We can probably count on that
I bought the new Toshiba Fire a edition tv on prime day. I noticed when I connected my antenna to it (directly - before I bought my Tablo) that I could pause live TV and rewind a bit (Iâm assuming it used what little space was left after installing apps). I had the thought at that time that Amazon could very easily enable full dvr capabilities, if they werenât already working on it.
That being said, Iâm very happy with my Tablo Dual Lite I just bought. The cloud storage works perfect and I donât think Iâll need the external hard drive storage.
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There have been rumors about a cloud-based DVR, there are also rumors (and leaks) about a physical DVR box, to work with Fire TVs and Fire TV devices.
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Now that itâs announced, it looks like a Tablo copycat. Iâm sure it will be great, but Tablo has implemented most of the features I really want (except the ability to load recordings to iPad locally), so I donât see myself hopping over to the Amazon echo-system any time soon.
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Evidently, their target audience (at initial launch) is their own install base. That, and whatever Roku owners are willing to jump ship to Fire TV and then fork out the $229 - $279 (and whoever bites on the new generation and slew of inexpensive Insignia Fire Edition TVs that just came out), so this wonât be a direct competitor to Tablo, AirTV, etc. ⌠yet.
Though not my primary viewing protocol, I do have a (recently-purchased) Toshiba Fire Edition TV and I love the interface (and features), so Iâll benefit from this in at least some fashion (have already pre-ordered). If nothing else, it looks like a fun & fantastic experiment.
One thing Iâve found a bit irritating, is that all the âbreaking newsâ articles on this are written by people who know very little about the OTA world, and either know nothing (or pretend to know nothing) about Tablo, HD Homerun and others of this ilk. They all compare it to Tivo, making (stupid) statements like âWatch out Tivoâ, âThe demise of Tivo?â or âAmazon Takes on Tivoâ, etc., etc.
Not only ignoring the many products in this space, but (again) missing the point of Amazonâs target audience, which has nothing to do with Tivo, whatsoever (at initial launch).
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I does compete with Tivo in the sense that it has built in disks of the same sizes and recording capacities.
Some DVR users come from a world where the technical complexity of purchasing a USB disk, plugging it in via a USB cable, and formatting the disk almost gives them a stroke. They want a total solution where you open the box, plug it, and off you go. Regardless of the quality and features of the DVR software.
i doubt itâs cloud based. why would it require an antenna if video is not saved locally? there are also 2 options for internal storage, 500MB and 1TB. so everything points to local storage.
Itâs a physical box.
There had been rumors of both cloud-based and physical DVR for awhile, over the past few weeks, it firmed up as a âboxâ with a pre-operational name of âFrankâ and then unveiled today as Recast.
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Steep price.
What this does confirm is the future and viability of OTA when a company like Amazon chooses to enter this market. Also with ATSC 3.0 coming down the road to make OTA easier for reception and the upward trend of cordcuttingâŚ
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I wonder if it will include lifetime service. Could hurt Tablo and Tivo at this price point if it does.
There appears to be no subscription fees with the Fire TV Recast. So the price is the price.
But this is key, from recent reviews no 1080p:
âAmazon says it streams video at 1440 x 720 at 60 fps.â
Itâs one of the few direct competitors to the Tablo that I have seen. The big difference is that Fire TV Recast appears to only work on FireTv devices and mobile devices, so no PC, Xbox, Playstation, Roku, AppleTv, or AndroidTV.
The no subscription fee is big, and the the app appears to support voice commands on the devices that use it.
If someone was brand new to cord cutting, this appears to be a solid option to the Tablo. But if you are already invested in a Roku/AppleTv/Android TV streaming infrastructure, it would require giving up your devices.
It will be interesting to see it in action and how it compares to the Tablo feature for feature.
The 2 tuner has just a 512 GB hard drive, and the 4 tuner has a 1 TB. Both are quite small compared to what you can use with the Tablo (I have a 4 TB drive and have used a little over 2 TV).
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I also saw an article that said the Recast only streams to 2 TVâs at a time.
The FAQâs also state that you can only have one Fire TV Recast per Amazon account. With Tabloâs subscription you can have multiple units at no additional cost.
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One Recast DVR per account, but no limit on accounts within a household and up to five devices per Recast. Many people have two (or more) Amazon accounts and many households have more than one member in the home with an Amazon account. number of devices.
As to cost-per-unit ⌠in the case of Amazon Recast DVR the cost is zero. There is no monthly fee, whether you have one or one-hundred.
Not so steep, when compared to Tablo:
- Amazon Recast with four tuners $279
- Tablo with four tuners, $199 plus $150 for lifetime fee plus $60 for a 1TB external hard drive
Thatâs $410 for the Tablo, versus $279 for the Recast, each with 1TB storage capacity.
For the two-tuner, it works out to $229 for Recast, versus $349 for Tablo (with lifetime fee & HD)
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Thatâs a very good point. It pulls the viability of OTA into the mainstream and does so in a very huge way. Personally, this bothers me a bit. I like being part of a (relatively) private little army of âTablo-itesâ, people who know the product, love the product and are invested in itâs success.
This is going to facilitate cord-cutting to the masses, making it easy and (more important) making it known, helping people understand how easy it is and just how much great / free programming is out there.
Using myself as an example: up until three months ago, when I stumbled upon (and bought) a Tablo in a Best Buy, I had never even heard of Quest, Justice TV, Cozi, Comet, Laff, Ion, Antenna TV, Joe, Decades, Start TV, any of it. I had never seen (nor heard of) Dominique Dunne, New Detectives, Dog Town, or variety shows with Glen Campbell, Johnny Cash, Sonny & Cher, Dolly Parton, Mac Davis ⌠ANY of that.
Like me, there are many people out there to whom none of this would ever occur. Amazonâs presence in this space can increase the awareness of this OTA world and with their resources, make anything they want of it.
And of course, Amazon never stands still for more than a few minutes. One year from now, they will have made tons of improvements, adjustments & âfixesâ, probably even a newer / better version (or two) and of course, lower price points.
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That box is likely going to be too locked down for my taste. I also like Tablo and Roku because they arenât part of the âwarâ like Amazon, Apple, Microsoft, and Google. We wonât support your app. We are suing for this or that. Tablo and Roku are like neutral parties. They include everyones apps/hardware.
PS: Amazon is also getting into the microwave oven market with an Amazon basics smart microwave.
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If you look at the Amazon FAQ for the Recast, it really shows it to be a locked down device in a closed environment. Thatâs why the usage of internal, non-removable drives.
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