The new roundish Tablo, does it only come in a two-tuner model? Does it still allow the use of an external hard drive? I’m only seeing a two-tuner model but while we will rarely ever be recording more than one show at once, it WILL happen.
It looks like it has internal storage that can be expanded with an external hard drive, but what if I only want shows recorded to the external hard drive, is that still possible?
As far as all the streaming apps on it - I think the Tablo engineers should know that I don’t give a rats arse about them.
Same as the streaming apps on my TV and on my BluRay player.
I won’t ever use them, that’s what I have a Roku for and the experience is better with a Roku because streaming app developers develop for Roku. In fact, the Roku is how we plan to access shows on the Tablo so we have to have one anyway.
The streaming apps is a useless feature nobody (or very few people) actually needs.
The working theory is that the FAST channels are why there isn’t a subscription fee. They likely are paying to be included. It is cool that to be FAST channels can be recorded.
If you add an external drive, all recordings will go on it. The external drive will also keep all recordings in mpeg2 format.
Cinsidering that Tablo is owned by Scripps and Scripps has numerous ota channels, I strongly suspect that the Fast channels are part of the Scripps group of channels that is growing and serve as another profit center. I think the acquisition of ION Media takes the number of ota tv stations they own close to 60. We can expect more FAST channels to be added over time.
I intentionally avoided the word network in my post. My intent was to bring out that all 61 of the ota stations owned by Scripps can become FAST channels. Nobody knows what they will do or call themselves in the future. They are in the process of remaking the company. Their news operations have the potential to compete with the likes of CNN and FOX in the future.
I would suspect that if a Scripps network has an OTA affiliate in your DMA it won’t be in your gen 4 FAST list. None of my local OTA available Scripps networks are in my FAST list.
The Scripps news channel is both ota and FAST on the gen 4 here. Scrippsnews used to be named Newsy then changed to Scripps news . The scripps news channel is grouped with Ion, Bounce, Grit and other Scripps channels. Most of their channels are ota and FAST here. Grit and Bounce have a couple of ota channels each until contract leases have expired. Channels are in constant flux here as leases for transmitter space expire. I run scans quite often. Some channels are moving from Sinslair to another provider. Who knows where they will wind up in the end.
I’ll have to rescan. I thought I read that available FAST channels can change alot. And I only receive OTA from my DMA. Could your OTA’s be coming from a station in another DMA?
Only scripps news showed up. And it’s also on the local Scripps station. As are grit and bounce and these aren’t FAST channels.
My OTAs are local. They have been around for years as OTA.
You keep using the term DMA. In the old days, very old days, DMA meant Direct Memory Access in computer systems. Excuse my ignorance but what does it mean in the current context?
The FCC enforces DMA’s via approval of transmitter contour maps. It wouldn;t be very nice if the FCC allowed a broadcast station to purposely direct their high power signal into a marketing area next door.
A DMA region is a group of counties and zip codes that form an exclusive geographic area in which the home market television stations hold a dominance of total hours viewed. There are 210 DMA regions, covering the entire continental U.S., Hawaii, and parts of Alaska.