Seems to me Tablo has now “invented” a Roku + antenna solution. Except it costs a lot more than a base Roku and gets only a fraction of the channels. This is a dark day for lifetime subscription holders like me I think. The ships power plant just exploded but few aboard yet know the ship is sinking. Time to find a life raft. Do any competitors or group of competitors offer the differentiators that made Tablo unique? - Connect, Quad Tuner, DVR?
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Oh man, didn’t even think of that, good question. Because loss of internet means no TV, I typically rip my shows and put them on my media server.
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Well, the promise is that we lifetime subs won’t have to change anything. Time will tell. I recall I went with Tablo over HDhomerun, but it’s been so long I can’t remember the reasons. Anyone got a comparison of the two?
This was the plan and it’s smart. If you have your own box for FAST you don’t have to share the ad revenue with another company like Amazon or Roku. Not only that you can make your own deals to get a revenue share on othe people’s programming. On top of that you can become a virtual cable provider. They will likely add paid services like Netflix and HBO. All the local channels are already integrated so they don’t have to pay a fee for “the other guys OTA broadcast”.
I’m skeptical as to whether I’ll like the new system better or if I will upgrade. Being able to DVR the FAST channels is an illusion in my opinion. I suspect that just means the programs will be on demand and only apply to certain channels.
@TabloTV If you want a lot of us on board get a couple demo devices out to Antenna Man and Lon.tv so we can get some solid reviews to get a better idea of the real life performance.
I’d also like to try the new firmware as long as I had a guaranteed downgrade path.
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I think a big fail. So this is why the ATSC 3, the DVR of the future, has not come out or any news even? You release a 2 tuner, not able to stream out of the home, which many need as the point of streaming, and then slap current users in the face who you made pay $200 for the lifetime guide and include it free on no frills cheap model. 
Sound like TiVo logic and why they are failing, they did the same thing and tried to release a 2 tuner DVR no one wanted.
I have a TiVo Bolt, Tablo Quad and HDHR Flex ATSC 3 and put the Tablo last as much more sluggish compared to the others. TiVo probably the best “DVR” overall but the HDHR can do so much more “if” that is what people want.
Here is a list of FAST channels on the new Tablo:
Scripps News
Bloomberg TV+
Bloomberg Originals
Outside
World Poker Tour
Fubo
The Film Detective
Dove
ION Plus
CourtTV
Ion Mystery
Total Crime
Crime Hunters
The Design Network
Homeful
Tastemade Home
Gusto TV
Tastemade
Tastemade Travel
Comedy Dynamics
Maximum Effort Channel
History Time
GritXtra
Docurama
So…Real
Nosey
Judge Nosey
El Ray
Bounce XL
Love Nature
RetroCrush
HSN
QVC
The Big Dish
Was curious what the other channels were. Nothing really of interest there.
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I disagree. This is a period of transition between ATSC 1.0 and 3.0. There really aren’t any 3.0 DVR solutions out there.
Why would anyone buy a legacy Tablo at this point in time with an annual subscription, knowing that it may be obsolete in a few years? Now, there is a much cheaper choice with no subscription fee. Sure, you lose remote streaming (something that I never could get to work reliably despite a good internet), but you gain native MPEG2 recording (so no more “quality” settings to deal with), plus the FAST channels (if you care for them).
It’s a stopgap device while they continue to develop the ATSC 3.0 Tablo. If you have a legacy Tablo, keep it. But if you don’t own one or you really need more tuners, this is a great option.
I do really like the size, you can wall mount it, and it stays cooler than the older Tablos.
Me, i don’t believe it’ll fit my needs. But myself and my 95% of active forum users don’t fit into a “typical” consumer category.
For non-tech, non-geeks this may appeal to some average typical demographic.
It’s more than likely they’re done substantial marketing research prior to development. I bet they find some use for it.
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I think there was an understanding that when Table eventually came out with a 4 tuner network connected ATSC 3.0 device the lifetime guide subscription could be transferred to the new device. This was the case for the set top (HDMI direct connect) ATSC 3.0 device they were releasing.
You’re right could be an issue for a postal code for Ottawa. I’m in southern Ontario and could use Buffalo Zip Code. That may work for people here.
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Right but wouldn’t you want local channels too?
With the Buffalo Zip code it will receive the Canadian channels through the guide just like our postal code receives theirs.
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True, though it likely is irrelevant now. I would imagine that guide data will be free on all new Tablos (including ATSC 3.0 ones), so there isn’t a need for a subscription.
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“…so there isn’t a need for a subscription.” That makes us early adopters feel good about our lifetime subscription purchases.
Also, I had a look at the FAST channels included with the new Tablo. None of them are on my Roku or Fire TV 4K Max, and I suspect that for most of the folks here, if they do have any of these channels on their current streaming devices, it’s a small fraction of those on the list. This begs the question, why include them on the Tablo when every one of us already gets the services we actually want on our existing streaming devices? Which gets us back to the new free subscription model, and how Nuvyyo will generate revenue to make up for the shortfall.
Ads on the free streaming channels.
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I feel great about my lifetime subscription. Over 6 years for the price of 3. And it is still needed on legacy Tablos for years to come.
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There really should be a thread started for new users of the Tablo Fast that are seeking help and that does not include a lot of chatter from previous testers and legacy owners.
We should try not to discourage or confuse new users who would need our serious help and advice.
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I do agree the “one thread for all” doesn’t scale. But we almost need a “new” vs “old” overarching holder for topics now… sadly, as they are radically different (well, in most cases).