ZapperBox now has official OTA TV DRM support & DVR DRM support.
I asked them if they plan on having a 4 tuner ATSC 3.0 with DRM.
Here is the response:
*"Yes. Working on it.
We do not have a date yet. Still working on encrypted channel support."
The Zapperbox now will show all the ATSC 3 channels, but not record encrypted yet that is the next release, records the unencryted ATSC 3 though right now. Nice device except a little expensive for only 2 tuners, so I think keeping many away. They keep saying beta as I think they just donāt want people complaining if things go wrong, but the DVR does work fine, season passes and 30 second skip can stack so 6 presses skips 3 minutes and so on, just lacking some DVR options.
There is actually already a 4 tuner ZB, but they do not talk about it until DRM is fully working on the 2 tuner and they can see how much processing power and all that it uses. They could even need to redesign the 4 tuner if they need to make it more powerful, so why I think they will not talk about it.
Have any new updates come out about a Tablo ATSC 3 DVR? All my major networks are now on ATSC 3 channels in a little better quality and some get even stronger signal here.
I been using the ZB, but also have the white 2 tuner Tablo and plan to get the 4 tuner white Tablo, but I have so many DVRās or will, rather hold off for an ATSC 3 Tablo but no idea when or if it is coming.
My guess is the 3.0 is more or less still on hold. They are working on getting the Gen 4 regular Tabloās working properly first.
Basically, when it comes to external ATSC 3.0 tuners, the legal and other landscape is still a field of constantly shifting mines. DRM threw a massive nuclear bomb into the works.
Iām bothered by DRM as well. It certainly has gummed up the works, and I can think of no legitimate reason to have it on the public airwaves. My hope is that it will be abandoned at some point, either because of market conditions or because theyāre forced to.
2 Likes
The Zapper guys have all the ATSC 3 channels viewable now and you can record the unencrypted ATSC 3 channels now. The next update they say will allow recording of the DRM ATSC 3 channels so should be done by end of year or earlier unless they hit a snag.
I am not promoting them here 
but they could be the first consumer ATSC 3 DVR that is fully working I think and could ease some of the negative publicity about ATSC 3 DRM. The HDHR ATSC 3 DVR seems to have hit a couple big hurdles and I have doubts they will get it working anytime soon, so Zapper seems to be the big savior āifā they do get it fully working by the end of this year.
Your statement shows how messed up ATSC 3.0 really is. We shouldnāt need a hardware āsaviorā to overcome the issues. The only ones that can save us from this mess are the ATSC org or FCC.
It looks like ZapperBox is finally making some real headway with ATSC 3.0.
@TabloTV, Iām wondering when Tablo plans to enter the ATSC 3.0 market? Itās been more than 2 years since Tablo initially announced that they would be producing an ATSC 3.0 Tablo and then ultimately canceling it. Your CEO announced that youāre working on it, but no forecast of when. So, whatās the current status?
So the key to āDRMā is that the āgenie cannot escape the bottleā. That is, control must be maintained end to end. Otherwise, you really donāt have DRM.
I know for many, they could care less about how free their recordings are with regards to long term usage, but, DRM means everything has to be in a ālock boxā.
Still hoping some sanity will rule. But glad that this DRM insanity will result in ATSC 1.0 being around longer.
1 Like
If you want a DVR that works as a gateway DVR and supports DRM, A3SA only appears to have DRM decryption specifications for widevine on android. Not roku, apple, windows. etc.
$250 price is steep to meā¦ Plus a Monthly / Yearly feeā¦
Iāll waitā¦ no rush for me.
Edit: My 2 tuner Gen4 Tablo has been working great. I live in a rural area, Iām sure it may take a while for 3.0 to hit us. Anyway, I will wait for the Tablo 3.0 box to come out. No Rush for me.
1 Like
Corollary to what I said: Streaming wise, you also canāt change the original codecs (transcode) without becoming a re-broadcaster and requiring a license for that. I realize thatās how the OG works, just pointing out the problem with that according to established SCOTUS precedent. And something more of interest to a broadcaster, todayās Tablo.
With that said, obviously the codecs, while not necessarily well handled (e.g. AC-4), the new ATSC 3.0 allowed codecs might actually help with regards to network streaming when devices are able to handle it all natively (which will come). Butā¦ thereās that lousy DRM (sigh).
1 Like
When they come out with the 4-tuner, Iāll give it a try.
EDIT: Also, you can pay annually for the guide.
Iād rather pay that $30 once a year than the $60 I pay Tablo now at $5 a month.
If it donāt work, Oh well, lesson learnedā¦
Tablo has been about streaming across a network. Until recently, there was no standard to allow that. I donāt think the 3.0 is cancelled as much as being on hold and then seeing if it can be updated, or redesigned from scratch.
Just a note that Lon has an updated review with the DVR feature.
1 Like
Zapper downsides for me are only 2 tuners, hardwire req to TV, high price and then there is a monthly guide fee also.
1 Like
Fair points, although I believe the HDMI to TV is the only option right now for ATSC 3.0 right now isnāt it since the ATSC 3.0 gateway standards havenāt been been finalized yet?
Iām actually impressed that Zapper box has gotten this far, with obviously and āend to endā DRM solution (as mentioned, say goodbye to recordings you can just retrieve and playback anywhere without āapprovalā).
I know this total loss of freedom is no big deal (I mean most of you did buy the 4th gen Tablo).
So, very interesting news for those that live in the ālockboxā (and are apparently content).
I am interested in this Zapperbox to Zapperbox, which I imagine will be about āschedulingā at first, and maybe cross device playback (since the keys to the lockbox are known). Interesting, but I am a spectator watching the now āaccepted worldā, and wishing more could see something better (and care).
While I view this as āan attackā and āa warā, I know itās matter of sides. I donāt mind being on the tiny side of freedom fighters, even when it looks pretty bleak for our side.
1 Like
I need a system where the only hardwire connection to the OTA/DVR is from the antenna, and router and TV connections are on my wifi network.
I have a room that is a good location for an antenna, but I donāt want to put our TV or a router in that room. Iāve got a fast mesh wifi network. So a Tablo gen 4 is a perfect solution, and I hope that future gens retain the same networking capabilities.
I have watched Lonās review again and maybe thereās something I donāt understand, but it looks to me that after atsc 3 networking standards are finalized, there will still be OTA/DVR setups that will require more hardwiring than I want to do. And Tablo may change. Gotta wait and see.