I’ve had my Table since April, but have only used it as a daily solution since I cancelled DirecTv in the middle of last month. Since I’ve been active on the forums for a long time now, I thought I would weigh in with my experiences.
My Setup: Currently I have a Tablo 2 Tuner model hooked to an Amazon Extreme Performance Antenna (Amplifier plugged into second USB power port on Tablo), and a Western Digital Elements 1TB drive (All plugged into a Tripp Lite Internet 600 UPS). I’m in a dual market location Cincinnati/Dayton Ohio, and get 44 channels OTA (Much like satellite, I will never watch half of them, but this way at least they are free garbage). My Tablo connects through a set of Zyzel PLA4215 500mbps powerline adapters to an Asus RT-N56U router that distributes the signal.
How I watch: Every morning my wife and I watch TV in the bathroom getting ready for work via a powerline connected (PLA4225 4-Port) Roku 2XS. This TV is used almost exclusively to stream live TV. In the evening when we settle in for living room viewing we watch on a powerline connected (PLA4225 4-Port) Roku 3. Generally this is always pre-recorded content. Late at night, if we want to watch something in the bedroom (also generally prerecorded) we will view Tablo via the Plex app on our Amazon Fire TV (Connected via the same PLA4225 4-Port as our Roku 2XS). Additional occasional in house viewing is done via an iPad 3 on the counter while cooking dinner. Occasional use outside the house via an AT&T LTE iPad mini, and we have even streamed via the web app in Puerto Rico via my Chromebook.
My Experience: In my opinion the Tablo integrates perfect with my life. My wife and I are both happy with the interface and the viewing experience. She is not a tech person, and would be very vocal if the Tablo didn’t meet her ease of use standards.
Additional Info: I record everything in 720P. With my size and mix of TVs that is what makes sense for me, and I think the picture quality looks great. I supplement my cord cutting with Amazon Prime (which I had pre-cord cutting),Netflix, and season passes for shows like Walking Dead. I also have an extremely robust library of movies, and a dedicated server running Plex in the house.
Problems: To date, we have missed 2 shows we intended to record. One was because of a lightning storm, and the other was Golf preempting what was on the schedule. Other than an operator error trying to force a firmware update, the Tablo has been rock solid running as expected 24/7
Wishes: My one wish for the system would be for it to remember where you left of when you stopped watching mid show. As for everything else, smart recording, bulk deleting, Surround Sound etc. will all be great when they happen. Honestly though, I am really happy using this product as is for now, and whatever comes next will be icing on the cake.
As always YMMV, but hopefully this paints a picture of what a successful Tablo setup can look like.
