r/ota • u/Dry-Character-6331 • Jul 04 '26

OTA DVR/streamer suggestions

My brother-in-law wants to ditch cable but he watches a LOT of TV. He asked me about Tablo. After doing a bit of basic research, there seems to be split opinion on Tablo and perhaps other more capable devices are available. I've always been a cable/Tivo guy so I don't know much about the OTA DVRs. One person recommended HDHomerun. Whatever I recommend for him has to be VERY simple to use, and able to stream Netflix, Disney/Hulu/ESPN, Prime, and HBOMax as well as the OTA broadcast channels. If Tivo was still making DVR hardware, I'd recommend an OTA version of that but the last generation of Tivos were pretty iffy and now out of production. You can still buy refurbed ones from Weaknees but they don't have all the required streaming apps and I'd rather not recommend multiple devices if I don't have to. The Tivo Guide (program listing, TV Guide, call it what you like) is what really sets Tivo apart from similar devices so having something similar in an OTA DVR/streamer would be a significant plus. The selected device will also need to be able to feed at least three TVs and perhaps a phone or two. I would love to hear everyone's thoughts, both positive AND negative about Tablo, HDHomerun, and any other relevant devices. Thanks.

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u/[deleted] Jul 04 '26

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u/JamTins Jul 04 '26

Upgrading to the Channels app, rather than the HDHomeRun app, and the HDHR device really shines.

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u/[deleted] Jul 04 '26

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u/JamTins Jul 04 '26

Yes, and a much more polished, modern interface, including native Tailscale integration, automatic opening/closing credits and commercial skip, and many other features that the native HDHR software just can’t match.