ScottC4746
OBS Chief
A non train traveler at work asked me if one can take a portable TV to watch in your room. My thinking is no because even broadcast TV requires cable now. Correct?
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some TV stations are also streamed on the internet, so a laptop or similar with roaming access should also do the job.Although I have cable, I think normal broadcast television by antenna is still available.
I would question the reception on a train to be poor at best if at all. Also, if a signal
was available, you would need to have earphones (like radios & computers) to operate it on
the train.
Can you take a portable TV onboard Amtrak? Yea sure, nobody will stop you from bringing one.A non train traveler at work asked me if one can take a portable TV to watch in your room. My thinking is no because even broadcast TV requires cable now. Correct?
I'm sorry for nit-picking, but this is a pet peeve of mine - there is no such thing as a "digital" or "HD" antenna, it's all marketing crap.Broadcast tv just requires that the tv have a digital antennae and be a newish model or have a converter box for the digital signals.
But I don't know how good your reception would be with an HD antennae on a moving train.
I don't know how the DVB-T (Terrestrial Integrated Services Digital Broadcasting) is in the USA? But even in completely DVB-T covered Germany you can forget about trying to watch TV on your laptop when traveling on train. Now imagine to be in remote areas of Arizona or Utah .... FORGET it !
A much worse problem is that ATSC signals are very difficult to sync up to while moving even when in range of a station. Don't even think about it. BTW, all of the broadcast stations are on the air and except for the antenna cost (any TV antenna) it is free HD. In the Los Angeles area there are 58 stations that can be picked up in most places.I don't know how the DVB-T (Terrestrial Integrated Services Digital Broadcasting) is in the USA? But even in completely DVB-T covered Germany you can forget about trying to watch TV on your laptop when traveling on train. Now imagine to be in remote areas of Arizona or Utah .... FORGET it !
Others in this thread have used the acronym: the digital TV broadcasting standard in the U.S. is called "ATSC," which is a somewhat different system than DVB-T. (It's akin to the difference between the analog color broadcasting standards, NTSC and PAL.)
I've had trouble picking up AM and FM radio signals on the train, to say nothing of TV -- I think the metal car bodies are a big part of the problem.
Thanks for correcting me. I did not know this! I really appreciate learning something new. So is the converter box the tuner that one needs to make the old tvs work? Because I had a devil of a time trying to give an old tv away recently because it needed the converter box (which I didn't have for it).I'm sorry for nit-picking, but this is a pet peeve of mine - there is no such thing as a "digital" or "HD" antenna, it's all marketing crap.Broadcast tv just requires that the tv have a digital antennae and be a newish model or have a converter box for the digital signals.
But I don't know how good your reception would be with an HD antennae on a moving train.
All an antenna does is take a radio signal out of the air and convert it into an electrical signal on a cable that gets fed to a receiver (or takes that electrical signal from a transmitter and converts it to a radio signal flying through the air).
You can use any old antenna to receive the digital TV signals (HD or SD) broadcast today, as long as you have a tuner that is capable of decoding that signal.
Exactly! And yeah, now that the transition to digital signals is complete, those converter boxes have all but disappeared...Thanks for correcting me. I did not know this! I really appreciate learning something new. So is the converter box the tuner that one needs to make the old tvs work? Because I had a devil of a time trying to give an old tv away recently because it needed the converter box (which I didn't have for it).I'm sorry for nit-picking, but this is a pet peeve of mine - there is no such thing as a "digital" or "HD" antenna, it's all marketing crap.Broadcast tv just requires that the tv have a digital antennae and be a newish model or have a converter box for the digital signals.
But I don't know how good your reception would be with an HD antennae on a moving train.
All an antenna does is take a radio signal out of the air and convert it into an electrical signal on a cable that gets fed to a receiver (or takes that electrical signal from a transmitter and converts it to a radio signal flying through the air).
You can use any old antenna to receive the digital TV signals (HD or SD) broadcast today, as long as you have a tuner that is capable of decoding that signal.
Wait till you try the Sunset Ltd.,Southwest Chief and the Empire Builder!! :lol:I got a slingbox so I could watch TV on my iPhone. I tried it on Amtrak and it worked decently well through most areas... but not so well once you hit the state of Iowa....
You'd think there would be a "satellite" version available at this point, but probably horrendously expensive!Wait till you try the Sunset Ltd.,Southwest Chief and the Empire Builder!! :lol:I got a slingbox so I could watch TV on my iPhone. I tried it on Amtrak and it worked decently well through most areas... but not so well once you hit the state of Iowa....
I can get 87 Los Angeles over-the-air channels from here in Sherman Oaks (with an "el cheapo" rabbit-ears/UHF-loop antenna). Now, I only ever watch a small percentage of those, but still...BTW, all of the broadcast stations are on the air and except for the antenna cost (any TV antenna) it is free HD. In the Los Angeles area there are 58 stations that can be picked up in most places.
Who's your cell phone carrier?I got a slingbox so I could watch TV on my iPhone. I tried it on Amtrak and it worked decently well through most areas... but not so well once you hit the state of Iowa....
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