Channel Grasp FLATenna CM-4001HDBW | Tom's Info
Channel Grasp FLATenna CM-4001HDBW: Specs
Range: 35 Miles
Channels Acquired: 66
Amplified: No
1080p Reception: Positive
Cable Measurement: 12 toes
Dimension: 13.5 x 10.75 x 0.7 inches
Channel Grasp’s FLATenna proves that establishing top-of-the-line TV antennas wouldn’t require troublesome technical choices. On this case, simplicity outshines further refined units.
To that point, the $25 FLATenna wouldn’t embrace an amplifier or specific noise filter, and it will not embody a Philippe Starck stand or excessive style design. Nevertheless this straightforward, large, flat antenna is no doubt one of many best fashions now we have examined for tuning in over-the-air TV broadcasts.
That is why it’s well-worth its $25 worth stage.
Design
As its establish suggests, the Channel Grasp FLATenna is skinny, decrease than an inch thick plastic rectangle like comparable fashions from Mohu and Winegard. It is bigger than these totally different fashions, nonetheless, stretching out at over 13-inches broad. That makes it a conspicuous presence in any entrance room, although Channel Grasp tries to attenuate its impression in your feng shui by making one aspect of it black and the other white. Hopefully, one or the other facade will match your decor.
What will support you place (or disguise) the antenna is a supplied 12-foot heavy obligation coaxial cable for making the TV connection. It means you’ll place it far out of your TV, like behind a curtain, and Channel Grasp offers 4 double-sided sticky pads that can enable you mount it on a wall or window. (Positive, you’ll lay it on a desk as successfully, nevertheless that’s not a extremely good choice; it makes for a poor espresso desk coaster.)
Setup
The antenna comes with a coaxial cable to attach together with your TV and supplies you quite a lot of placement selections due to its 12-foot measurement. It’s twice the scale of cable that many antennas embody, which is crucial because of the reception you get relies upon upon the place you’ll put the antenna. Moreover, many antennas embody pre-attached cables that you just can’t swap out. Channel Grasp’s generous detachable cable means you’ve got bought further arrange selections and a larger probability of getting an excellent signal.
Like totally different fashions, the Channel Grasp FLATenna may assist the latest NextGen TV tuners for stations with improved choice and sound. So we examined it with a set with a built-in NextGen TV tuner, the 55-inch Hisense U8 Sequence QLED TV.
As part of your setup, we advise checking what native over-the-air stations could be present in your area by visiting a website equivalent to Antennaweb.org. By trying your zip code it’s possible you’ll get an inventory and a map of the position of native broadcast towers, along with information on any new NextGen TV stations in your area.
Effectivity
Various preliminary passes with the TV’s built-in tuner registered that the Channel Grasp FLATenna found 77 stations. That was on the excessive end of our preliminary assessments, although not all the stations that had been detected had been watchable.
The Channel Grasp model labored remarkably successfully supplied that it would not rely on the assistance of an in-line amplifier. It was ready to cleanly seize the native NBC and CBS associates, along with the normally obstinate ABC channel (which meant we’d watch Jeopardy! completely free). Nonetheless, a few stations proved to be marginal and unwatchable. We’d inform MASH was on 33.1, as an example, nevertheless we couldn’t hear Radar talking and the picture was terribly pixelated.
Lastly, we found that the FLATenna pulled in 66 stations reliably. That could be a formidable consequence and in our latest spherical of testing second solely to the Mohu Leaf Amplified, which tuned in 69 stations.
Verdict
Channel Grasp supplies an amplified mannequin of this model, dubbed the FLATenna+. It incorporates a MicroAmp that makes use of a USB form connection to vitality the amplifier straight from the USB port in your TV or from an peculiar electrical wall outlet. It’s rated for a 50-mile radius safety, nevertheless we won’t take into consideration needing it. The important FLATenna does a top-notch job and for the worth, it’s a powerful price.
