Tablo DVR best practices and support resources

Tablo DVR best practices and support resources

If you access your Free TV antenna channels from the Tablo app on your Fire TV or streaming media player this free help article will give you best practices for using your Tablo as well as links to Tablo's Support resources. StreamWise Solutions is a local small business and is not associated with Tablo. Tablo is owned by a big corporation Scripps, so they have a lot more people, resources and Tablo specific experience to help with their hardware & any related issues.

Tablo Features - How to use Tablo Guide, Recordings, Playback & Settings

  1. TABLO Guide, Recordings & Playback features overview
  2. TABLO Settings overview & options
  3. TABLO Features Overview
  4. TABLO Fire TV help guide
  5. TABLO Troubleshooting
As with all electronics simply rebooting/restarting Tablo will fix most issues (unplug the white circular Tablo from power and plug it back in - see picture at bottom of this page). If you have done everything below in this guide and have further Tablo issues we recommend you contact Tablo directly (1-844-822-5688).

StreamWise Solutions is not a hardware manufacturer nor a service provider and charges no monthly rate. Even though we are not associated with Tablo, we do have a great review on the Tablo DVR, to help educate consumers of this option. StreamWise installs the best antennas, hardwired the Tablo to your network via Ethernet and recommends using the best streaming hardware, but we are NOT the hardware manufacturer so cannot fix Tablo issues or access the Tablo remotely like they can.

Tablo/networking/WiFi/streaming issues are too complex for StreamWise to support via phone. We do offer paid onsite installation and troubleshooting for more complex streaming, wifi or hardware issues or for the non techy that need expert help. We can also bypass the Tablo and hard wire TVs with a live direct coax cable in some situations which is 100% reliable since it does not rely on the Internet nor other any hardware except your TV.

From experience it is extremely rare your outdoor antenna will have issues on the major network channels. You can verify this by watching TV on any TV that has coax hardwired directly to it from the wall (not through the Tablo of Fire Stick). 99% of issues are user error (learning how to best use Tablo), WiFi or streaming hardware issues. Since the Tablo is a Network DVR it is dependent on having decent Internet, a newer WiFi 6 Mesh network and newer Streaming Media Players to limit glitches. We have found Fire TV MAX works better than Rokus, Apple TV, Smart TVs & old Fire TVs. 

While it might not be exactly like your old Cable & Satellite DVR, Tablo does do some pretty great things and it is the best DVR for most Cord Cutters, as other manufacturers like Tivo and Amazon Recast no longer make OTA DVRs. For only 1x $139 cost and no monthly rate ever, do not expect perfection… ;-) With Tablo and a properly installed outdoor HD Antenna, you can get 100+ HD live local networks and streaming channels for free, plus a free Grid TV Guide and free DVR for Free Antenna TV!

Because the Tablo is a Network DVR its very important that EVERYONE in your family is using it the right way - if 1 person is not, it will create issues for all Tablo users. See bullet points #1 and #2 below this is the most common issue and an easy fix for it. 

Tablo Support Contact Info

If you already have newer hardware and have restarted all devices several times the next step is to contact the manufacturer Tablo directly - they offer free email and phone support for basic Tablo training and support issues. Tablo also has a Community Forum. Remember older legacy Tablo devices are black and use the white app. The new Tablo TV 4th Gen device is white and uses the blue Tablo TV app.

Tablo Contact Number 1-844-822-5688

The hardware manufacturer Tablo is always working to push software updates to glitches it finds. But here are some things StreamWise has found for best practices to limit issues with Tablo and your streaming network:

When you open the Tablo app you get a blank screen or a screen with a spinning circle or frozen screen

This can happen because you or your spouse are not exiting the Tablo app correctly the last time you used it. Simply restart the Tablo and Fire Stick to fix it (see bottom of the page). To avoid this in the future, do the following in this order:
  1. When you are done watching TV via Tablo, on your remote control, hit the BACK button (left of the home button). Hit Back several times to fully exit the Tablo app.  YOU CAN NOT HIT THE HOME BUTTON OR TURN OFF THE TV LIKE YOU DO WITH OTHER APPS, THE TABLO WILL HAVE ISSUES THE NEXT TIME YOUR OPEN IT IF EVERYONE IN THE HOME IS NOT HITTING THE BACK BUTTON SEVERAL TIMES TO EXIT OUT OF THE TABLO APP. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT!
  2. If you or someone in your family forgot to hit the back button to exit Tablo previously the Tablo app will usually be frozen, spinning or not working as expected) the next time you open it. If so, simply reboot the white Tablo hardware by unplugging it from power and Reboot your hardware. If its still having issues it is a good idea to reboot your Fire stick and modem/router/mesh by unplugging it from power & plugging it back in again. 
  3. For best performance your Tablo should already be hardwired to your internet router or mesh.
  4. Uninstall and reinstall the Tablo app. (only as a last resort, since this will wipe out records and the Tablo will need to be set up again).
  5. Get new Streaming and WiFi hardware (see below). Older hardware doesnt work well with Tablo since it is a Wireless system, we recommend newer inexpensive WiFi 6 mesh and the newest Streaming Media Players.
    1. Replace your old wifi router with a new Whole-home Wi-Fi 6 Mesh Network for faster & better Wi-Fi coverage.
    2. Replace your old Streaming Media Player with a new Fire TV Stick Max with WiFi 6 receiver (buy for all TVs).


How to Request a Fix for Missing Guide Data

If one or more of the channels in the Live TV Grid of your 4th Generation Tablo displays ‘Programming Not Available’ and IS NOT on the list above, please submit a request with as much detail as possible using our new Guide Data Request form.
The form is accessible from the ‘Submit a Request’ button on the Tablo Support Portal.

As with all electronics simply rebooting/restarting Tablo will fix most issues (unplug the white circular Tablo from power and plug it back in - see picture at bottom left of this page). 

How to use the Tablo app with the Amazon Fire TV remote