The Gillmor Gang — Robert Scoble, John Taschek, Kevin Marks, and Steve Gillmor — took a WiFi stroll through the forest that is Hollywood’s attempt to lock down our TVs. It’s really too late, what with SOPA boycotts, reverse engineering of the Apple AirPlay bus, and Microsoft’s slow fade from CES underway. But that doesn’t stop the Cartel from trying.
It may turn out that you can someday move network news shows from Slingbox to the iPad and back up to Apple TV over WiFi, but for now the realtime bus is getting choked. In fact all things streaming is about to collide with bandwidth caps, at least in our house. With 5 Apple TVs and counting, it won’t be long before WiFi consulting becomes a trade school offering. Me, I’m off to Fry’s. Happy Holidays. → Read More
Boxee Box owners, get ready for even more content. The SlingPlayer app is available for your downloading (auto-playing video warning) and ready to catch content slung from a SlingBox Solo or Pro-HD.
This simple app allows big things. When paired with the appropriate SlingBox, Boxee Box users will be able to remotely control and access a cable box, DVR or satellite receiver. This turns the Boxee Box into a content consuming monster. → Read More
Slingbox has made the act of watching your television from anywhere stupendously easy over the years, and now the company has added yet another way to catch up on Community on the go: now you can watch from your Facebook account. → Read More
Sling Media, an EchoStar subsidiary, this morning announced the availability of SlingPlayer for tablets running Android 3.0 (Honeycomb) or later. The app is available on Android Market now and costs $29.99, the same price Sling Media charges for any of its mobile applications.
The application basically lets Slingbox owners watch home TV from their Android tablets. (The Slingbox retails for $180 and up). → Read More
If you’re one of the lucky few who own an iPad, subscribe to Dish Network and have a Slingbox, well then, the new Dish Network app Remote Access will probably make you smile. The app just hit the App Store and allows iPad users to watch live and recorded programs via the magical workings of the Slingbox. This changes everything. The app also has the power to browse and search nine days of upcoming Dish Network programming, along with bringing nearly the entire DVR feature set to the iPad. Users can manage recordings and conflicts, along with fully controlling the DVR as a sort of coffee table remote. (it really doesn’t) → Read More
Slingbox has released four new placeshifting devices. They are, in order of appearance: Slingbox 700U This box allows HD receivers to “sling” their “content” over the “Internet” directly, cutting out the laborous process of videotaping TV, converting it at one of those strip mall conversion places, and mailing it in the post. It connects to any set-top box with a USB port, a strange requirement to be sure.. → Read More
Slingbox owners love their devices. They allow you to watch your home television content anywhere you are in the world with an Internet connection. A new startup, Spawn Labs, launching today at TechCrunch50 wants to extend that concept to video games.
But Spawn Labs offering is actually a bit more robust because it includes a social element as well. A key part to playing video games is playing them against other people. And with the Spawn HD Pro appliance, you’ll be able to do just that. Say a friend has an Xbox 360 in California and wants to play a game against you, but you’re in New York. From New York, you would simply install the Spawn Player application on your computer, and you could remotely connect to their system, to play a game. → Read More
Woot! is selling a refurbished Slingbox SOLO (why do companies insist on capitalizing words for no reason) for $99.99 plus $5 for shipping. This same unit, new, sells for well over $150 elsewhere. → Read More
The new Slingboxes can do some nifty things, including stream content to iPhones, but for some odd reason, the older boxes don’t possess the magic software to do so. Owners of the older boxes can buy into what might be greed on Sling’s part buy taking advantage of a $50 upgrade discount on new equipment. → Read More
Man alive! Dish Network will have a DVR with built-in Slingbox tech. It’s the Vip 922 HD DuoDVR; we don’t know when it’ll be available, nor do we have any pics. Later today, I suppose. → Read More
Amazon has the Slingbox-like HAVA Platinum HD extender for $86.99, down from its $149.99 list price. The box takes in an HD video signal and streams it back out over your home network via the built-in Ethernet port. Video on your local network gets compressed as DVD-quality MPEG-2, while you’re also able to watch everything over the internet, too, compressed as MP4 files. The HAVA can also record shows to your home computer for later viewing. HAVA Platinum HD TV Device [Amazon.com] → Read More
Sling Media, the company behind the popular Slingbox TV-streaming hardware devices, has opened the gates to its video portal Sling.com. The site pits Sling directly against Joost and Hulu (though Hulu is a Sling partner), allowing users to stream a variety of television shows and movies for free through an intuitive Flash player. Sling’s selection of media is pretty comprehensive, offering content from most of the major networks and studios including Warner, Sony, and MGM (Sling is licensing some of its content from Hulu). The site also offers movies from a number of smaller sources, like College Humor’s shorts. But there are a few notable exceptions: Comedy Central is nowhere to be found, which means The Daily Show and Colbert Report aren’t available (Hulu began offering both shows in June). Read more… → Read More
Your friendly cable company may soon be carrying the SlingModem, a combination SlingBox and DOCSIS 2.0-certified cable modem. Basically, you’d only have to connect one coax cable to the box and you’d get your internet access, plus you’d be able to sling the cable signal right out of the gate. Sounds cool, I guess. SlingModem is one of Sling Media’s newest place-shifting devices, combining a DOCSIS 2.0-certified cable modem with the award-winning and innovative features of the Slingbox™. Cable subscribers can use the device as a traditional DOCSIS cable modem that includes the added benefit of built-in Slingbox functionality. By connecting SlingModem directly to a coax cable input or set-top box, subscribers can receive live or recorded television on any Internet-connected device. SlingModem is easily installed through a single coaxial cable, eliminating the need for additional home networking connections. The box will be branded and sold directly to cable providers by Echostar, who bought Sling Media last year. Pricing and availability are unknown, but more details should emerge at the Cable Show in New Orleans May 18-20. Full press release after the jump. → Read More
[photopress:slingboxiphonesdk.jpg,full,center] The rumor that Sling Media is working on an iPhone-compatible version of its Sling software refuses to die. In speaking with iLounge, Dave Zatz (of Zatz Not Funny fame, now at Sling Media) confirmed that Sling Media has an iPhone SDK and that’s it’s currently planning what move to make next. “We know it’s [iPhone] a hot platform and we’ll see what our options are,” said Zatz. Smart man, that Zatz. Sling on the iPhone would be huge for us techies. I don’t know how many times I’ve been in class and have wanted to be watching Champions League on ESPN2 or car chases on Fox News. Of course, I’d need an iPhone first, but, as I’ve said in the past, my next phone will be either iPhone v2 or an Android-based phone, just waiting to see how it pans out. → Read More
[photopress:SlingPlayer_BlackBerry_Pearl8120_Favorites.jpg,full,right] A blog I’ve never heard of, Electric pig, claims that an “extremely senior source” (they’ve fans of All the Presidents Men) at SlingMedia has promised an iPhone and iPod Touch version of the SlingBox software. If true, that would mean you’d be able to watch your at-home TV channels, DVR’d content and the like on your iPhone and iPod Touch. The rumor is slightly more credible because Apple supposedly gave SlingMedia an iPhone/iPod Touch SDK a few months ago. This is probably Sling’s best chance to break through to the masses. What better device to promote your service than the iPhone/iPod Touch? You can almost picture Steve Jobs demonstrating it during an overhyped media event, sprinkled with a few “booms” for good measure. CES 2008: Slingplayer coming to iPhone [Electric pig via Mac Rumors] → Read More
[photopress:9_12_07_flipvideoultra.jpg,full,center] Amazon’s head of consumer electronics cautions: Don’t let the marketing speak convince you that the Xbox 360 or latest Motorola set-top box is truly “excellent.” Paul Ryder, who’s in charge of CE at Amazon, thinks so-called convergence devices fall into one of two categories: the “capable”, like the 360—good enough, but often too hard to fully exploit for the average person—and the excellent, those that work perfectly without any headaches. What makes the excellent list? • The EyeFi. A 2GB SD card with a built-in Wi-Fi antenna. Instantly, and easily, upload digital photos and video straight from your camera. • Slingbox. Your TV shows wherever you go. I take it you’ve heard of it before. → Read More
