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Tuning in over-the-air broadcasts can be more of an art than a science. Witness the Mohu Leaf Glide, a $90 powered indoor antenna that looks good on paper but turned in middling results in our tests. If you require the extra boost of an amp, Mohu's $70 Curve 50 is less expensive and will pull in more stations.
Design: Janus-faced
With an ebony and ivory design that can accommodate different interiors, the flat Glide is black on one side and white on the other. The large (21.5 x 11.5 inches) rectangular antenna can be stuck or tacked onto a wall (there are pinholes in the corners of the antenna).
Mohu has considerable experience in antenna design and demonstrates its expertise by making it as easy as possible to install the Glide. The company includes a detachable 16-foot cable, for example, and the in-line powered amplifier can be plugged into an outlet with the supplied adapter or into a TV's powered USB port. Mohu says the amplifier is designed to filter out unwanted FM and cellular interference.
Specs
Channels Received: 26
Range: 65 miles
1080p reception: Yes
Cable Length: 16 feet
Size: 21.5 x 11.5 inches
Performance: Just Middling
For our review, we used the in-line amplifier and hooked the Glide up to our test Samsung KS9000 4K TV's tuner. The Mohu Glide registered 34 channels on an initial scan in our metropolitan location. We expected more, since we have registered as many as 71 stations using Mohu's ReLeaf antenna.
Ultimately, the Mohu Glide reliably pulled in just 26 clear stations. That list included all the local network affiliates, ranging from Dr. Phil on CBS to Ellen on NBC. Many of the lower secondary channels also came in well, most of which feature reruns of old shows like Bewitched and Bonanza .
Unfortunately, the Glide had a number of marginal, glitchy stations in the middle of the channel range that we found unwatchable. Farther up the dial, it redeemed itself by consistently receiving the more powerful Spanish language stations. In more rural areas with fewer available stations, results may be better.
Bottom Line
Antenna reception results can vary widely, depending on the number of stations in your area, how many urban obstructions there are, and your distance from broadcast towers. Still, we expected more from the Mohu Leaf Glide. Other models from Mohu — such as the ReLeaf and the Curve — yielded more channels when tested under virtually identical conditions. And both of those models cost considerably less.
Credit: Mohu
