Customer Reviews

RCA ANT1650R Flat Digital Amplified Indoor TV Antenna

5 star:		(150)
4 star:		(95)
3 star:		(52)
2 star:		(51)
1 star:		(60)

 

 

I rarely write reviews for things that don't make immediately positive impressions (or horrible ones), and this was one of the positive ones. To be brief, with this antenna I now receive signal strengths between 64-74% on a couple stations 38 miles away that I didn't get before! I did a test of signal strengths among six different stations; first with rabbit ears and then with the amplified signal of this new RCA ANT1650. The rabbit ears averaged a signal strength of 51.66% (with a low of 32% and a high of 74%). The ANT1650 received an average signal strength of 90.16% (with a low - among the tested stations - of 67% and a high of 100%)!

This product was also very easy to set up. I connected the antenna to the detachable amplifier with a coaxial cable and then connected the amplifier to the TV with another coaxial cable. I then plugged in the power adapter for the amplifier (it will work about as well as rabbit ears with the amplifier's power adapter unplugged), turned on the TV, did an auto-channel search, deleted some analog stations, and was good to go. The flat antenna part can be situated in a variety of ways so as to get the best signal. You can attach it to the wall with two screws, you can set it upright with a stand (kind of like a picture frame), or you can lay it flat. For our situation, it worked best in an upright position so as to avoid being heated up by other equipment. Because it's rather inconspicuous as a shape and color, it looks good as well - certainly much better than our tv's previous rabbit ears. The only thing better would be if the tv worked without this item in the first place.

Here are the signal strength results from six test stations. I tested the rabbit ears on a clear morning and tested the ANT1650 on a clear afternoon of the same day. Both antennas were placed in the same location, which wasn't necessarily ideal for the ANT 1650:

With rabbit ears and clear windless weather:

Station A: 51%
Station B: 42%
Station C: 32%
Station D: 74%
Station E: 61%
Station F: 50%

With amplified ANT1650 propped vertically and clear windless weather:

Station A: 94%
Station B: 67%
Station C: 93%
Station D: 100%
Station E: 100%
Station F: 87%

I have since done a follow-up test with the ANT1650 laid flat and it averaged slightly better at 92%, even under windy conditions.

With amplified ANT1650 laid flat and clear windy weather:

Station A: 89%
Station B: 93%
Station C: 99%
Station D: 85%
Station E: 100%
Station F: 86%

To summarize, most of the stations look and sound great with the antenna just laying flat. Once in awhile, a problem station cuts in and out, and you have to prop the antenna up. In my case, it was just one station that was problematic. Not a big deal, though design-wise, they might've made it easier to prop up the antenna by having a built-in stand swing out of the backside.

I live in the metro Atlanta area and according to the antenna web site I am 25 - 35 miles away from the transmission from the various broadcasting stations. I set this up without attaching the amplifier and am able to pick up the channels with great quality. I use this for a TV on the upper floor of my 2 story house, and ordered a 2nd for my main level TV. Hooked it up and it works fine as well.

I use these as a backup to my satellite dish. The satellite went out during a bad thunderstorm last night but I was able to switch over to broadcast tv and continue watching the game.

Note: I replaced a Terk antenna that did not get good reception with this one. I like the fact that this is omnidirectional.

I used to get a decent signal with rabbit ears and thought this amplified antenna was overkill. I still had to jockey it around to get a good signal. It is now in the vertical position on the floor next to my TV bench instead of laying flat and discreet at the foot of the TV like I intended. Still get pixel static at times or loose signal now and then, but I don't have to waste money on cable.

This is a great antenna. I Live pretty far from the transmission antenna in my area but I'm getting 80 and 100% signal quality on my channels.

You have to be a little patient when finding a location to place it but when you find the right location you won't be disappointed in the picture you receive.

Hook this up to my TV with the amplifier. Put the antenna near the window. VIOLA! All the major channels in HD - FREE!

Support both UHF and VHF frequency. The thing also looks pretty sleek. For optimal result, better put it closer to the windows. Highly recommanded.

This RCA ANT1650 replaced a Jensen 82930-0-7, which served well for amplified, indoor reception, but poorly after the conversion to digital. Both antennas could be placed no closer than about 8' from the nearest window with the Jensen on the floor and the RCA about 6' above it.

I have owned the RCA antenna for about three-weeks.

For the basis of comparison, the Jensen antenna would lose both digital video and audio signals an average of 90-seconds an hour. The RCA loses no video at all, but does tend to drop audio for a split second maybe up to a total of five-seconds an hour, generally in the morning. The RCA permitted me to add an extra three stations in addition to those the Jensen antenna was receiving. Whereas signal strength on VHS stations with the Jension averaged about 55%, with the RCA, they come in closer to 95%.

The RCA antenna was a breeze to set up. I tweaked it off-and-on for a few days, but actually it required no significant adjustment for all 49 available signals. It does not need to be touched which is good, since while it appears durable enough, the bar-like stand it rests on tends not to seat too steadily in the holes provided in the back of the unit. That by the way is only one of two faults I find with the product. The second one is that the antenna has a sealed cable which means that if it shorts out, you have to replace the entire unit.

Overall while this is not a perfect antenna, I'd say it is quite good, especially given its distance from the window. I am satisfied and would recommend the product without reservation.

I haven't used OTA broadcast television in a long time. I'm a TV addict and have had cable or satellite TV for as long as I can remember. I wanted to put a TV in the guest room though, and this one was just going to pick up OTA. I wasn't going to pay for another tuner box for a room we just don't use.

I hadn't seen any OTA HD yet, but I had heard that it was better than I'm getting with DirecTV, plus I was excited to hear that my neighbors were picking up 15 channels.

I live about 30 miles from the main towers. the ABC channel here is in the Hi-VHF band. the rest are UHF. The TV is on the 2nd floor, there is just plastic siding on the house, and I'm not down in a valley, so I had high hopes that I could get away with an indoor antenna. But no matter where I placed this antenna, I had to move it around to get one channel in, then another would go spotty - and it wouldn't even touch the ABC signal (VHF) at all.

Out of curiosity I slapped a $5 set of rabbit ears with a UHF loop - you've seen this antenna before, straight out of 1957 - and now I get the VHF station perfectly, and the UHF stations are about the same as with this RCA amplified shingle. I ended up finding instructions on Youtube on making your own antenna out of coat hangers and a piece of wood. If you need VHF too, look for the improved version with 10" whiskers. My $10 DIY construction project kicks this antenna's butt.

I took it apart to see what's inside. Maybe a dollar's worth of circuit board. It isn't even a fractal design. Save your money!

I live in a condo that uses a shared satellite for cable access. An unfortunate side effect of this arrangement is the fact we're unable to add the HD package to our set-up. Originally I decided to try some bunny ears but they failed to pick up much of anything.

I sat on the fence about what "HD" antenna to get but ultimately decided on this one when I saw its attractive appearance and solid reviews. I wish I'd seen this one earlier. I love the low-profile appearance..that was a sticking point for me on some of the competitors. Outside of some rare occasions, the reception on the major channels has been perfect and I'm so thrilled I can now watch football in HD. I only wish I had had this during the Olympics.

For those on the fence -- this is a great buy. I'm not entirely sure if the excellent reception is a product of where I live, this specific antenna or both, but I have absolutely 0 complaints and would recommend this to anyone who asked.

This is much better than RCA Ant.1450. I used to hear lots of static on the other one, but I don't hear any from this one. Also, the signal from this one reaches in the 70s-100 compared to the ant1450 which stayed around 50 for most channels. At first this one picked less channels but I scanned for more channels twice, and got all of them back. I would recommend this to anyone.

I really want to give this antenna five stars but I can't. The problem may be specific to my location, but it's still a problem. Since this antenna does not have any "ears" or adjustments, the only way to adjust the signal is to move the entire unit. I found my self stretching the cable to the max in order to get a good signal. Once you find the sweet spot, it works great.