The Mohu Leaf 50 is one of the better looking antennae you can buy. It's flat and easy to install, and you can easily hide it behind other objects to avoid it being seen on your wall. It's reception leaves a lot to be desired, though, and is only really suitable for suburban and rural areas. It comes at a decent price when compared to other HDTV receivers, so is ok if you're looking to save money. It's probably not one of the best HDTV antennas (opens in new tab) you can buy right now, but is worth a look if you're in a strong signal area.
We tested the HD digital antenna in two different locations: a downtown office and in a second-floor apartment a few miles south of the downtown office. The office building has obstructions such as taller surrounding buildings and trees in the immediate area. This can disrupt a TV signal. In the office we were only able to receive 12 total channels. Even the non-amplified models we tested, like the Insignia Fine Tuning Indoor (opens in new tab) antenna, were able to pick up at least 12, so this number was disappointing. We were unable to receive CBS, PBS and ABC – three major network channels. NBC came in with great clarity. The other channels included the Home Shopping Network and all of its sub-channels, all of which came through nice and clear.
In our second location, we received much different channel reception results. This time we were able to pick up 31 channels with the indoor HDTV antenna, more than the Terk OMNITV20 FLAT (opens in new tab). There are no obstructions outside of the apartment windows, making it easier for signal to reach the antenna and resulting in more channels.
Even though we received more channels in the second location, many of them did not provide great reception. CBS, ABC and PBS were received this time, but with a decent amount of breakup in the signal. Regardless of the surrounding area, we simply couldn’t get good reception on all of the major networks – the channels that usually provide the strongest and clearest signal out.
The Mohu Leaf 50 is amplified, so it does come with a separate power source that needs to be plugged into the wall. The included coaxial cable is 16 feet long, which is one of the longer coaxial cables, and gives you enough slack to find the best spot in your home. The Leaf 50 is covered by a one-year warranty. This is a standard warranty length for most digital HDTV antennas. If you have any questions regarding your digital TV antenna, you can contact Mohu via email or phone.
Should you buy the Mohu Leaf 50?
The Mohu Leaf 50 can scan for channels in a 50-mile radius, but the results you get aren't all that good. We were unable to get quality reception on major networks such as ABC, PBS and CBS, but there was break-up on many other channels. It did work better in an area with fewer trees and buildings around, so is good for some rural and suburban areas, but it isn't really suitable for homes or apartments in the heart of a downtown area.
