I switched back and forth sometimes because even as a kid I was obsessed with image quality on my TV. Sometimes 3 seemed to have less interference, sometimes 4.
"Am I missing something here? Why channel 3 or 4? Wouldn't you already have TV channels on those?"
Using RF switches for older game systems this is what you had to do (before we had 'input channels on TVs). These days TVs will let you switch to 'input 3' or something, and even NES and SNES supported those types of hookups, but I didn't have a TV with input selection until about 2003.
Yeah, but, surely yo can set it to any channel? Why specifically 3 or 4?"
I think in theory, you would never have two channels broadcasting on both of those two channels in the same area. Back in my day, my little Sony Trinitron didn't have a RF plug on the back. It had four screws for the VHF and UHF antennas. The RF adapter took the place of one of those antennas or (as was the case) doubled over the top of the VHF one.
Atari's systems used channels 2 and 3. In European regions, channel 36 was used. I think they could pretty much use whatever channels they wanted, but they just chose to stick with 3 and 4.
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