Why pay $20,000 for a commercial link to run your television station when a $10 kitchen wok from the Warehouse is just as effective?

This is exactly how North Otago’s(New Zealand) newest television station 45 South is transmitting its signal from its studio to the top of Cape Wanbrow, in a bid to keep costs down.

Ken Jones designed the wok transmitter in his spare time last year when he wanted to provide wireless broadband to his Ardgowan home. Along with friend Murray Bobbette they worked out mathematical equations to prove the curved metal face of a wok would have the same effect as a small satellite dish.

When the television station 45 South (UHF channel 41) started up in September last year, Mr Jones thought the same technique could be applied. So he substituted a $10 Chinese cooking pan for a $20,000 satellite dish on behalf of his New Zealand television station.

“The $20,000 for a commercial link was just money we didn’t have, so we bought several woks from The Warehouse instead which was convenient and cheap,” he said.

Mr Jones said one pan was providing Oamaru with the signal at present and there was no need to provide another pan for some time.I am reminded of the times when Doordarshan first launched in our area more than 24 years ago and how a little aluminium cloth hanger sometimes worked better than the original antenna.

Source: nzherald

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