once you have the equipment in place, the monthly fee really isn’t a big issue and it’s a reliable way of watching TV with no...

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It’s a fair bet to say that most folks won’t want this $16,000 spectrum analyzer, but we sell it at Solid Signal. That may be a little rich for your blood, but what about this: At the time I write this, a little satellite finder like this one will set you back somewhere around twelve bucks. It won’t do much with advanced satellite dishes like DIRECTV’s Slimline or DISH’s Hybrid dish, but it will get that round dish aimed for you pretty quick. And everything in between The point is, if you’re looking for a way to measure something, especially if it’s electrical or uses radio waves, you can find it at Solid Signal. Take it from me. I’m practically a measurement junkie, and I’ve said so before. I love to measure everything from...

Ah, the lure of doing it yourself. I certainly understand it. When it comes to cellular boosters, DIY is definitely the way to go… until it isn’t. When should you get a professional involved? Who needs a cellular booster? Everybody, that’s who. Up to 90% of people experience some sort of weak cell service, every single day. Homeowners are the worst hit. Simply put, homes just aren’t designed for cell signals. You may find that you have plenty of bars outside but practically nothing inside. Or you may find there’s that weird spot in your living room where you get no connection at all. A lot of people use Wi-Fi calling if it’s available from their carrier, and just use the home’s Wi-Fi for data. That’s well and good for you, but what...

You may not worry about this at home, but let’s say that you want to deliver signal to 200 TVs. You know that you’ll lose signal strength purely through the long cable runs, and you know that you’ll also lose it every time you split or tap off the signal to go to another TV. At some point the signal will be too weak for you to use. What can you do? Add another amplifier That’s where distribution amplifiers like this Blonder Tongue BIDA series come in. They are designed to strengthen a signal that’s already come through a cable and give it enough “oomph” to go up to another 500 feet or through about 9 TVs. That’s all great, but in our example we have to do a lot more than 9 TV. In many cases you can add another amplifier when the...

The other day I read a op-ed by Owen Glieberman that asked, “Has Streaming Become a Form of Stockholm Syndrome?” Specifically, Glieberman ends the article by saying, If you read through the entire op-ed, which I think you should because it’s well-written, you’ll see that what Glieberman is saying is that good movies are still going straight to streaming where they’re forgotten. The implication is that streaming is bad business and it’s bad for the art of movies. Right off the top let me say I respect Glieberman. For one thing they write for Variety which is a really well-respected publication. The article is full of salient points and it’s very much worth your time. Glieberman’s right. Movie theaters are barely hanging on, and even...

Actually they’ve been there all along. But, this is as good a time as any to remind you that weBoost cellular boosters and accessories are a big part of the Solid Signal portfolio, and you’ll find the best possible prices! weBoost practically invented the cellular booster market and in the last decade has redefined it with boosters that are easy to use and powerful. There’s a whole line from the vehicle-only Drive Sleek to the massively powerful Office 100 which can cover pretty much any small office with excellent cell coverage. Of course, there are plenty of parts in between as well, so no matter what size home or office you have you’ll find the right size booster for you. LTE or 5G? Most people today want a cell booster that will...

There’s something neat about error correction. Error correction is something everyone does, but I think the way computers do it is really neat. It’s all around us and we don’t think about it. It’s built into the way we use our phones, the way we watch TV, and even the way we shop. Error correction makes our modern life possible. It it weren’t for error correction, we wouldn’t be able to make phone calls, watch TV, or do pretty much anything online. What is error correction? Error correction is the process that computers use when there isn’t enough information. There are a lot of forms of error correction. For example: Rules-based error correction When you call someone using a landline phone, the buttons make sounds. There are two...

Here’s something I’ve recently had to contend with. If young people think the tech you used when you were their age is “classic” or “retro,” you my friend are officially old. In fact, you are old as …. well I don’t use profanity on this blog but you get the idea. This very idea came to me when I was exploring this video: In which a fellow who, I would guess, is about 35, just gushes over a beat up, broken Power Macintosh 9600 and then proceeds to clean it up and adapt it to use modern forms of storage. This set off a cascade of feelings for me, and this being a blog after all, I decided to share them with you. Although I can’t exactly blame the guy. Apple’s Power Macintosh 9600 was a very interesting beast. In the 1990s, Apple was...

Ah, lazy days on the water. There’s nothing like it. Days spent in the fresh air, sunsets over the ocean. But this is the twenty-first century. We don’t like disconnecting for very long, even when we’re enjoying ourselves. Good news— you don’t have to be! With products from Solid Signal, you can enjoy life on the water without giving up any of the benefits of being on land. Are your electronic entertainment options limited? Truth is, there are some limitations to what you can do on the water, especially on smaller craft. If you’re taking a dinghy out 10 miles — and I don’t recommend that, obviously — you’ll run into trouble. All of the options I’m recommending require that your boat be big enough to mount equipment on, and that there...

Tall buildings have tall problems. You don’t really think about stuff like this as a homeowner, but if you’re looking at a roof that’s 500 feet above street level, some things have to change. Your regular satellite TV install isn’t going to work. A big part of that is the sheer amount of wire that it takes to get from the roof to wherever you are. High rise buildings need special installers with special qualifications. The riser Every large building has a big vertical space where all the wires are. It’s kind of like an elevator shaft for cables. This is called “the riser.” It’s specifically designed to let technicians get to the communications cables that every modern building needs. It’s also designed to connect to the equipment...

Yeah, that’s quite a throwback for this Thursday. This recently found footage was shot in 1911 by “Svenska Biografteatern,” apparently a Swedish company specializing in documenting the world as it was at that moment in time. A few years ago, New York’s Museum of Modern Art discovered the footage, restored it and put it on display. That exhibit has since been taken down. However, YouTuber “guy jones” got hold of the footage and put it up for all to see. It’s not under copyright, being so old. You can clearly see a bunch of landmarks that are still there, and considering we are looking at 100-year-old film the quality is simply amazing. Why is it so choppy? In those days, cameramen commonly used a rate of 18 frames per second. It was...