Today’s question comes from Lisa who asks, “I have Extend Live Recordings enabled in my Tablo settings, but it only extends my recordings by a half hour. Is there a way to extend a recording by more than 30 minutes?”
There is indeed. Tablo’s Start and Stop Advanced Recording Options allow you to extend an episode or series recording up to 3 hours beyond its scheduled stop time.
Extend Live Recording vs. Start and Stop Options
Extend Live Recordings is a global setting found in SETTINGS > SCHEDULING. Setting it to ON will extend all recordings of live programs (sports, specials, etc.) by 30 minutes. This is enough time to catch most overruns without unnecessarily overfilling the recording storage on your Tablo.
The Start and Stop options are found under Recording Options for both episodes and series. These options will allow you to start recording up to 2 minutes early and/or end up to 3 hours late.
There are a few differences between these features:
- Extend Live is a global setting, affecting all live content and Start and Stop is applied to specific episodes/series.
- Extend Live adds just 30 minutes to a recording, where Start and Stop provide a variety of options for adjusting your recording schedules.
Extend Live can be overridden if there are no tuners available. Start and Stop adjustments will always lock in a tuner for the full recording time.
When To Extend Live Recordings
Set Extend Live Recordings to ON when you want to ’set and forget’ adding a half hour to all live shows by default. Think of it as an insurance policy against missing the end of a sporting event or special when you can’t watch live.
When to Set Start or Stop Times for an Episode or Series
Adjusting the Start and/or Stop options for an episode or series allows you to fine-tune the schedule of a particular recording or series of recordings.
Changing Start will give you a buffer or allow you to skip a show’s opening credits. With this option, you can set the start of your recording from 10 minutes early to 5 minutes late.
Changing Stop allows you to end a recording early and skip the closing credits, or extend it to catch the overtime of a sporting event. With this option, you can set the end of your recording from 2 minutes early to 3 hours late.
Extend Live Recordings vs. Start/Stop Examples
Let’s take a look at some examples of how the Extend Live and Start/Stop settings can be used:
- You’ve set a recording for the Oscars. With EXTEND LIVE set to ON, your Tablo will automatically record an extra 30 minutes, which will be handy if some of the speeches run long.
- There’s a big playoff game that might go into overtime. You don’t want to miss a moment, so you set your Tablo to record with a STOP setting of 3 hours late.
- Your favorite drama happens to air on Sundays after football. It’s not a live event, so Extend Live wouldn’t apply. However, you can set your drama series recordings to always STOP 3 hours late, which should ensure you see each whole episode even if the sportscast kicks into overtime
A Note for Legacy Tablo Device Owners
Previously, legacy Tablo devices would add 50% of the originally scheduled length of the program, up to 2 hours when Extend Live Recordings was enabled. This changed with Firmware 2.2.58 to extend recordings by a flat 30 minutes. To add additional time, simply use the Stop option mentioned above.
Have a question about watching TV that you’d like answered? Send us a note and you may see your question on the Tablo blog and in an upcoming issue of our newsletter, Stay Tuned!
