Cut the cable! Your best options for free TV viewing

Zach Wobensmith "cut the cable" eight years ago when he bought a TV antenna, and he said he hasn't looked back.

"I probably get 20 or 30 channels that I can be relatively certain of," said Wobensmith. That includes local news or his favorite late night talk shows, which are all free over-the-air channels.

"If it's raining badly out, sometimes I lose the signal," he said. "Most of the time it comes in fine and the picture is extremely clear."

Experts say over-the-air images are often clearer than cable, because they can be less compressed. To find out which antennas deliver the best result, Consumer Reports tested ten both near a window and near the TV. Across the board, the window location worked best.

Receiving WRAL-TV in HD over-the-air

Testers also found that, despite the many different shapes, design is not as important as where you live and what you're surrounded by.

"If you live in a very mountainous area or live in a city and there are a lot of buildings that obstruct the signal, than you may have a tougher time than somebody who is in a neighborhood where there aren't a lot of tall buildings," said Jim Wilcox, a tech editor with Consumer Reports.

For best results, Consumer Reports suggests placing the antenna as high as possible, trying different locations and rescanning to see which spot gets you the most channels.

Another great tip? You might need to try a different antenna to get the best reception, so, before you buy one, make sure the store allows returns or exchanges.