1080i with rabbit ear antenna or am I mistaken?

[BKSinAZ]

I have not gotten my satellite tv installed yet and I am using some cheap rabbit ear antennas with my Sony SXRD for another week or so. When switching to a PBS channel, the television displays that I am getting 1080i. Is this possible via rabbit ears? Will this same station come in even more clearer once the satellite system is hooked up? 1080i on rabbit ears is the same as 1080i on satellite?

[edtyct]

Yes, you can get 1080i with rabbit ears. Whether the same station will look better via satellite than OTA will depend on the extent of compression via satellite and a few other factors germane to each type of tramsmission. Satellite providers have been rumored to reduce resolution to save bandwidth. You'll have to make the comparison by eye. Many people report that OTA signals look better than what their cable or satellite company provides.

I edited this answer to prevent a misunderstanding. Compression is the bug-a-boo of signals processed by the mediating delivery systems, not OTA.