Known Issue: Playback Problems via Roku

Announcements
1

Hi folks -

We are aware of a recent uptick in playback issues via the 4th Generation Tablo app on Roku. Other Tablo-compatible platforms are unaffected.

Users with a wide variety of Roku device models are reporting that playback of both live and recorded content will stop suddenly, and return users to the live or library menus.

We are still investigating and hope to have more information to share with you soon.

In the meantime, you can help the investigation by sharing which Roku OS version your affected device is running.

To find your Roku OS version, press the Home button on your Roku remote, then navigate to Settings > System > About. The system information screen will display the current Roku OS software version along with your Roku model and other device details.

Thank you for your patience as we work to get to the bottom of this.

UPDATE September 29, 5:00 p.m. ET

We believe we have found the source of the issue and are working on a hotfix for the 4th Generation app for Roku users. We expect the update will be available by next week at the latest. Thank you again for your patience and assistance as we work to resolve this problem.

UPDATE October 2, 2:00 p.m.

The hotfix is now available. Details available here:

3 Likes
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I often watch live TV on Tablo, over-the-air channels. However, pretty much every single time Iā€™m watching TV, as soon as the show ā€œendsā€ (ie. according to the TV Guide listings), live playback stops and goes back to the TV Guide.

I literally just want to keep the channel playing indefinitely until I manually go back. This is frustrating for example when I have something playing in the living room while Iā€™m cooking in the kitchen (thereā€™s a big pass-thru, so I can see the entire TV from the kitchen counter) and suddenly gotta get up to hit OK on the Roku remote because itā€™s back at the Guide and I just want to continue playing the highlighted channel.

Or for example I love watching Judge Judy, and the episode ends up beginning slightly before the ā€œstartā€ (ie. ~3:59:30 PM) so I end up missing the details of the first case, because it goes back to the guide, and then takes a few seconds to get playing again.

Generally I like to play live TV by going to the Live TV Guide, going over to the left, and clicking the channel name/number. Occasionally I will watch it by clicking ā€œWatch Liveā€. Whether I select the channel this way or by clicking the channel itself, most of the time it will go back to the previous screen once the show has ā€œendedā€. Once in a while it will keep playing through past the end of a show, but probably 95% of the time it will go back.

As for device details, I generally watch on the Roku Ultra in my living room, although occasionally Iā€™ll watch on the TV out on my deck, which has a Streaming Stick. The same issue happens there too.

The living room one is a Roku Ultra 4660X. The deck TV has a Roku Streaming Stick 4K 3820R2
Both are running Roku software version 14.6, and both have the Tablo app version 2.2.54, which is the latest available.

For the record I have very strong antenna signal, I live about 15 miles from the tower which has the main channel I watch (which even transmits in ATSC 3.0), have a ClearStream 4MAX pointed right at it, and I live high up on the side of a hill - I can literally see the tower. Itā€™s not that.

And this happens on two different Rokus. Roku has been on version 14 for a while now, so I do not want to keep hearing Tablo blame Rokuā€™s software at this point; it is what it is now, and TABLO needs to update THEIR software to work with it.

1 Like
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Welcome to the Community.

If you select a single program to watch, the Tablo will return to the Home or previos screen when the show completes.

If you click the far-left column Channel in the Live TV/Guide, playback should continue from show to show.

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Respectfully, please re-read my post. I have already stated that it DOES NOT continue when I click the channel itself; that is literally the entire reason I have made this postā€¦

Generally I like to play live TV by going to the Live TV Guide, going over to the left, and clicking the channel name/number. Occasionally I will watch it by clicking ā€œWatch Liveā€. Whether I select the channel this way or by clicking the channel itself, most of the time it will go back to the previous screen once the show has ā€œendedā€.

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I see, sorry about that.

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Both are running Roku software version 14.6, and both have the Tablo app version 2.2.54, which is the latest available.

Isnā€™t the current roku tablo app version for legacy 3.1.0 and for the gen 4 version 1.2.0

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2.2.54 seems to be the current version. NEW - Tablo (4th Gen Only) Firmware Release (2.2.54)

For the record, mine is a Gen 4 (2-tuner).

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Firmware is what is installed on the actual unit. The app controls user interaction.

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Sorry, youā€™re right - I did say ā€œTablo app version 2.2.54ā€ where I meant to say ā€œTablo firmware version 2.2.54ā€.

The Roku Tablo App is indeed Version 1.2 build 0.

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Is the show youā€™re watching live also being recorded? After the recording is finished, it will kick you back to the guide.

If youā€™re watching a live show on the channel and itā€™s not being recorded, it should bring you to the next program.

Weā€™ve done some testing on our end, with shows that arenā€™t being recorded, and havenā€™t been able to reproduce this behavior.

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I will try to check whether this happens on non-recorded shows, or strictly on ones being recorded.

That being said, if the fact that itā€™s being recorded is kicking it back to a guide, then I do expect Tablo will fix this bug very soon, since now you have confirmed this behavior on your end.

I record several of the shows that I watch, as I will play them back later in the day or on another day. However, when I work from home, I am able to watch them while they are live, and since they are back-to-back (eg. two recorded 30-minute episodes in a row, followed afterwards by the unrecorded newscast), I should be able to watch live TV and remain on that channel, regardless of recording status, and not get kicked back to the guide.

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I have just confirmed that it does not matter whether the show I am watching is recording, or even if any show is recording.

From 2 until 3pm, I have no scheduled recordings, as there are no shows broadcasting OTA that I care about. However, I flip over to How Itā€™s Made on the streaming channel How To. This channel tends to start/end at funky times (as oppsed to on the :00 and :30 of the hour). I flipped over to watch that channel at probably 2:01pm. The then-current show was just ending around 2:03pm (or whatever the actual time was), at which time it reverted back to the guide. I clicked the channel name again to watch the 2:03pm episode, and again when that one ended, it went back to the guide then too. The show was not recording, nor was anything else from 2:00 until 3:00pm.

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That is odd.

Would you reach out to Tablo Support?

If you do, please DM us your email address and the ticket number you received.

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SAME PRBOEM HERE! I am sssooooo frustrated. My Tablo has not worked correctly ever since the big guide fiasco. I call tech support a couple of times a week, almost daily. Tier 1 support is a joke, we constantly go thru the same Troubleshooting but rarely fix the problem. The problems vary, so its not the same issue. Finally tonight Tier 1 finally admitted you guys have a KNOWN issue working with ROKU. I bought my Tablo in Dec 2024, specifically because it would work woth ROKU. Now, it hasnt worked corectly for at least 6-8 weeks, Iā€™ve reported multiple issues, multiple times.
Iā€™m finally to the point of either make it work with ROKU like you advertised it would, or give me my money back.
Itā€™s been more than 30 days since I bought it, so Iā€™m being told itā€™s just too bad.
I have emailed info@tablotv.com begging for someone at Corporate to help me.
Iā€™m ready to call the better business bureau because this is getting ridiculous.
PLEASE make this thing work again, or give me my money back!

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My tablo wonā€™t stop blinking so the app can find it

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I agree with leesa682002, time to offer our money back, or maybe we all need to start a class action lawsuit against this unscrupulous company who has ripped us all off with this despicable grift! Time to give it up tablo and do the right thing and offer everyone an unconditional refund! WE ARE ALL TIRED OF THIS RIPOFF! Every time there is a roku update, a tablo update, or a server problem, the turd starts acting up even more,and it takes weeks to get only part of the problem corrected. Then another update or server issue happens, and we get to add new problems on top of the half of the problems left over from the last issue! Tablo, just throw the towel in, honestly admit your turd of a product doesnā€™t work as advertised half of the time, and refund our hard earned money which we have worked harder for than you have! Just sayinā€™.

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P.S. My tablo box and my onn box plays right with every other app I use so quit laying half the blame on our streaming boxes. If the tablo is the only app with problems on all the streaming platforms, then I would have to say the problem is tabloā€™s, not rokuā€™s, onnā€™s, appleā€™s, or any others other than tabloā€™s!

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Iā€™ve been having the same issue for about a week. I have done 5 factory resets, reinstalled the app many times. I think itā€™s a server issue because it happens more when streaming like AMC channel. Local goes back to guide after the live show ends. Very frustrating. This is a new Tablo, I had to replace my 2 year old 4th gen last week.

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Yeah, for me the one streaming channel I watch will now run for only a few minutes before dropping back to the guide, whereas local OTA broadcasts at least have the courtesty to wait until the show ends, lol.

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So is it a Tablo issue or a ROKU issue when watching live TV from the Tablo guide jumps back to the guide after a few minutes of watching? Also have experienced the Roku remote locking up in the middle of playback. Then nothing you can do except hit the home button and start all over again and again. This is happening quite a bit and is becoming a nuisance.

Would really like someone to take ownership of this issue (Roku points to Tablo, Tablo points to Roku.