Winegard Mobile DTV Works in Car, on Counter

By Doug Lung
published


The article Winegard Readies Mobile DTV For Cars by Joseph Palenchar in This Week In Consumer Electronics (TWICE), said the company is planning first-quarter availability of an ATSC mobile DTV system for use in the car and on the counter at a suggested retail price of $799, including car-mounting kit.

The Cio Mobile Digital TV has a 10.2-inch screen and an embedded TV antenna. It runs off the automobile’s 12 VDC power and comes with a kit to mount it to the headrests of 90 percent of new model cars without professional installation. Audio is delivered to the car’s entertainment system using an embedded FM modulator. Wireless headphones and a remote control are also included.

In addition to the mobile DTV tuner, it can play a variety of audio and video media either through an embedded CD/DVD player, iPod/iPhone USB connection and other portable media player capabilities using an embedded SD card slot and USB port.

For use on the counter in the house, it can be powered by an AC power adapter. A five-hour rechargeable battery pack is also available.

The device will be on display at CES in Las Vegas in early January.

Doug Lung
Doug Lung

Doug Lung is one of America's foremost authorities on broadcast RF technology. As vice president of Broadcast Technology for NBCUniversal Local, H. Douglas Lung leads NBC and Telemundo-owned stations’ RF and transmission affairs, including microwave, radars, satellite uplinks, and FCC technical filings. Beginning his career in 1976 at KSCI in Los Angeles, Lung has nearly 50 years of experience in broadcast television engineering. Beginning in 1985, he led the engineering department for what was to become the Telemundo network and station group, assisting in the design, construction and installation of the company’s broadcast and cable facilities. Other projects include work on the launch of Hawaii’s first UHF TV station, the rollout and testing of the ATSC mobile-handheld standard, and software development related to the incentive auction TV spectrum repack.
A longtime columnist for TV Technology, Doug is also a regular contributor to IEEE Broadcast Technology. He is the recipient of the 2023 NAB Television Engineering Award. He also received a Tech Leadership Award from TV Tech publisher Future plc in 2021 and is a member of the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society and the Society of Broadcast Engineers.