• @ITGuyLevi
    link
    63 months ago

    Just to add; prior to the coax we had two screws into the back of the TV for an antenna. You would attach a pigtail to that, which would give you a single coax connection. VCRs were game changers because most of the ones I saw had built in tuners so the more tech savvy could hook those up to the antenna and TV, then use the VCR remote to change channels without getting up (volume was another story). A lot of VCRs also had a power outlet on the back so you could plug your TV into it and be able to use the remote to turn the TV on too.

    Man old tech was great.

    • @[email protected]
      link
      fedilink
      English
      23 months ago

      That little adapter is called a balun. The two screws were a balanced antenna lead, coax is an unbalanced antenna connection. So it goes from balanced (bal) to unbalanced (un), hence balun.

      They’re still used in radio communications, but almost all consumer products use coax/unbalanced connections for their antennas.

      I could go into detail about what a balanced/unbalanced antenna is, but it would take more words than I care to type right now. I’ll let anyone who is curious go and Google it.