Tablo Dual Lite OTA DVR lets cord-cutters save videos to the cloud

The team behind Tablo has a new model for cord-cutters, the Tablo Dual Lite. This over-the-air DVR is a relatively inexpensive offering that records OTA broadcasts picked up using an HDTV antenna. This particular model offers two OTA ATSC tuners, as well as support for both WiFi and wired Internet connections. The model works as a "whole-home" DVR rather than one that delivers video over HDMI.

Despite the rise of Internet-based live television, over-the-air TV delivered to televisions with an antenna has been growing in popularity among millennials. OTA TV offers many benefits, not the least of which is being free. However, the downside of live television acquired this way is the inability to time-shift it so that shows can be watched at a later date. That's where an OTA DVR comes in.

Different types of over-their-air DVR solutions are available, though they're not terribly common. Some digital tuners, for example, support an SD card or USB hard drive onto which scheduled shows are saved. Select newer smart TVs with an integrated TV antenna and tuner also support DVR-like functionality when paired with a storage medium like an SD card.

Tablo is one of the more robust options, and its new Dual Lite is no exception. This model uses WiFi and Ethernet to provide whole-home networked connectivity; the WiFi chip has been upgraded to support the 802.11a/c standard. In addition, the Dual Lite provides users with two different video storage options: local and cloud.

The Dual Lite model supports USB hard drives with capacities up to 8TB, though the company says a 1TB drive (250 – 500 hours of HD content) is enough for most people. However, users can also optionally use Tablo Cloud DVR, which is in beta and makes it possible to store content in the cloud. Dual Lite is the first Tablo OTA DVR model to support cloud storage, which is offered to customers under a 30-day trial. The beta testing period comes with 40GB of storage, though the company will announce storage and price options in the near future.

Tablo Dual Lite is available now for $140 USD.

SOURCE: Tablo Blog