The only place a “HDTV antenna” or “Digital TV antenna” exists is in the mind of a marketing agency rep. Not that I have anything against marketing people. I married one!

I don’t know how many times I’ve overheard the attempted up-sell of one of these to someone that’s just acquired a HDTV. I think it’s due more to ignorance, than the salesperson’s greed, since most of them are hourly, and not commission. But, when a “HDTV antenna” costs more than a TV antenna, both having the same construction and performance, the manufacturer is cashing in on consumer confusion.

An antenna, is an antenna, is an antenna.

The same channels VHF 2-13 and UHF 14-69 (It was 14-83 until 1982, remember?) that carry analog television (KAKE Channel 10, for example) can also carry digital television (like KAKE-DT Channel 21 – Virtual 10.1).

Yes, the SAME EXACT frequencies, or TV channels, are used for either an analog or digital TV signal. An antenna picks up whatever radio waves hit it, within its frequency range, or bandwidth. It’s doesn’t know, nor care, if it’s a digital or analog transmission.

So, for example, if you have a VHF antenna that receives a hypothetical local TV channel 11, it will “capture” either an analog or digital signal of equal power, broadcast on that channel, with an equal amount of voltage (in microvolts, you can’t get shocked) or signal level.

See…there’s no need for a fancy new “digital” antenna. Blow the dust off of that old aerial and give her a try. Just make sure you have a VHF antenna, for VHF channels, and/or a UHF antenna, for UHF channels, or a combo VHF/UHF if you need both. (…which you just might. That’s more fodder for another blog.)