If at first you don’t succeed, slash your price and try, try again.
That's the thinking now being applied by Caavo[1], the company which launched a new-age universal TV device back in February. I reviewed it[2] and liked many things about it, but I also complained about its $400 price, difficult setup, and many quirks, including a lack of HDR support.
Someone over at Caavo HQ was listening. Less than eight months later, that bulky $400 Caavo has vanished. In its place is a brand new $100 Caavo that’s a third the size and a quarter the price of its defunct predecessor.
The new Caavo looks a lot like the old Caavo, just without all the expensive design elements. Caavo has given up the idea that it’s box will be a fashion statement in your living room. The replaceable bamboo/wood covers are gone, as are the stylish, annoying pegs that organized each HDMI cord, aligning it straight out the back, yet made it awkward (or impossible) to insert larger HDMI sticks or dongles like a Chromecast. The number of devices Caavo can connect with at a time was cut from eight to four—probably more than enough for most people—and HDR/Dolby support was added for those with more advanced TVs and audio equipment.
Wait, What Is Caavo Again?
The Caavo Control Center and Universal Remote, as it’s long-windedly called, lets you control your TV, and all of the devices attached to your TV, with a single universal remote. It works with all the top streaming devices[3], like Fire TV, Roku, Apple TV, or Nvidia Shield (Android TV). Live TV channels on cable boxes and video game consoles aren't a problem either.
Have more than...