B:
Ebay. Much overpriced and mostly used.
Of course once you get past $150 shipped, the Shield becomes the better option.
Since this is a “Chromecast” thread, I wonder if anyone with a Vizio “Smart Cast” has related their experience - I am under the impression that it is just an enhanced “onboard Chromecast”…
I’ll throw in my CC experience. We use a Roku 3 for the main TV with really no problems. I also have Chromecasts on 3 tvs - living room alongside the Roku, the bedroom and deck. Everything on my network is wireless. We stream live tv and recordings to all 3 CC (not at the same time although I hear it can be done), from both PC and android devices with very little stuttering UNLESS there’s something else using resources on the PC. Then we get a bunch. Note, my PC is 7 years old and running Win7 so not real robust. Streaming live or recordings from my S5 is fine with my only complaint the FF slider is so sensitive, it’s tough getting it exactly to the right spot. BUT, I also stream live tv from my old 2011 Moto Razr with very few problems albeit VERY slow to respond. I had golf on my Razr on the deck this weekend streaming from Tablo/router through several walls and then back to the router to stream back to the deck on the CC. And get this: this is all going through an HDMI to analog RCA converter so I can use my 1998 analog 13 inch tv (only white and yellow inputs) to watch my Chromecast outside! I love my Tablo!
Hi js98, I use a Netgear Nighthawk X6 R8000. I paid waaay too much for it but it has performed very well. Click on my orange “I” for my system setup. In lieu of a signature function, this works well for folks to see how others are succeeding at this whole thing 
Hi @IllBeDarned,
Thanks for the information. Nice of you to post your configuration.
Was the R8000 affected by the issue reported by @Mark1 and @Warunicorn on the thread “I need to reboot every week. Any idea why? (RESOLVED)”? I have the Netgear R7000 and seemed to have been affected.
In general I like the netgear lineup and make use of the simple DLNA server feature it provides. I use Allcast from android and ios to stream movies to chromecast. I use one of the excellent transfer software packages posted on tablo forum to put movies on the server (which all works reliably btw). Thus I can actually watch Tablo recordings on my ATV4 using the VLC app. I also have also found the Readycloud feature to remote access to work files to be handy. For remote viewing however TabloConnect works really well.
I have considered upgrading to R8000 but it is a bit pricey. The triband feature is not worth as much to me since my high bandwidth links are wired ethernet. For instance the tablo is wired and both chromecasts are wired ethernet. I am old school, copper is the only way to go for high speed reliable communications. But the R7000 firmware issue might be the +1 to move forward with router technology. I want to be able to access the newer server features Netgear rolls into their products. I am particularly concerned about staying up to date with security improvements.
So what rev of the R8000 firmware are you running? Is it the latest? And, have you utilized much of the server capabilities Netgear includes in their product? (DLNA, iTunes server, ReadyNAS, ReadyCloud,…?)
Thanks for sharing your configuration information and your experiences. Very helpful.
I haven’t had any issues with the R8000 and apply new firmware as it reminds me - I’m at V1.0.3.4_1.1.2 now and cruising. I bought this one after reading through several comparisons and really like the range. Wired isn’t an option in much of my old house so I depend on the wireless. I really don’t use all the bells and whistles, just wanted a powerful broadcaster to reach all the corners. I use 2.4 on the Chromecasts as it goes through the walls better and reaches the deck just fine. The 5 MHz band is dedicated to our mobile devices and we do have three wired devices right next to the router - a laptop, a weather station and security cam dvr). Overall, we’ve got 13 wireless devices connected and with the 125 Mbps download speed, it seems to work very well.
I need a big beefy WiFi router some day. I have way WAY to many WiFi devices in the house. It’s why I connect everything wired that I possibly can.
Hi @riffy,
Going back to one of your original observations: “Another note… Tablo app doesn’t always stay running. Causing no way to control the video being cast after this happens. You also loose where you where with no resume when you restart it.” This is my primary difficulty. The wired communication between Tablo and chromecast seems fine, it chugs along without a hiccup. I gather from @IllBeDarned feedback that he does not experience this issue. - Please confirm @IllBeDarned so that I don’t spin cycles needlessly.
In my scenario the app looses association with the Tablo/chromecast pair or simply crashes. I have to restart the app. It usually recovers its position but sometimes not. The first hour of use is normally good. After an hour is when things start to degrade. Right now my troubleshootng interest is on; 1) tablo app, 2) R7000 router, or 3) the communications between them. Given the issue that caused me to downgrade the router f/w, I am most interested in this component.
I had been thinking about experimenting with DD-WRT router firmware on an old netgear WDR-3400 router. This may be the time.
Alright, as promised I’m testing the Chromecast now. I’m Casting Jackie Robinson that was recorded at 720P on a Proscan 32"
Tablo 4 Wired
Comcast Technicolor tc805c Wireless G/N 2.4Ghz
WD My Passport Ultra 1TB
Samsung Galaxy Note 10.1 on Android 5.1 (I hate Android)
I’m about 15 minutes into it now. Picture looks good. What do you want me to try? I tried casting Live TV and it just sits there and spins and spins. The Jackie Robinson PBS Special is looking pretty good though.
Never seen it recover. It usually gets stuck in a loop of restarting from the beginning if you hit any button.
Oh and the Chromecast is 1st Gen
To be honest I’m not concerned about it working with low bitrates. It’s stated to work with chromecast not only work at low settings. Well… unless you go searching for that one blog that @TabloSupport pointed out. rolls eyes
Oh, I have had that experience when playing recording that was not yet complete. I have not usually experienced that for fully recorded shows. For instance If I record a football game and pick up half way through to speed past commercials it will start to do that. - one scenario anyway.
So you’re saying you want me to try and cast something at 1080?
@foxvalleyal
Yup! Haven’t seen a single person that can do it. But support says this is only affecting a few people.
Roger that. Let me dish something up on 1080. Might take me a few.
Put me on that list. Message: Unfortunately, Tablo has stopped. Report Ok
No, it’s not Ok!
That was about 20 mins recorded 8Mbps 1080i of the Nap (Golf) Channel.
@foxvalleyal
As Tablo Support told me:
Again I find it funny I can’t find any one who can cast at the normal 8Mbps, but this is the story they’re spinning.
Or… saying to lower your settings so we don’t have to fix it. 
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And the wheel when it’s trying to stream before it crashes. Just add it to the list. I can’t record my most watched Channel because I think the Tuners aren’t locking in enough on the Channel (see my ClearStream Juice Amplifier Post). I bought another amplifier thinking that would do the trick. Nope. I can watch the Channel from Antenna to Amplifier to TV just fine. Not to change the subject but I don’t think people are supposed to throw hardware at this thing to make it work. Like I stated in my ClearStream Post, if I would have started building everything from scratch starting with the Tablo, I would build the perfect beast but I’m certainly not going to do that now.