Legacy tablo app removed

I have a legacy model. Today the app was removed from the app list on both google play and from my new LG TV. Google play shows the icon but will not reinstall. Apparently the manufacturer took it upon themselves to do this perhaps to better sell the newer version. So now I have a device that will no longer play on my tv.
Does that make me want to go and buy the new version which I had been considering - NEVER.

When I search for Legacy Tablo on Google Play it shows up. Now whether it will install on your LG tv is a different matter. According to https://support.tablotv.com/hc/en-us/articles/13954983793940-Tablo-Compatible-Apps-and-Devices#01HZ0BQMA86ZWHVB9JDB2RYCXE , LGos tvs are no longer supported.
You could pick up a settop box like Roku or similar. Since smart tv companys tend to quit supporting their tvs after 2 to 3 years anyway, it is cheaper than buying a new tv. :slightly_smiling_face:

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I don’t know your level of technical expertise but you can sideload the Tablo legacy app to your LG TV. Lots of LG owners load apps on their TV’s that are not available without sideloading. You will need to go into developer mode and use a connected computer to complete what is an easy process once you understand it.

I am uncertain whether or not something changed making the legacy app crash OR if LG simply pulled it from their lineup. I suspect it was the latter. Very simple test with worst case scenario is you will simply delete the legacy app if it won’t fire up after installing. I can sideload apps in under two minutes so this is a very easy task ---- again once you know how.

Just a thought, but if you lack the skill or willingness to learn it you will be like most really. Just trying to help here.

I came back to give you another idea. It is also very easy to go back to the earlier firmware on your actual LG TV as long as the firmware is not a completely different version now. Usually it is just a revision of the same OS version. That being the case IF you are willing to downgrade back to the version from a month or so ago — when Tablo was running fine for you ---- that likely can be done. If you go that route you will want to disable updates on your LG or it will happen again. Just another approach.

** I would try the sideload approach mentioned above this post first, but hey another thought to consider.

​Thank you. The TV is a five month old OLED TV that until today had the legacy tablo app installed and working. So I am upset that it disappeared. Also I was mistaken it is a Samsung with a Tizen operating system which their site also says IS NO LONGER SUPPORTED. I highlight that because it suggests that at one time it did.

The cable company, which my condominium requires payment for, supplies a TIVO/androidTV cable box with google play. High speed internet, cable, modem and router cost $76 per month - a very good deal. Anyway I live on the 27th floor and have a clear shot of the antennas on top of the Sears tower 3 miles away so I like the tablo for playing around and also watching on a desktop or tablet as I work on the desktop. So the legacy app resided on the TIVO/android cable box. I cleared the cache on the cable box and the app still will not install.

The older legacy app will show on google play, will go through the download and install process but will not actually install. The legacy app does not show on the TV’s apps.

The legacy app still works on a Roku device on another TV, on another 7 year old Samsung smart TV, desktop PC and Android tablet.

I’ll try reinstalling in a couple of days and see if that works.

General comment. The problem with Smart TV and relying on the “smarts of the TV” is that the vendor itself doesn’t provide long term support of even their own Smart OS and obviously, applications certainly don’t. Not saying there can’t be issues with “separate from TV” solutions, but the risk is a whole lot less (a whole lot).

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This

This. It’s the exact reason I don’t use the OS the TV comes with, my external devices are almost always more up to date.

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I would say the exception might be a Roku TV or Android/Google TV. As long as they are the same software as the dongles. I have a Roku TV and a Roku stick and I can not tell the difference in the software (except the TV has inputs). Same app store and same apps. I would assume the Android TV & Google TV both use the Play Store as well, meaning it is the same app.

I agree to an extent. I do have a few Roku TV’s but three of them are showing their age and I may need to add a newer external Roku to breathe new life into the situation. I’m not sure how the TV will respond to two Roku’s in play with two Roku remotes. I’m guessing it will be fine when the time comes, we’ll see.

They are bluetooth EDIT: or WiFi Direct, so they should pair OK separately.

ETA: I was checking my remote with the Roku TV, and it appears to use IR mode for the power and volume, so both remotes could handle the same TV OK.

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As weird as it sounds, Rokus actually use IR (yep) and mostly device wifi (private wifi), depending on model. AFAIK.

For a lot of models, that actually isn’t the case.

My previous TV was a Hisense mid-range TV running Android TV/Google TV and it never got updated.

My current TV (2025 model) is a mid-range TCL and it shipped with Android 12 and is still on Android 12, although it will be included in the Android 14 upgrade TCL announced a few days ago.

But as a comparison, my Onn Pro and Google TV Streamer have been on Android 14 for a while.

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My previous TV was a Hisense mid-range TV running Android TV/Google TV and it never got updated.

That’s true, just like cell phones stop getting updated after a few years. I think that this is less likely to affect the apps, though. And that is what we would need to be the same, both in the Roku Store and in the Google Play Store.

Fixed my post.