Philips PHDTV1 Silver Sensor UHF/HDTV Digital Indoor TV Antenna
by Philips Accessories
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List Price: Category: CE See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Philips PHDTV1 Silver Sensor UHF/HDTV Digital Indoor TV Antenna
Customer Review: PHILIPS PHDTV1 INDOOR HDTV ANTENNA
Summary: 4 Stars
If there are two words to describe the physical appearance of Philips PHDTV1 - its cheap and dull. It consists of a plane of wide thin blades connected on a black plastic rod with a brass coaxial connector for a nose. At the bottom is a metal base under the plastic shroud - its very light in weight. As a matter of fact, its a little too easy to tip over. However, looks can be deceiving - and this is one of those cases.
The antenna is known as the "Silver Sensor" to most who have seen it - because of its plastic silver "wings" that protrude out of the rod at an angle - there are fourteen elements (seven per side) overall. Included in the box is a six-foot length of standard RG-8 coaxial cable. The directions for assembly are on the outer box, and slightly misleading if you look at the graphic diagrams - but it should not be cause for alarm, since putting it together was very intuitive as to its parts. What perhaps is a little disconcerting is like all too many things - its made in China. But that fact does not take away from its performance.
Essentially what you are getting is a couple hunks of plastic and a little metal for your $25. I bought mine through Circuit City along with the sold-out Element FLX-1510 15" Widescreen HDTV receiver on back-order I'm still waiting for. One thing I should mention is inside the long black plastic rod is an ultra-thin plastic circuit board of which those wings are attached. I would be very careful handling it, since as some users have pointed-out, its pretty easy to break! Performance is the key to this antenna and there it holds its own, both for digital and analog.
The first set I hooked-up the Philips PHDTV1 was my Samsung (South Korean-made) HDTV receiver connected to my NEC HD projector. Currently its connected to an Audiovox (yep, the company that owns them) Terk HDTV-S which I paid $120 for. I knew living in a brick apartment building is tough on indoor tv antennas, therefore the premium in its initial selection. On the Terk, I could pick up local ABC, FOX, MNT, Univision stations in the living room - testing the Terk HDTV-S antenna and Samsung HDTV receiver in the kitchen with a window facing the broadcast towers, I was able to pick-up the other missing stations. However, back to my living room and the Philips PHDTV1 set-top antenna.
Hooking up the Philips PHDTV1 showed there was little difference between the $25 antenna, and the $120 Terk. While a little weaker, the PHDTV1 held its own! Rated for UHF stations, it did quite well on VHF stations - or at least as best can be expected for an indoor antenna encased in a brick and steel structure. But while it is designed for UHF digital over-the-air (OTA) service, it was surprising how good this antenna worked on analog signals as well.
When connected to my analog Panasonic 9" tv in the kitchen - its performance blew me away when compared with the standard "rabbit-ears" dipole antenna the set came with. With two standard chrome rods, most signals were weaker with a lot of ghosting - some low-power signals were barely more than snow with little sound. Even our NBC affiliate was nearly impossible to pick up - and the station's transmitting tower was a mere eight miles away. Using the $25 Philips PHDTV1 indoor antenna was the difference between night and day.
Hooking-up the Philips PHDTV1 brought in all the signals - without the multi-path distortions common with analog transmissions. There were no ghosts on the screen, none, nada, period! It didn't matter if I was watching UHF or VHF stations, the signals were as good as basic analog cable gets. Even the low-power station came in almost as perfect as opposed to the higher powered signals. While pretty snowy, I was also picking-up color signals from a CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Company) station a couple hundred miles away - with a signal having to work its way through all the brick and steel in the opposite direction - this from a $25 wimpy and fragile set top antenna!
...so, would I recommend the Philips PHDTV1 at a $25 price tag? The answer is yes. Realize, you'll need a window in the room facing the general direction of the station towers you wish to receive for digital transmissions. However, one is still better off with an outdoor yagi for the best performance from an antenna system! But if you are an apartment dweller who prefers free over-the-air HD broadcasts to costly cable or satellite service - its a definite yes! Whether digital or analog set-top performance - this antenna is worth the price...as long as you can keep small children and pets from getting to it!
-Andrew [...]-
Philips PHDTV1 Digital HDTV-UHF Indoor Antenna
Customer Review: Very good reception, but directional
Summary: 4 Stars
..
Ok, with-out getting too technical:
Price is not an indicator of the best indoor HDTV antenna.... This Philips PHDTV1 antenna is, arguably, one of the best, if not the best (and inexpensive) indoor antenna for the UHF/HDTV type of signal, if you are with-in 15 to 25 mile of the station's broadcasting antenna. And that's the "gotcha", you have to be reasonably close to the TV towers. Other issues like elevation and obstacles along the line of sight (broadcasting antenna to receiving antenna) can also affect this and any antenna's performance. You start getting out past 20/25/30 miles; you may want to give some consideration to a passive outdoor antenna if the signal quality is poor with this Philips PHDTV1 antenna. It's safe to say that an outdoor antenna that's up high will always outperform an indoor antenna, but the Philips HDTV1 is a great inexpensive indoor antenna choice, for most locations that are with-in the 15 to 25 mile range.
This Philips HDTV1 antenna design (YAGI) pulls in a much stronger signal then the ubiquitous rabbit ears & loop antenna. However, this increase in signal strength comes at a price, the antenna is much more directional, meaning the antenna has to be properly positioned or aimed to receive the digital TV signal. If the broadcast towers in your area are not in one general direction, you may have to adjust and point this antenna in the direction of the desired broadcast tower as you change channels. Some may want to consider another type of indoor antenna that pulls in a little weaker signal but is not as directional, that would be something like the mult-stacked Bow-Tie type of antenna. One of the best small Bow-Tie antennas (great signal strength) is the DB-2, it's a small outdoor antenna that some are using as an indoor antenna. But be aware, some may find the esthetics of the DB-2 to be objectionable inside the home, as compared to some of the other less powerful Bow-Tie antenna that blend in better with the homes décor.
For the most part, a direct feed from the Philips HDTV1 antenna to your TV should not require an amp, an indoor antenna with an amplifier is only useful (my opinion)
1) if you have a long antenna lead-line,
2) the antenna signal is feed through a transformer (IE: 300 to 75 ohm),
3) the antenna signal is run through a splitter
(looping the antenna signal through the DVD player then to the TV is
the same as a splitter and/or transformer),
4) And there are a few cases where the design of the TV's antenna input
is so poor (loads the antenna signal down) the amp may help
Thus amp feature sold with other antenna is (again my opinion) just a marketing ploy, and an added expense that is not necessary (exceptions listed above).
Line-of-sight is also a major factor, obstacles in and along the line of sight to the broadcasting tower (buildings, light poles, trees, mountains, the wall your antenna is aimed at in your TV room, etc) can all have a negative effects on the signal you receive, even if you are only a few miles away from the broadcast antenna.
The quality of construction is the down side to this Philips PHDTV1 Indoor HDTV Antenna.
NOTE: there are a few TV stations (very few nation wide) that well be broadcasting their digital or HDTV signal in the VHF band, check your area. This Philips HDTV1 antenna (same for the Bow-Tie type of antenna) will have very bad too no reception if you are trying to use it for VHF broadcasts, analog or digital.
Customer Review: Still the best!
Summary: 5 Stars
After several weeks of trying various antenna (even hooking up my 30 year old rooftop) I have come to the conclusion that the Philips/Zenith original Silver Sensor (no additional amplification) is the best. I have tried 4 different Philips models with varying degrees of results. I live in South Philadelphia approximately 10 miles from our local broadcast towers. I live in a neighborhood of row homes with multiple structures surrounding me and skyscrapers (1 mile downtown) blocking my entire line of site.
By far and large the PHDTV1 was the best. It pulled in the most distant stations (over 25 miles) and had the strongest signal as well. Multi-path is a constant problem but this antenna locked onto the signal with ease both upstairs and downstairs. It took me quite a while to find the "ideal spot" for indoor placement, but once located it was astonishing how good it pulled in the signal (not to mention how beautiful full HD looks.) The build quality could be slightly better (cheaply made) so I am extra careful when I move it. I would recommend this hands down as the best bang for the buck. Definitely a 5 star in my book.
The next best was the Philips Mant510, it did an ok job of pulling in my stations though it can be hard to manipulate with the dipoles fully extended. The built in A/B switch was a nice touch. For about $10 more than the PHDTV1 it was adequate, but I would only rate it as 3 stars. It required a great deal of manipulation to receive even the strong local channels and judicious use of the amplifier was needed to not over boost strong signals. People moving about in the room easily affected it.
Philips Mant940 did a very good job of pulling in the stations. It too was very finicky with indoor movement and locating the right spot was a little difficult. Its amplification could not be decreased/increased so it could over boost strong signals like the Mant510. It was not as complimentary to indoor décor as the others. I wish I could have mounted on the rooftop to see how far it could pull a station in but after my last rooftop experience I decided against it. It came with the necessary outside/inside mounting hardware except for the pole. I would give it 4 stars, but recommend it only for outside placement. At twice as much as the Silver Sensor it was not a bargain. The Silver Sensor still did a better job indoors without requiring external power and was much easier to reposition.
Philips PHDTV3, the amplified Silver Sensor was my last test. I was hoping since the original Silver Sensor performed so well that an amplified one would perform even better. Boy was I wrong, the PHDTV3 had no signal whatsoever with the amplifier turned off (the same for the Mant940) so I started out with it just turned on and as low as possible so as not to over boost my strong signals. I was hoping to be able to leave it turned down except for the further stations that had weaker signals. Even when I did encounter the weaker stations it really did not boost the signal anymore than 1 bar on my HDTV and it was much bulkier/fussier to adjust (by the way I totally folded and ignored the dipoles after my experience with Mant510) than the original Silver Sensor. Even playing with the amplifier for several hours I could not get more bars than the original Silver Sensor (which averaged 1 to 2 more bars than all of them.) This was definitely a 3 star product.
PHDTV1 (Silver Sensor)wins hands down.
Customer Review: Philips PHDTV1 HDTV-UHF is AWESOME
Summary: 5 Stars
I have basic cable and recently purchased a LCD HDTV. I wanted to watch HDTV but did not want to pay the additional cost to upgrade my cable plan to receive HDTV channels.
I tried the Philips Antenna based on reviews I read on AMAZON.
I first went to antennaweb.org and entered my address to find out the channels I might be able to receive. The web site indicated there are 7 HDTV channels in my area. I am picking up 9 HDTV channels. I pick up 6 of the 7 HDTV channels listed by the web site, plus a weather channel and 2 public TV stations that are "subsets" of their primary station. I do not receive the major NBC station because it is on VHF, but I can pick it up with this antenna as analog.
I have the antenna indoors on top of my entertainment center, not near a window, about 20 miles from the TV towers. There are no buildings in my immediate area that are taller than 4 stories (webantenna asks this question when you query the available channels). I located a direction that allows me to pick up ALL of these channels without moving the antenna.
The only item you should really be concerned with before you buy this is whether not having access to VHF channels are critical to your decision. I only have one HDTV channel that is on VHF and I can live with that.
To pick up the other channels my cable company offers that are not available through the antenna, I plan to pick up an A-B switch that allows me to plug in the Cable on the A and the antenna on the B. There is a third connection that connects to the TV. You then click the A switch for cable, and B for HDTV. I will also have to use the TV controller to switch between "air" (for HDTV) and "cable" (for cable).
A great way to receive HDTV for free and still have access to your other cable channels...with only minimal work on your part!!!
Customer Review: Decent reception, shoddy workmanship, not worth it.
Summary: 2 Stars
I ordered two of these less than a year ago, one for me, one for my friend. My friend was unable to get much reception with it, but that's perhaps not surprising given the distance he is from antennas.
I had previously been using a cheapo RCA rabbit eared antenna. It worked well enough. This one offered slightly better reception, 80/100 for most channels, occasionally 90 for one channel, and mid 70's for another.
The unit is somewhat directional, but doesn't require constant adjusting for me. I'm less than 10 miles from most of the local antennas. Overall I was pleased with it, until yesterday.
Yesterday, I noticed one of my recordings was somewhat pixelated. I went to adjust the antenna and couldn't get a decent signal. Some channels would register 75 or 80 but still be pixelated every 10 seconds or so, and the picture would drop for a second every few minutes. I then discovered that the antenna had become dislodged from the coaxial connector where the coaxial cable screws in. I fiddled with it on and off but was unable to get a really good reception with it anymore.
I did some research online and found that this unit was among the recommended indoor models still, but a radio shack antenna (two of them, actually, but one was discontinued) was more highly recommended. I replaced this unit with the radio shack 15-1892 unit and now get 90's in all channels, much better than the zenith ever got. It also has a remote for rotating as well as sturdy rabbit ears. I'd definitely recommend that unit over this one.
I spoke with the friend, who had been using the other zenith. His had broken in the exact same spot within a few months. As such, shoddy workmanship prevents me from recommending this. It did get decent reception, but having to replace two units in less than a year is pretty absurd.