Are you tired of too-expensive cable bills and want a cheap way to watch your favourite TV shows and movies? Putting up a TV antenna may turn out to be the right choice for you. Whether it is the second-party location or you just want to ditch your cable, a TV antenna gives you access to free TV.
On the other hand, you have multiple options to choose from an indoor vs outdoor TV Antenna. In this article, we will investigate the advantages of both kinds of antennas so you will be able to make a wise decision tailored to your case.
Understanding Indoor TV Antennas
If you are near TV broadcast towers or live in a city or in an apartment where you can’t have an outdoor antenna then an indoor TV antenna is a good option. However, these antennas are small, strong, and can be installed in any room without being detected.
Pros of Indoor Antennas
Here is the list of advantages that the best indoor TV antenna Australia can provide you:
1. Easy to Set Up: Digital Indoor TV antennas are easy to install and don’t require complex steps. They can be put anywhere inside your house, for instance, next to a window or on a wall.
Installing an indoor TV antenna is so easy that you can do it yourself without any help from a professional. Most antennas can be installed within minutes and you can start watching your favorite channels right away.
2. Compact and Portable: These antennas can be moved around your house with ease. In this regard, you can go to different places to find the best signal with minimum effort.
3. Versatile placement: Indoor antennas can be positioned in different parts of your home, for instance, behind TV, on the shelf or a wall or window. Being flexible makes it possible for you to locate the best spot for maximum signal reception.
4. No need for roof climbing: In contrast to the digital outdoor antennas that need mounting on the rooftop or at an elevated position, indoor antennas can be placed anywhere inside your home. This is why they are so popular, especially with people who cannot or prefer not to climb their roofs.
5. Weather Protection: Indoor antennas are protected from weather elements so they won’t be damaged by rain or wind.
Cons of Indoor Antennas
Limited range: Indoor antennas often have the same range as outdoor TV Aerials. This implies they may experience difficulty in capturing signals from broadcast towers that are beyond, particularly in rural areas.
Signal interference: Indoor antennas may suffer from interference from walls, appliances or other electronic gizmos in your home. This interference may lead to a decrease in signal quality and can disrupt viewing experiences.
Location limitations: In some places where the signal is weak, for example in remote areas, an outdoor antenna will be a better choice for stable reception. Indoor antennas might not be able to provide a stable and clear signal in these circumstances.
Outdoor TV antennas
Installing the outdoor antenna is the most popular option for achieving a perfect TV signal. These usually are located outside and have a less hindered way to the broadcast towers which allows them to circumvent obstructions like trees or constructions, unlike the indoor or attic antennas.
Outdoor TV antenna can comprise different types like directional and multi-directional antennae. Directional antennas are ideal for focusing on signals transmitted from a specific direction, while multi-directional antennas can work well in picking up signals from multiple directions.
This is what a long-range outdoor antenna would represent for people who are far from broadcast towers. These antennas are particularly designed to collect signals from a wider perimeter ensuring you can take advantage of a large number of channels. You can pick the best outdoor TV antenna Australia for yourself considering the following advantages.
Pros of outdoor antennas
1. Better Signal Reception: Since outdoor antennas are more effective in picking up signals from TV towers located farther away, consider using them. They are capable of getting the signals transmitted from a longer distance hence you will have all the channels available.
While indoor antennas may be sufficient for capturing channels from broadcast stations within 20-30 mile radius, the range of an outdoor antenna is approximately 60 to 80 miles. Because of that, you should also install an outdoor antenna for better reception.
2. Flexible Mounting Options: Installation of outdoor antennas is usually done on rooftops, which provides the best signal reception capability. But, if rooftop access is not available, they can also be mounted on the side of houses, decks, or even tripods from the ground. With the rich diversity, you can locate the position with the best signal reception.
3. Weather Resistance: The Best digital outdoor TV antennas are built to stand up in varying weather conditions like rain, snow and wind. With this element of durability, signal reception remains uninterrupted even when weather conditions are bad.
Cons of outdoor antennas
Complex Installation: Installing a roof-top, or high-point outdoor antenna requires some expertise because it needs to go on the roof or a high spot. You could require extra equipment and some skills to get it done in the right way. The fixing of cables from an antenna to your TV can also be tricky, in some cases there will be the need for holes in walls or ceilings to be made.
Cost: It’s often the case that outdoor antennas are more expensive than indoor ones because of the extra features for mounting as well as their size. Another budgetary consideration should be whether you can do it yourself or whether you will need someone to install it for you, which would mean additional expenses.
Maintenance: Outdoor antennas also need to be checked periodically. You have to check the antenna for any damage and readjust its position around the house to get a clearer signal. They inevitably gather leaves or bird droppings and as a result, it affects the signal that needs to be cleaned.
They can be beaten by poor weather like storms or strong winds too as well. This would imply that the antenna should be fixed or replaced if necessary.
Aesthetic Fears: Outdoor antennas, particularly larger ones, may seem out of place in your house. They could alter the overall appearance of your house and not be in line with the rules in your neighbourhood, respectively.
An Indoor Vs Outdoor TV Antenna: Which one to Choose?
Evaluate Your Living Situation: Whether you live in an apartment building or a community that is very rule-oriented are some of the things to ponder. In which you have no choice but to get an indoor antenna.
For Rural areas, it is highly recommended to use the best outdoor digital TV antenna Australia for boosted signal reception.
Check Your Distance from Broadcast Towers: Enter AntennaWeb‘s free TV Signal Analysis Website to figure out the distance you stay from the broadcast tower and in which direction the OTA signals come.
If you are within the perimeter of the broadcast tower of 30 miles, an indoor antenna may be suitable for your needs.
If you live in a rural area or are more than 30 miles away from a tower, an outdoor antenna is your flat-out best option.
Consider an Omni-directional Antenna for Multiple Signal Directions:
If your signals come from different directions, your antenna would be a multidirectional one.
Besides that, you have to be aware of your budget, antenna installation difficulty and potential local signal interference.
Conclusion
In short, if you need the largest number of free TV channels and can mount an outdoor antenna, an outdoor permanent rooftop antenna is the option. It is a high-quality choice, as it works even in bad weather to pick up radio signals, and it can connect all the rooms of your home through a splitter, making it the right budget-friendly device for multiple TV.
On the other hand, various factors could convince you to use an indoor antenna. If you’re a lessee whose HOA does not permit rooftop antennas or you’re just trying out over-the-air TV, an indoor antenna that can receive channels within 20 miles of your local broadcast towers would work for you. Indoor antennas are in the market in compact sizes and a signal amplifier can be used if the signal is weak.