A cheap Roku will do the trick. You could even Air Play to it so you wouldn’t have to switch as much between devices. I have all major streaming devices. Roku is pretty good for what you pay. Far better than FireTV if you ask me. Honestly I think it’s hard to get by with just one streaming platform. Between Apple TV and Roku you should be totally covered. The Roku Premiere+ 4K is a good one for not a lot of money. Was as low as $25 during the holidays. Normally $40.
But they make apps for iOS and iPad OS so it really shouldn’t be that hard to come up with one for tvOS.
1 Like
I thought previous versions of Tablo didn’t use MPEG2 streams. They had to transcode. They had an Apple TV app.
I don’t bite on wording such as “coming soon”. Maybe you will wake tomorrow and it say coming this week or coming today. I don’t gift technology products I’ve never used. It’s often hard enough to explain how to get it out of the box it’s in.
The OG network (emphasis) Tablos, yes. They transcoded to be “streaming” capable using the “universal format”, H264 aac. Later was added the capability to pass through surround sound, but only as a “on/off” option.
The HDMI models did, and it is very likely the Tablo devs used what they learned from those to create the 4th gen devices.
But that’s just it… you can’t have purchased or used every product in the world! You only know what YOU use. Maybe there’s a reason your sister likes her Xbox and you like your Playstation. It’s not fair to judge a person because their uses are different than yours.
You seem so stuck in the Roku “echo system” that you haven’t discovered the benefits of other devices! Your dislike of everything Apple blinds you to the fact that many people prefer its speed and UI. Your dislike of Amazon blinds you from taking 30 seconds to solve your non-existent ad problem by installing a different launcher.
I think that the Roku is a cheap device that is made so 7-year-olds can operate it with ease. They’re very limiting in what they’re capable of doing. But because they’ve been around a long time, they feel comfortable to a lot of people. And because they’re easy to use, I do recommend them to people with little money to spend that don’t have a lot of technical know-how. (I swear, their user base is kids and 80yo grandmas!)
Is one better than the other? That’s completely relative! Are we basing things on specs? UI? Popularity? Amount of apps available?
“Coming Soon” is definitely a phrase that users should key in on and find out what it means to that company. These user are trying to do just that and getting nothing back. Stop blaming the user for a company’s promise.
As a friend just said to me, “Tablo definitely has a lot of the blame for misrepresenting what they support.”
If the box and site said nothing about AppleTV and the other OSes, this conversation wouldn’t even exist right now. The person interested in this product would go and find an STB that worked if they found it to be worthy of their time and money. But at least they would know that what they currently have doesn’t work.
1 Like
Exactly! The iPadOS doesn’t support MPEG2 either, but somehow the Tablo supports it just fine.
1 Like
Will they let us be beta testers or do they do it all in house with a half ass job?
The plan is for the AppleTv app to be beta tested. I won’t be one of those since I don’t own an AppleTv, but I should be able to at least see how it is going. But no beta test is scheduled yet.
I hope the ones that were beta testing the 4th gens are able to continue to give their impressions by also being the first ones able to try the AppleTV version. They’ve been using the devices longer and have an idea of what it should feel like, as well as how it should operate.
They’ve also been suffering through different bugs from the beginning, and are likely to know what to expect.
They didn’t seem to get much time between receiving their 4th gens and when it came out, though, and as long-anticipated as the AppleTV version is, IDK if Tablo would be willing to risk waiting any longer.
I have an AppleTV and would like to be a beta tester for it. My only fear is they beta test it in house and not let regular users. But I hope I’m wrong.
Testing in house isn’t a beta test. The Tablo folks have had lots of beta tests over the years, and it is regular users like all of us here. And back when the Gen4 was being beta tested, the devs made it clear that AppleTv on gen4 would have a beta test as well.
Over the years they were a lot different than now and no EW Scripts. I was a beta tester for the Legacy and Android.
It sounds like , to get this thing to working right for me, it’s going to take a Roku or something else. If I was to spend another $30-$40 on a Roku, which one would you get, I know nothing about Roku other than there are a lot of models. I found a Roku Premier + 4K listed above for about $35. I am not one to short change if the next step up is a lot better.
If you have a 4k TV, it’s always best to get a 4k device (Roku or Firestick), as it will always give you the clearer picture, even though the Tablo is only 1080p.
It’s also important to know what you are already comfortable using. If you have an Android phone, you might be more comfortable with a Chromecast with Google TV or Amazon Firestick (I think Walmart’s 4k onn. Google streaming device will also work.) If you have used a Roku before and like it’s interface, that might be the way to go as well. If you have no experience with either, then think about what other apps you might want to use on your device.
For example: Roku cams need a Roku device; Firestick, etc., have web browsers…
It’s really a matter of what you prefer. I’m very happy with my 2nd generation Amazon 4k Max. It has 16G of internal storage and it has not offloaded a single app yet. As for my Roku 4k Express+, every now and then it has to redownload an app to use (which is really only a matter of a few more seconds, but something I find annoying). The Rokus are very simple to use and many find this comforting.
There are a ton of Roku models, and you should do a side-by-side comparison on their website for any extra details or specs that each one might have.
You will need to set up an account to use any of these devices. Android/Google will require a Google account, Amazon firesticks will require an Amazon account, and Roku will require a Roku account. If you already have one type of these account and don’t feel like setting up a new one, this might be another reason to pick a certain device.
One of the things to keep in mind if you choose to go with Roku, is that if you have more than one they will be tied together unless you set up different accounts. This means that if you add or remove an app on one, it will do the same on any other. The Android/Google/FireTV devices are completely independent of one another.
Do you have other apps in mind for making your add-on device a whole Smart TV system? Other uses you might think you want to have on your device?
Good luck!
Thanks for the extended info. I am going to go to Roku website and do that comparison to see which one fits the bill. I am trying to get something as close to Apple TV as possible so the change over for the family is not too much, not that they can’t learn it, but there is a condtioning period for the change over. If I decide to even consider showing them this different streamer.
I wouldn’t say any of them come close to the AppleTV. They all have much weaker specs and operate entirely differently. But if it’s a grid layout you treasure most, the Roku is set up in a grid as well.
The Roku would be the easiest for others to learn, so it’s understandable. For now, though, if you have an alternative in your house, try that first. We are still experience strange behavior in the latest Roku app and I hate to see you give up entirely on the Tablo because of app-related issues.
I hope you find something useful, and don’t hesitate to continue asking questions. Asking which one they recommend was a great idea – we still haven’t figured out which of the Rokus are fully compatible and not having issues, so keep an eye on the posts where users let that known. If you want a better experience with the Roku, I would spring for the better bluetooth remote. That way your box/stick can be out of site and yet still control your Roku, the power and volume of your television, and adds voice control.
Also, it’s not fully known which Rokus have the issue where it returns to the live guide after a short time. For example, my year-old Roku 4k Express+ does not seem to have this problem, but my older Express+ does. Others may know more about their Preimiers or Ultras. Keep doing the research and checking the other community forums here as well.
This.
Why not enable the iOS app and/or the iPad OS app for use on MacOS computers that are running Apple silicon (M1, M2, etc.)?
Get Chromecast with GoogleTV