Reliance Jio set top box photos leak; Airtel, TataSky, DishTV & others might face the threat

Photos of Reliance Jio set top box leaked online.

| Published: Tuesday, April 4, 2017, 12:41 [IST]

For quite some months, we have been coming across speculations regarding the Jio DTH Service. Now, the actual pictures of the Jio DTH set top box have been leaked by DTHForum.

Reliance Jio set top box photos leak: Airtel and others to face threat

If you don't remember, previously, a round-shaped set top box was leaked and it was claimed to be the alleged Jio set top box. The picture shows a remote control too with a mic button, tipping at the inclusion of voice-controlled features. In the new set of photos, the Jio set top box looks like any other normal set top box with a slew of ports for various purposes. Let's take a look at the Jio set top box from below.

It says, “Growth is Life”

The box of the Jio set top box that has been leaked shows the tagline, "Growth is Life" at the top. Also, at the center, it is mentioned that it is "Not for Retail Sale". Going by the details on the box, it looks like the manufacturing date is sometime in Feburary 2017.

What could be the Jio DTH plans?

Jio has not disclosed any information about the DTH service officially. However, it looks like the company might offer three to six months of free service after its launch. There is no information on the cost of the DTH service, but earlier rumors point at a charge of Rs. 185 per month. This is definitely a cheaper figure in comparison to what the other DTH operators provide the users.

Possible Jio set top features

The Jio set top box has a USB port at the front and rear to let you connect a pen drive, a RJ45 port to connect to the internet to enjoy live streaming, an HDMI port, AV port, a 12-volt power port, and a cable port. At the front, there is a power button and the Jio branding as well. Jio is also rumored to add a new feature called Catch Up to let users stream content from the past seven days. Initially, they will launch for 300 channels and will add more channels later.

A tough challenge to Airtel, Videocon, TataSky, and others?

With free DTH service for three or six months and cheap services of around Rs. 185 to the customers after the free offers, the Jio set top box sounds to be impressive. However, this is not officially confirmed by Jio as yet. If this turns out to be true, the incumbent operators will face a potential threat as their service cost a minimum of Rs. 300.

Is Jio planning something like Android TV or Apple TV?

We raise this question as the Jio set top box seems to have the RJ45 port for internet connectivity or online streaming. The existing DTH service providers such as Airtel, SunDirect or TataSky do not have this feature in their set top boxes. This makes us believe that Jio is planning something big to compete with Android TV or Apple TV kind of services.

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