The day HBO was hacked
It was thirty years ago. HBO had only been in business for a little over a decade. Cable TV was thriving, and satellite TV hadn’t really taken off. Back in those days if you wanted satellite…
Read MoreApril 2016
Which is better, one big cell booster or 4 little ones?
Why not have the best of both worlds? If you’re looking to provide improved cell service in a really large space — say 20,000 square feet or more — you have some decisions to make….
What happens when you try to watch DIRECTV 4K on more than one TV at a time?
One of the somewhat annoying things about DIRECTV’s current 4K setup is that you can only watch 4K at one location at a time. It has to do with the limitations of DIRECTV’s wiring and the…
FUN FRIDAY: Every Oscar Winner for Visual Effects
I’m sorry, I can’t do that, Dave. If you know that reference, you’ve probably seen a lot of the movies in this week’s Fun Friday video, “Every Best Visual Effects Winner. Ever.” It’s a 9-minute compilation…
Can you use a larger dish with a DIRECTV LNB?
Every so often, we get a legitimate request from someone in the continental US who wants to use a larger dish. That’s why we have dishes like this DS3100 from Winegard. It’s 39 inches (1 meter) from…
TiVo bought by RoVi? What does this mean?
The word is all over town that TiVo is being purchased by Rovi. This brings up two questions: Will TiVo still make, well, TiVos? and who the heck is Rovi? First of all you can be…
Best of the Blog 2015, Volume 2
The spring of 2015 was a great time for our blog.
How fast can a boat go and still get TV reception?
The magic number is usually around 15mph. For all the great things that digital broadcasting brought us — high-definition picture and surround sound, dozens of extra channels and smaller antennas — it’s been a sore spot…
THROWBACK THURSDAY: DIRECTV helps out with Hurricane Sandy
More and more of us know what it’s like to be part of a natural disaster. It’s a simple fact that there are now more serious weather events than there were back the last half of…
DIRECTV will stream NFL Sunday Ticket to more people this year
Great news for NFL Sunday Ticket subscribers. DIRECTV announced yesterday that all NFL Sunday Ticket subscribers will have access to live streaming on their mobile devices. Previously you needed the MAX package for that, but for…
Why You Should Add an Antenna to Your Satellite TV Package!
Satellite TV alone doesn’t always deliver local TV programming. I learned this lesson the hard way! Many years ago, I needed to be in two places at once. The annual Catfish Jamboree was happening on…
Solid Signal’s HANDS ON REVIEW: SureCall Fusion4Home Cellular Booster
This is the one you really want. SureCall’s Fusion4Home is the signal booster that combines industrial design and power with customer-friendly pricing. It’s a 5-band booster with up to 72dB of boost, 4G and LTE capability, and…
AT&T announces results, is doing darn good thank you very much
Not quite sure why they didn’t announce earlier, but results from AT&T’s first quarter in 2016 were quietly sent out after close of business yesterday. It’s not like they had anything to hide… the numbers were…
AT&T to introduce $10 broadband
AT&T takes its commitments seriously, and one of those commitments is low-cost broadband. 10Mbps may not be “blazing fast” by today’s standards but it’s more than fast enough for email, general web surfing, and even a…
FCC approves buyout of Time Warner Cable – in theory
If you haven’t already seen the news, it looks like the Charter takeover of Time Warner Cable is going to happen. Speaking to The Los Angeles Times, FCC Chair Tom Wheeler indicated he would vote for the deal, and…