Customer Ratings & Reviews

PRODUCT TABLO - 4TH GEN 128GB OVER-THE-AIR DVR & STREAMING PLAYER - WHITE SKU:6554313 SOLID HARDWARE AFFORDABLE OTA DVR – GUIDE DATA NOW INCLUDED FREE Some context for this review. I other have OTA (Over The Air) DVR’s (Digital Video Recorders) from the top 2 DVR sellers and have been using DVR’s since around 2002. QUICK IMPRESSIONS This is an attractive DVR in a small package. It includes 2 HD ATSC (Advanced Television Systems Committee) 1.0 (up to 1080i resolution) tuners, a physical ethernet connection as well as Wi-Fi connectivity. What really makes it a great value it that it includes 14 days of guide data at no extra charge, has built in storage (128GB) and also includes free OTT (Over The Top) streaming channels that can also be recorded without using a Tuner. For many consumers this can give the top DVR a run for their money. Certainly, it packs a lot of value compared to other offerings in the marketplace. It also addresses one my main objections to using TABLO devices in the past, and that is to get rid of fees for guide data or advanced features. WHO IS THIS GOOD FOR • Casual OTA viewers, who want to time shift their viewing • When your Antenna is in a different location (room) from your other TVs. This allows you to put the antenna where it gets the most channels and then stream to the other TV’s instead of running a wire to every TV (assuming you have good Wi-Fi coverage). • Users where their TV or Monitor does not include a Tuner. • Viewers who want free OTT channels (which don’t require an antenna, such as Bloomberg, ION, CourtTV and other “generic” channels) WHAT IT IS NOT (no points off, just sharing information) • It is not 4K / ATSC 3.0 / NextGenTV compatible, so it has a limited life as currently ATSC 1.0 is set to be phased out in Mid 2027 (though it has been extended in the past, and will probably be extended again). But ATSC 3.0 tuners are much more expensive 2X or 3X or more and there is virtually no native 4K content to watch on ATSC 3.0 in most areas. • It does not connect directly to your TV, you must access it through a streaming “stick” like ROKU / AMAZON / APPLE or on your mobile phone. It does not have an app on Samsung TV’s. • It does not work with 3rd party recording software like PLEX. • It does not have DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance) support which makes channels show up as folders to many generic devices. • There currently is no way to watch content offline (eg download a TV show to your phone to watch later). • It does not have commercial skip, but you can fast forward manually. • Does not natively allow streaming outside the house, unless you have your own VPN. These items are not critical for most users, they are nice to have features and easily given up for not paying extra fees, and a relatively low initial cost. SETUP For the most part Setup is straight forward. Attach an Antenna, Load the App on your phone, and follow the prompts. SOME MINOR ISSUES (chalking it up to new release) Some features are only available on the Mobile App, while some are only available on the streaming stick app. I assume over time this will all get harmonized. • External Drives – If you want to add and external hard drive, as of the time of this review, the Roku app does not give you an option for Formatting the Drive, which is required before you use it. I had to switch to the Mobile App to format the drive, then everything worked well. I was able to use an old SSD laptop drive in a cheap external enclosure and it worked perfectly. • Searching the guide - The mobile app does not allow you to search the guide, you need the streaming stick App to search for your favorite show. If you are watching on the phone you have to scroll around the guide to find something to watch. • USE THE BLUE CHANNEL ON ROKU NOT THE WHITE ONE. The Blue TABLO is for the 4th Gen DVR’s. RECOMMENDATION If you want an easy to use and probably the most affordable consumer DVR solution, then the TABLO 4th Gen OTA DVR is a great fit. If you want / need some of the more advanced features that are not included at this time, then you probably need to spend 2X-6X more depending upon what solution you go with and what features you need. For what is included in the price, you get a lot of value. Just don’t expect it to do everything that more expensive DVR’s can do.

I love my Tablo system. Here’s what I’ve got: 1. LG OLED TV 2. Apple TV 3. Mohu indoor antenna 4. Tablo 2 4th Generation 2-tuner I originally purchased the Mohu antenna so I could watch the World Series on broadcast TV. The antenna worked well, but it connected to the LG TV, not my Apple TV. To view programs with it, I had to drop out of the Apple interface and deal with LG’s interface. Swapping was a pain and I disliked the LG interface and (especially) the awful remote. So I purchased the Tablo primarily because it would connect to my Apple TV, using WiFi. That meant a couple of things. First, I could move the antenna away from the TV, since it no longer required a cable connection. Second, I could access broadcast channels via the Tablo app from inside the Apple TV interface using my Apple TV remote. I’ve found multiple reasons to love the Tablo, now that I’m using it. Installing and setting it up was dead easy. The iPhone-based installer walked me through each step, clearly and effectively, from mechanical setup through antenna pointing to channel scanning. The antenna pointing tool was better than the tool offered by Mohu. The Tablo app makes it easy to find programs and to set up recording (I didn’t buy it for recording, but I’ve discovered that it’s handy for overlapping sports events). Image quality is excellent. I sometimes find scanning forward and backward within a recording to be a bit twitchy, but think I’m getting the hang of it. Anyhow, I recommend this product and consider it to have been a great investment.

I love this device. It was very easy to set up. If you are sick of paying subscription fees and have over-the-air shows that you want to watch and also skip the commercials, this the way to go. I was fed up with paying for streaming services that still bombarded me with commercials. The Roku app has more features than the IPhone app. You cannot stream your shows away from home as you have to be on the same WiFi as your device.

This replaces a Magnavox DVR that has worked well since 2017 but is now starting to fail. The Tablo is GREAT! Pulls in more channels than the Magnavox, easy to set up and operate, excellent visual scan feature (after the second software update). Picture quality is excellent. Not being ATSC 3.0 isn't a big deal for me. At this price, simply replace it when one is available if that is important to you. I doubt I'll need to add an external drive as I record, watch, and delete shows on a weekly basis. Works flawlessly with my Roku Ultra. Can watch on any Roku in the house. Couldn't do that with the Magnavox. I have slow DSL service (7Mbps), but that hasn't been a problem for the Tablo. But I mainly use the off-air channels and not the streaming channels available with the Tablo. Love the small form factor compared to the Magnavox. Technology can be great, and it is with the Tablo! I couldn't be happier!

We have been lookin for an OTA tv recorder to replace our VCR with digital converter box. We were very attracted to this no-monthly-contract solution. Setting up the Tablo was fairly easy. We needed to get the app on our Roku 3 unit as our tv was old enough it didn't have internet and wifi built in. Unfortunately we ran into problems where recordings didn't have sound on the tv. (The sound did record, and you could hear it via our AppleTV on another screen and on our iPhones.) We had also planned to replace this tv (separately reviewed) with a newer one, so once we did and used the Tablo app directly to the new tv all as good. Navigating the functions of the Tablo is a bit awkward at times, but we got the hang of it. We haven't tried "stress testing" it yet by trying to record two overlapping shows while watching two different already recorded shows on two different screens, so I can't say how well it would work in that mode. Overall and for the price we're very happy with this solution.

A few years ago, I decided to cut the cord from cable and try out the first generation Tablo and that version was not very good where it was unreliable where it does not pick up stations from a rural county 25 miles out from the city even with the recommended indoor antenna and needed external hard drive. It was so aggravating setting it up back then and most of the time it failed to record the TV program and had screen freezes. This year my parents were in need of a device to record their shows on TV since their dvd recorder broke. This is when I gave Tablo a second chance since on the 4th generation and hoped the product had matured. This version had the built in storage which was enough for their needs and a welcome addition. When setting up it was much better than previous device. Since parents live closer to the towers they could pick up stations easily. In short this 4th gen is a winner and so far working fine. I will review again after a year of use.

Wow. This works really well. The Tablo is my first over the air tuner that wasn’t built into a TV. Somehow, the Tablo, even with amplification turned off, can pick up stations that my TV cannot with the same antenna in the same spot. From one antenna, I can stream the game to my TV with surround sound in 5.1 while my wife watches from her phone in another room. This thing works. I am so impressed. Only caveat is that the Apple TV, Samsung, and LG WebOS apps are still listed as “coming soon.” There is an older Tablo app on the Apple TV Appstore, but it won’t work with this device. But if you have an Amazon Firestick, this device is great. Setup: You can mount the Tablo on a wall, but I chose to lay it flat on my entertainment center. There is Wi-Fi built-in, but to minimize variables, I hooked my Tablo up to a wired ethernet switch. You will need the Tablo app on your phone or tablet to set the device up. There were a couple of firmware updates available out of the box. There is a blue light on the Tablo, but you can turn it off from the app if you think the light is too bright. Experience: Even with amplification turned off, I received more TV channels over the air using the Tablo than I did from the TV’s built-in tuner. I had no problems with signal drop, but my antennas are up high. I’m about 6 to 15 miles away from the towers and I picked up over 50 stations. I’ve been watching TV on the Tablo for a week and a half. I’ve had no buffering. I’ve had no signal drop. The built-in guide and DVR are simple and effective. The college football games on Saturday looked and sounded great. My one complaint is that the Apple TV app is not currently ready, but I just have to be patient. I wish that the Tablo application had guide integration with Amazon’s Live TV interface. Conclusion: But that is really it. This thing has worked great. I love it. This is the perfect OTA device for cord cutters. I highly recommend it. 5/5

The Tablo Over The Air DVR is pretty impressive hardware. At 128GB the storage capacity is very good. The setup is very smooth with use of the Tablo app. You are required to have an OTA- Over The Air antenna to hook up with your Tablo DVR. It works with my Fire Stick and with Roku, Apple, Android TVs. You can connect by wifi or ethernet. Ethernet is prefered. You can't beat the stability of a wired connection. When connected I was able to get a few more channels than I did previously. In all I get nearly 25 stations. The number of channels one can get is based on your area in relation to TV towers. The Tablo performed well. There were a few hiccups that I seem to be straightening out as I go along. The unit froze on me a few times, but I got it going again. Then froze again the next day. It has been fine since.The app and device needed an update of firmware out of the box and that went off well. The channel guide is good and has proven to be very helpful. The 128gb drive is supposed to give more than 50 hours of DVR ability. The DVR functions work quite well. This little device is not without some flaws, but it is a nice DVR option if you are looking for DVR ability for Over The Air channels. Combine the hardware of the unit with the the DVR capability, a good app, and this device is recommended by me.

My TV didn't have a tuner and wanted a tuner to watch local Football games. In addition to being a tuner, ability to record was a huge bonus so I can watch later or rewatch the games. Easy to setup but needs a good HD antenna

Just purchased the TabloTV 4th generation DVR, and I must say, I love it..!! No monthly fees, and it works perfectly with my FireTV Stick 4K Max..!! For the best reception please pay attention to what I’m going to tell you. I bought a “Must Have Flat Antenna.” It was suppose to be the best. Not quite the best. I was unable to receive OTA channels like Fox & CW without losing reception. Yes, others blamed their Tablo 4th Gen tuner, but they were wrong..!! It was their antennas fault. Yep, here is my proof. After I became so frustrated with my new flat antenna and lousy reception, I researched different antennas. I was impressed with reviews about the Channel Master FLATenna+ (plus) indoor Antenna so I ordered one online. It had a signal amplifier that impressed me. I installed my new CH antenna with the included amplifier along with Tablo’s built in amplifier turned off. Channel reception was fair, but not perfect. I then tried a different method. I ran the enclosed Channel Master coax cable direct from the FLATenna+ to the Tablo 4th Generation DVR WITHOUT the CH enclosed antenna amp, splitter and filter. I then turned on the built-in Tablo Antenna Amplification (on) & rescanned my channels. All my local channels, the ones I watch, including Fox & CW received “100%” perfect HD reception. (See enclosed pictures) I am 100% happy with my Tablo 4th Generation DVR… — Note: — I tried several locations for my Flat Antenna. Different locations means different outcomes. “Rescan after “Every Change.!!” Go online to establish where your broadcast towers are located. Direct your Indoor Flat Antenna toward the broadcast Towers. Try both with signal amplification on & off, always “Rescan” when you make a change..!! This review does not reflect on the Antenna Tablo sells, I never tried theirs..!! Good luck…

Great dvr tuner, can record antenna channels and streaming. Has many new feature over the old legacy tuner. Easy setup and has built in dvr that can be expaned with an external hard drive if needed.

As a former Recast user, I can say that Tablo have a networked OTA DVR that works as you’d expect. Setup is easy. A channel scan pulled all the channels. User can customize the guide to hide unwanted OTA and steaming channels. The guide updates every 24 hours. I plugged in an old external USB 500GB drive, formatted it and it’s seamlessly integrated with the onboard memory. Picture quality is great on streams. Same as directly from antenna. A big improvement over the Amazon Recast which would often stream at lower rate leading to a less than sharp picture. There is no commercial skip, and skip forward and backwards are both fixed at 10 seconds. So it’s several presses to skip a commercial break. The only negative, and as far as I know it’s an Apple TV issue only, is that while you can switch to a program being recorded, you can’t rewind to the beginning. So if you’ve missed the first ten minutes and you want to immediately start, you’ll need a different client (e.g. FireTV stick works such fine). This is a polished product and accompanying apps. If you want to watch OTA TV anywhere in your home and record shows, this device is just great. Two tuner, attic antenna. WiFi connected.

Very easy to setup, plug in the coaxial cable, ethernet cable, power and install the Tablo app on a phone and follow the instruction on the phone. One of the steps is to download the channel guide data and it was a bit of a wait. The home screen shows suggestions of movies and TV shows to watch much like other streaming services. Click on the Live button, it will show you the TV guide for broadcast channels in numerical order, then the free streaming channels after that. You can choose to hide live channels and online free stream channel from your guide. I hide the shopping channels. DVR is free and it comes with 128GB of internal storage. You can add more using the USB port. This is very welcome as I don't have to destroy my USB drive. For DVR, you can record the live channels as well as the streaming channels. This unit comes with 2 tuners so you can records 2 shows at the same time or 2 devices can watch different channel at the same time. Changing channel takes a few seconds likely due to it trying to buffer more data before showing the content. TV remote control up down channel buttons does not change the channel, they behave like the up down direction buttons. To change channel, you have to either exit to the Guide page or press the down button to display list of current channels and press ok to switch to it. This unit has built in antenna signal amplifier so playing of TV content from antenna is pretty stable and smooth, a lot better than the one from another brand I replaced. I wish the channel changing is easier and faster and it has ATSC 3 support.

I recently purchased the Tablo 4th Gen, 2-Tuner, 128GB Over-The-Air DVR & Streaming Player, and I’m thrilled with it! This little device has truly exceeded my expectations and made cutting the cord from cable and satellite even easier. First off, I love how it lets me watch live TV and access local channels seamlessly—it really feels like I’m still using cable. The picture quality is fantastic, clear, and crisp, especially for live sports games, which I can now record easily without any hassle. The 128GB storage is perfect for my needs; it gives me plenty of room to record games and shows to watch later. Having two tuners is also a great feature, letting me record one show while watching another live, which is super convenient. Setup was straightforward, and the user interface is intuitive, so it’s very user-friendly. Plus, there’s no monthly fee, so it’s saving me a ton of money compared to my old cable bill. Overall, if you’re looking for a reliable, high-quality OTA DVR to enjoy live programming and record your favorite shows or games, the Tablo 4th Gen is a fantastic choice. Highly recommend it for anyone looking to cut the cord without sacrificing quality or convenience!

Was initially very surprised and happy with the Tablo TV but I feel that a couple of things could really make this review go to 5 stars. First of all setup was fast and easy on Apple device and seeing that we were now getting 145+ channels with good to great signal—vs just 50 with a lot of variation in signal from just our roof-mounted amplified antenna—in combination with having the ability to rewind live TV made this already worth the relatively low purchase price of $85. Then came the issues. The Tablo app is not supported on older AppleTV’s or Amazon Firesticks so that was a bit of a let down. But considering that the majority of our devices are Roku we still thought it was worth it. A few weeks after installation however we began having issues with the Roku Devices in the rooms furthest from the Tablo unit which is strange because neither of these devices is that far from the centralized location of the Tablo in our small split level home. They would crash over and over again after only a few minutes of watching. I researched and learned that this was a prevalent issue with Roku users and so was strongly considering returning the device but figured I should at least give the troubleshooting tips a shot before doing so. I’m glad that I did as power cycling the Tablo did fix the issue with random crashing at least for the last week. Hopefully this holds up but I guess we’ll see. Other lesser issues I have with the Tablo are that I would like a preview of what is on when cycling through the channel guide and the ability to just surf through the channels without having to go back to the guide. Also, the lack of a visual scrubbing effect when fast forwarding or rewinding through live tv would be very much appreciated. In the end, I am content with the Tablo purchase but not overjoyed. It is a good product if you have only two TVs that would require simultaneous live streaming and works adequately for rewinding and recording shows but could definitely use some functionality upgrades. I am still recommending it to friends and family but always with caveats.

Works as advertised. Adds lots of additional channels and the DVR function works well. I've had occasional playback issues, but restarting the program fixed this. Great for the price.

I stopped paying for cable recently, but with football returning this fall, I was interested in an upgrading an old over-the-air DVR that I had --- the result is the 4th Gen Two Tuner Tablo… and it is a GREAT option. First, this isn’t quite what I expected – once you attach an antenna, you can set it up in the best place to reach the giant local network antennas that pump out local/national tv. This was VERY helpful as most of my house faces south, but the network antennas are all to the north. So now I get full signals on all of my local channels --- additionally, there is an amplifier on this device, so it strengthens the signal – either way, I have perfect reception on all of my local stations. So I am new to the Tablo Universe, but apparently, they have just overhauled their graphical interface and recording structure. I have nothing to compare it to previously, but I think it looks great. I recently upgraded to 1GB internet in my home – why does any of this matter? Well, you don’t actually plug this device into your television. The Tablo connects to your wi-fi and then you use an app to watch the programs. This is the best case for me as now I can watch all local channels from anywhere in my house. And because there are two tuners in this DVR, I can pause live games and then switch over to the other game, and it will return to the same spot I was originally. I can even set it up in my garage if I have a project or in the kitchen if I am doing dishes – it’s incredibly convenient. I mentioned a recent upgrade in my internet – well, that required new hardware, and I did not expect to have any issues around my house. Unfortunately, my Tablo was having difficulty connecting, but I was able to connect with a customer service person at Tablo who could see my device, and help me troubleshoot the issue from inside my house – this was on a Sunday and was maybe the most impressive and unexpected benefit of the entire device. They also seem to have a rather vocal reddit community, so I'll be using that as well to see if there are any outages or issues (to determine if it's just my internet or something else). The Tablo Dual has two tuners, which means you can record two shows at the same time. It comes with 128GB of storage, which is about 50 hours of HD recordings and it’s really easy to add another drive to expand up to 8TB. The signal strength reaches as far as your router, which means I can now watch anything around the house that I want --- and a final benefit; there were a lot of unexpected other channels includes like Fubo to watch international soccer that I was not even aware of. Just a cool device that seems like it’s just getting going – excited to see how they improve on this going forward.

I’ve had another competitors system to view antenna TV across my network for a few years, but the software requires additional subscription fees to access basic features, such as a guide and recording capability. So, when I began reading about Tablo, they appeared to offer a newer generation product (the 4th), with built in DVR, a 14 day program guide, and $0 subscription fee to access the feature set. In the box you’ll find the Tablo device, a power cable, and an ethernet cable to connect the device to a nearby router or switch. Installation requires the use of an app, which can be downloaded on the appropriate app store for free, set up an account with basic information to identify your location (for the Guide), and scanning for channels. The device also has the capability to connect to your network wirelessly, but if you have the option to go wired, I’d highly recommend it to avoid buffering or delays in crowded networks. It’s important to point out that Tablo did offer a previous generation service, which did require a subscription, and is now labeled their legacy product. The reason I want to point this out, is because my Sony TV with Android built in, only allowed me to find the “legacy” app. When installed it detects the hardware, but then failed to play. After using the Tablo website, it directed me to the appropriate Play Store app, allowed me to push the install to my TV, and was up and running in just a few minutes. Once installed, the scan process only took a few minutes, finding more channels than my previous device, and immediately began playback when selected on my Android based smart TV. It was quick to download the newest guide for the channels, and since it offers 2 tuners, allows for watching and recording simultaneously for 2 programs. The iOS app also allows you to download and install updates while you’re on the same network, prompting you when launching the app if there is a new one. I found the install process only taking a couple of minutes at most, with the tuners stopping playback while installing. The only con is those that don’t have a Google or Amazon streaming option at the time of release. While it does state that it’s compatible with Apple TV, you can only AirPlay currently, which I found often lost connection or failed to display a picture in the correct orientation making it difficult to view on my TV without using the Android TV functionality built in to the TV. Being a household with all Apple TV’s, I was excepting the Apple TV app to be released alongside the product, and appears to be the only major streaming device currently unreleased as of the writing of this review. However, it works great on iOS, offering near real-time video on all network devices viewing the stream. It will help having a great WiFi or wired network to offer the best picture quality, and you may notice some degradation of the picture while your network catches up. However, I rarely found the need to restart the feed or the app to view, and even left a channel up for several hours on my TV as background noise without ANY issues. The app itself has 3 basic tabs; your library where you can find your scheduled recordings and monitor your storage space, a Home (default view) where you can view current viewing recommendations and upcoming events (like Sports or Premieres), and you’ll also get access to a few digital streaming channels. In the Live tab, you’ll see your guide, along with some of those digital channels that stream instead of using the antenna. So, don’t be surprised when you know you only have 10 antenna stations, but continue to see some mainstream networks show up without a channel number. Overall, this is a great product for those cutting the cable or satellite bill with a decent amount of antenna TV and streaming channels available. You’ll see channels at the broadcasted resolution up to 1080, and even those running at the lowest digital resolution of 480. Browsing the apps on Android TV and on iOS was a great experience, and I only ever had the mobile app crash once. It loads quickly, and provides an option to rewind, pause, and fast forward while viewing. Given the easy setup, broad device support, DVR capability and the features offered without additional subscription fee this is an easy buy recommendation!

The new tablo is a good start to the new generation. I'm simple it works. It's not without it's quirks. Reception is good but a tiny bit weaker than my old Tivo Romano. Interestingly this unit has a built in amplifier that is on by default. Be careful that you don't have interference already, that might make it works. If you have issues just turn it off and retry. The new apps: Menu is perfectly serviceable and basic. No ads or any bull like Tivo is shoving down people's throat. It tends to loose connection on my Google tv. App currently will go to sleep when androidtv powers down. When you relaunch it next time it always can't connect. You have to close and reopen it. I'm sure they will figure it out. This app is completely new compared to what they had. 128gb internal memory stores in mp4 not the og signal. External drives enable mpeg2. Ive had issues with a USB only powered drive. It disconnects sometime after plugging it in. If you want an external drive, make sure it has its own power source. Picture quality is actually really solid. A little better than my Tivo, even after the encoding it's really solid. Pretty happy here. Overall I'm pretty happy with the result. I know it will get continued firmware updates that will further refine the product but even as it is right now, it's absolutely worth the 100 dollars with zero subscription fees.

Purchased the Tablo along with a Google TV Streamer to take over for an older LG TV that was no longer getting app support. Initially, the Tablo was a bit of a let down. It was nice to be able to install an antenna, upstairs with better line-of-sight to the broadcast antennas but, we could not access the guide, remotely, to schedule recordings (VPN fixed this). Also, this device initially REQUIRED internet access to function so, when our internet provider died, we were left with NO TV unless we moved the antenna down to where we were watching TV. Tablo has recently added "offline" support where you could watch TV when the internet is down.