The 1byone Digital Amplified Indoor Antenna uses roughly the same design as many of the best TV antennas on the market, and it didn’t give the absolute best results either. Nonetheless, it’s still going to be the best choice for a really large segment of buyers out there simply because of how aggressively its priced. If you are living inside of a large metropolitan area, you likely don’t need the best possible antenna to pick up the channels being broadcast to you over the air. Furthermore, I didn’t see that big of a difference in performance as price increased. Unless you step it all the way up to a much larger, much more expensive solution, the difference in performance is probably not worth it, which is why the 1byone is an easy recommendation. Let’s see how it performed.
Design: Vanilla
The 1byone Digital Amplified Indoor Antenna uses a flat rectangular design similar to other powered indoor antennas on the market. The 13.25 x 9.25 inch antenna surface is roughly in line with most of the other products I looked at in this category, the only real difference being that the 1byone has a much more rigid surface. Being a powered antenna, the 1byone uses an external amplifier to boost the signal. This box contains a coaxial input attached via the included 16.5ft cable, and has a power input, which can be supplied by the TV itself if it can support USB power. Otherwise, 1byone includes a USB power adapter.
Setup: Fairly intuitive
Setup of the 1byone Digital Amplified Indoor Antenna is relatively simple, and more or less in line with what I’ve come to expect from similar powered indoor antennas. Simply attach the 16.5ft coaxial cable to the external amplifier, connect the power to a USB power source, and then attach the coaxial cable from the amplifier to your TV.
Performance: Good enough for most
The 1byone Digital Amplified Indoor HD TV Antenna didn’t have the best performance of the antennas we’ve tested, falling somewhere in the middle of the pack. In my channel acquisition test, I averaged 59 channels across all the tests performed. This compares to the worst performing antenna at just 47, and the best at 76. This should be more than suitable for most people living within a city in relatively close proximity to the source of the TV signal. As for those living further, your mileage may vary.
Range: Middle of the road
1byone makes no specific promises about the range of their antenna, although they do cite users having positive experiences from as far as 48 miles away in their customer testimonials. Given how many factors impact the effective range, I think it is somewhat wise not to make any promises. Nonetheless, this is clearly a device that will be best suited for people living in or near major metropolitan areas.
Price: A great deal
The 1byone Digital Amplified Indoor Antenna costs just $25, making it the least expensive option out of the antennas I tested. It picked up all the major channels that I would actually watch, and didn’t have any issues with the signal. So from my perspective, why would I pay more? I think buyers would probably be best served by seeing if an antenna like this works for them. If you discover you need something more substantial, feel free to move on to a pricier option.
1byone Digital Amplified Indoor HD TV Antenna vs Mohu Leaf 30 TV Antenna
Another popular manufacturer is Mohu, and the Mohu Leaf 30 TV Antenna offers a simpler, non-amplified solution that only loses out on a hair of performance versus the 1byone. I preferred the build quality of the Mohu Leaf, if only marginally, and like the simplicity of not needing additional wires and boxes hanging out of my TV. At the end of the day though, the 1byone performs better and costs less money, so it’s not the easiest argument to make. The 1byone Digital Amplified Indoor Antenna offers the best value out of all the indoor antennas that we tested. If you can get the performance you need from the 1byone, it’s the antenna to buy. I wouldn’t consider other options unless you’ve already ruled out this one.
