Your post got me thinking a little. And boy, it is way too hot today to be doing that today!
Since the TabloTV app forces a 16:9 perspective, it makes sense that it would have to put something in those bars, but why this obnoxious dark blue? I doubt that they can leave them blank, but at least try a rich dark black!
As others have noted, the Tablo app on other platforms that arenāt android-based do not insert these blue bars on 4:3 content. So I think the solution here is just to code the Android-based apps the way the iOS and Roku apps are programmed.
So, I have not run into this issue on my many android-based systems. Thereās got to be something different about these devices versus others.
If you donāt have a Google TV or a Firestick, you may not see it. In which case, count yourself lucky.
I do have a GoogleTV and a Firestick (4k max). I also use an AndroidTV, an onn GoogleTV STB, and an onn AndroidTV STB.
I was never able to reproduce this issue. I will be the first to admit that I have not spent any time deciphering what type of signal I am receiving from any of my stations. I do hope they come up with a fix for thisā¦ it would drive me nuts!
If the tablo is a gen 4 one would think that the tablo app for OTA is pass through MPEG2. And if the real aspect ratio is 4:3 it is a mystery where those pillar bars came from. Let alone why they arenāt black.
This only happens to me with the Tablo android app. The Roku app fills the sidebars in with black on the same stations. And it only happens on stations that broadcast in 480i format, not 480i (w) format. The 480i (w) stations show black bars on both apps with 4:3 size content. And the same stations look fine watching the antenna input on the tv. I wish Tablo engineers would duplicate the problem and fix it. It may only occur in a very few (and probably small) markets, but it is annoying.