T&T: : KVH M2 sat TV

[George Hechtman]

Rather than offer speculation, I can provide actual experience. We  
have used one of these from New Bern NC to now as far as the mid  
Keys. I had originally wanted (and actually bought) a Follow Me TV,  
but could not come up with a mounting place that satisfied me. They  
(F-M-TV) were VERY nice and helpful people to deal with, by the way.

We have found the M2 actually works quite nicely while under way down  
the ICW (though we rarely have need to have it on underway). We we  
have been at a very rocky/rolly confused seas anchorage the past  
three nights and it has worked fine here as well. We have not tried  
it in off shore conditions. It takes a few minutes to "set" itself  
when you have it off, travel, and then arrive at a new location.

Our biggest complaint has been with the remote control, which has  
been awful; poor to no range, inconsistent as to which keys work or  
not (we changed it out once right when we got it, but the second no  
better than the first). I am told they now have a solution for this  
and next time we settle down for awhile we'll get that addressed. So  
make sure your unit comes with this new (like in the last few weeks)  
remote. The remote also has some installation quirks; you have to  
mount its receiver at least three feet from the satellite receiver.

  It's main advantages over the F-M-TV is that it is very small and  
automatic. The disadvantages are that it uses a proprietary receiver,  
is Direct TV only, and doesn't do HD, and costs 2 1/2 times as much.  
So I encourage you to fully evaluate the F-M-TV first . I'll repeat  
that they are very helpful in trying to get you going and installed  
properly.



George