Aereo vs. Indoor Antenna - Quick Thoughts

So before Aereo entered the Detroit market I was using the Terk HDTVa indoor antenna to receive my local stations. I wanted to give some quick thoughts on how Aereo compares to the Terk HDTVa antenna.

Channel Lineup 

Winner: Tie

Looking at pure numbers the Terk antenna does pull in seven more channels but this is the case of quantity over quality. The seven channels that Aereo does not provide are a mixture of religious, shopping and a duplicate feed of an HD channel. Choosing Aereo or an indoor antenna will provide ABC, CW, CBS, FOX, NBC, PBS, and the major independent channels in my area.

Picture Quality

Winner: Terk HDTVa

The Terk wins in both picture quality and less interference in the picture. An uncompressed over the air HDTV signal is noticeably sharper than the high setting on the Aereo Roku app. I did notice that Aereo has a tendency to buffer while watching a stream. The only time I run into problems with the Terk is if there is severe weather.

Final Thoughts

If you are cutting the cord I would recommend an antenna over exclusively using the Aereo service due to the following advantages an antenna provides.

•  In most instances you will get more local channels than Aereo. It feels like Aereo picks and chooses what channels to deliver to you. I was hoping that CBC would be picked up by Aereo due to the fact that the Terk is an indoor antenna and the CBC signal is too weak in my location. I wonder if this omission is due to potential legal issues.
• It is easier to switch channels with an antenna. Aereo will only let you pick and choose from a guide and when that program is done the steam will stop.
• The OTA signal is less prone to interference and the picture quality is noticeably better than the internet stream that Aereo provides.   

Aereo feels more like a complement to your existing antenna as a DVR solution or if you needed local channels in a room that does not have antenna access.