Slingbox
Encyclopedia
The Slingbox is a TV streaming media
device made by Sling Media
that encodes video into the VC-1
format for transmission over the Internet and provides an infrared blaster
. The video encoding and IR blaster can both be operated remotely over the Internet. These features allow users to remotely view and control their home's cable
, satellite
, or personal video recorder (PVR) system from an Internet-enabled computer with a broadband
Internet
connection.
Internet
connection, anywhere in the world. To avoid copyright infringement
, only one user can access the stream from a Slingbox at a time. This way to access content is named placeshifting.
A slingbox is a small device that can control the functions of a TV source (in this example, a cable box) to which it is attached. It is connected also to the internet, typically via a local ethernet. A user with the related software on his remote computer, can connect to the device, thereby control the cable box, and receive back the video and audio output of the cable box and so watch TV as if he were viewing the slingbox site.
, Apple Macintosh running Mac OS X
, and selected mobile devices. SlingPlayer is not available for Linux, BSD or other open source systems. While old versions of SlingPlayer ran under old versions of Wine
, there is presently no way to run SlingPlayer in Linux using current releases of either. The latest stable SlingPlayer version for Windows is version 2.0.4. This version includes a live video buffer to pause, fast-forward, and rewind up to 60 minutes of live video, an integrated channel/program guide (USA/Canada only), and a web-based account to assist in finding and connecting to the Slingbox via the internet.
Sling Media announced a Mac OS X port of the SlingPlayer at the January 2006 Macworld Conference and Expo with a promised release date of Q2 2006. The release was later delayed to Q3 2006, and then again to Q4 2006, leading to allegations that Sling Media was promoting vaporware
. In September 2006, Sling Media began selling new Slingbox hardware in packages that had the official Mac OS X logo on the outside, indicating support for the Macintosh platform even though the Mac OS X port of the player software was still not available. Sling Media released the first public beta of their player for Mac OS X
on October 31, 2006. A completed version was released in early 2007. Version 1.0 works on both PowerPC and Intel Macs as long as it runs at least Mac OS X v10.3.9. The latest stable SlingPlayer version for Mac OS X is version 1.0.10.
During the 2007 Consumer Electronics Show
, the firm announced a future feature named Clip+Sling. It allows users to share clips of their favorite TV shows with each other through a hosted Web service. The announcement was made during Leslie Moonves
' keynote speech.
Applian Technologies released a PC-based recording program for Slingbox in 2006 called At-Large Recorder 1.0. Following that event, Sling Media added an encrypted protocol to the communication between SlingPlayer and Slingbox, rendering At-Large Recorder 1.0 useless with newer firmware. In October 2007, Applian Technologies released At-Large Recorder 2, which is once again able to capture and record Slingbox streams on a Windows PC. At-Large Recorder 2 includes a circular recording feature for use in continuously capturing feeds from security cameras or media monitoring.
mReplay provides no-cost rich internet applications that allow Slingbox users to watch, control, record, edit and share the content of their Slingbox all in Internet Explorer or Firefox without traditional software installation called mReplay Live. There is also a mobile version available for Windows Mobile phones for free called mReplay Mobi.
On January 6, 2009, Sling Media unveiled a prototype of their HD solution for Mac OS X. SlingPlayer for Mac HD is a web-based version of the SlingPlayer software that will be accessible from Sling.com. Sling Media also revealed that they would not release a standalone desktop version of SlingPlayer for Mac HD. This signaled Sling Media's intent to cease developing the standalone desktop versions of their software, and to begin migrating users to Sling.com for access to their Slingbox.
, sling.com redirects
to Dishonline.com, Dish Network
's version of online content.
, iOS, Palm OS
, Symbian
, Windows Mobile
, and Windows Phone
based devices.
was demonstrated at Macworld Expo 2009 in January and has been submitted to the App Store in March 2009.
The announcement of the iPhone and iPod Touch application began a controversy among owners of older Slingboxes as Sling Media has announced that only the Slingbox Solo, Pro and ProHD models will be supported by the iPhone client. Older Slingbox models Classic, Tuner and AV are unofficially supported, although they do appear to work with the application nonetheless. Owners of these models have been offered a $50 discount, although they in turn have pointed out that this does not bring the price down to even what Amazon sells Slingboxes for as of 2010.
, Sling Media had not offered any public explanation for the cutoff, although one possibility may be related to the DSP in newer models being programmable at runtime to deliver an H.264 stream (the iPhone's preferred format) while older boxes may only be able to deliver a WMV-encoded stream. Other communications from Sling refer to the need to upgrade to be ready for "new features" not yet disclosed.
On May 12, 2009, the SlingPlayer App became available at the Apple App Store, but only for US, Canadian and UK accounts. It sells for $29.99 and will only use Wi-Fi to stream content. Sling's promotional email confirmed that the SlingPlayer for iPhone works with wi-fi connections only "At Apple's request" - a decision believed to have been made at the behest of incumbent iPhone network operators such as AT&T and O2.
On February 4, 2010, the SlingPlayer App gained the ability to stream content on AT&T's 3G Network. This change was done 100% by AT&T as the SlingPlayer App already features quality scaling of content based on connection type.
. The price is $29.99 for the app. The iPad-specific app will take full advantage of the iPad's large screen by offering a higher resolution stream than on other devices with smaller screens.
Symbian
S60
platform based mobile devices, such as Nokia N73
, Nokia E65
, Nokia N95
and Nokia 6120 classic
.
Minimum technical requirements:
devices with these minimum technical requirements. It does not work with operating system 6 or newer.
A supported BlackBerry smartphone with 3G wireless service and/or Wi-Fi Internet connectivity, and these minimum device software versions:
for 2.1 only at this time.
version of their player on April 26, 2006 which allows users to stream their video over smartphone
s and Pocket PC
s.
. The app is priced at $29.99 and is available through the Windows Phone Marketplace
.
client "SlingPlayer Mobile for Palm OS" is available. The current version is 1.00.22 which was released on April 10, 2009.
(the first Palm webOS device), was announced in the spring of 2009, Sling Media was a "launch partner", indicating that they would make their SlingPlayer Mobile software available for the Palm Pre at or near the launch of the handset. , no version of SlingPlayer Mobile for webOS has been made publicly available. This has led to complaints from users and allegations of Sling Media promoting vaporware. Using the Classic emulator in webOS, "SlingPlayer Mobile for Palm OS" will start, successfully connect to and control remote Slingboxes; however, the VC-1 video and audio stream will not be decoded.
The SlingCatcher was scheduled for release by the end of Q2 2007. One year later, information about the device could still be found on the Sling Media website and occasional snippets of information referencing it appear in industry magazines, but the absence of a release date led to accusations of the product being vaporware
.
In early September, 2008, Sling Media announced that the SlingCatcher would be available for an October 2, 2008 release date (later revised to "Early October".) Several websites offered the SlingCatcher for pre-order.
The SlingCatcher became commercially available in October 2008, to mixed reviews. Much of the initial criticism revolved around a lack of support for streaming HD, which is now possible after software update v1.0.0.57.
The SlingCatcher appears to have been discontinued as of April 2010. It is no longer available for sale through online retailers or on the Sling web site. There was briefly an announcement on the Sling web site SlingCatcher page that remaining inventory would be sold online through BestBuy.com at $199.99, double the $99.99 price in Best Buy stores from December 2009. As of May 2010, there is no mention of the SlingCatcher or similar devices on their products page. No official announcement has come from Sling regarding the future of this technology. The rumor is that Sling Media has decided to focus on Catcher like devices for provider channels (e.g., cable companies), so will no longer sell a retail device. Subsequently, prices for SlingCatchers have skyrocketed in secondary markets such as Ebay to $300–$400 for a NIB SlingCatcher SC100-100.
in television
broadcasting
. Broadcast engineers at several TV stations have installed them at remote "towercam" locations to observe traffic
and weather
conditions. KPIX-TV
in San Francisco has several connected with wireless network
ing, using EV-DO via a cellular network
(mobile phone
) provider. This costs only a few hundred dollars for each site, versus well over ten thousand for a setup with a remote pickup unit
and auxiliary
broadcast license
s. However, the system is not yet reliable or broadband
enough to handle live remote broadcast
s. Cable TV providers are also using it to provide proof of performance for companies that run TV ads on their systems.
Streaming media
Streaming media is multimedia that is constantly received by and presented to an end-user while being delivered by a streaming provider.The term "presented" is used in this article in a general sense that includes audio or video playback. The name refers to the delivery method of the medium rather...
device made by Sling Media
Sling Media
Sling Media Inc. specializes in audio and video placeshifting technology. The company is a subsidiary of EchoStar Corporation and is based in San Mateo, California...
that encodes video into the VC-1
VC-1
VC-1 is the informal name of the SMPTE 421M video codec standard, which was initially developed as a proprietary video format by Microsoft before it was released as a formal SMPTE standard video format on April 3, 2006...
format for transmission over the Internet and provides an infrared blaster
Infrared blaster
An infrared blaster is a device that emulates an infrared remote control to autonomously control a device that is normally controlled only by remote control key presses. The most common use of an IR blaster is to allow a recording device such as a DVR or VCR to change the channel on an external...
. The video encoding and IR blaster can both be operated remotely over the Internet. These features allow users to remotely view and control their home's cable
Cable television
Cable television is a system of providing television programs to consumers via radio frequency signals transmitted to televisions through coaxial cables or digital light pulses through fixed optical fibers located on the subscriber's property, much like the over-the-air method used in traditional...
, satellite
Satellite television
Satellite television is television programming delivered by the means of communications satellite and received by an outdoor antenna, usually a parabolic mirror generally referred to as a satellite dish, and as far as household usage is concerned, a satellite receiver either in the form of an...
, or personal video recorder (PVR) system from an Internet-enabled computer with a broadband
Broadband
The term broadband refers to a telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, in some sense, than another standard or usual signal or device . Different criteria for "broad" have been applied in different contexts and at different times...
Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
connection.
Operation
A Slingbox can redirect one of its inputs to one computer or mobile device located on a local network or remotely, when using a broadbandBroadband
The term broadband refers to a telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, in some sense, than another standard or usual signal or device . Different criteria for "broad" have been applied in different contexts and at different times...
Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
connection, anywhere in the world. To avoid copyright infringement
Copyright infringement
Copyright infringement is the unauthorized or prohibited use of works under copyright, infringing the copyright holder's exclusive rights, such as the right to reproduce or perform the copyrighted work, or to make derivative works.- "Piracy" :...
, only one user can access the stream from a Slingbox at a time. This way to access content is named placeshifting.
A slingbox is a small device that can control the functions of a TV source (in this example, a cable box) to which it is attached. It is connected also to the internet, typically via a local ethernet. A user with the related software on his remote computer, can connect to the device, thereby control the cable box, and receive back the video and audio output of the cable box and so watch TV as if he were viewing the slingbox site.
SlingPlayer software
The Slingbox uses Sling Media's proprietary SlingPlayer to display audio and video on Microsoft WindowsMicrosoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
, Apple Macintosh running Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
, and selected mobile devices. SlingPlayer is not available for Linux, BSD or other open source systems. While old versions of SlingPlayer ran under old versions of Wine
Wine (software)
Wine is a free software application that aims to allow computer programs written for Microsoft Windows to run on Unix-like operating systems. Wine also provides a software library, known as Winelib, against which developers can compile Windows applications to help port them to Unix-like...
, there is presently no way to run SlingPlayer in Linux using current releases of either. The latest stable SlingPlayer version for Windows is version 2.0.4. This version includes a live video buffer to pause, fast-forward, and rewind up to 60 minutes of live video, an integrated channel/program guide (USA/Canada only), and a web-based account to assist in finding and connecting to the Slingbox via the internet.
Sling Media announced a Mac OS X port of the SlingPlayer at the January 2006 Macworld Conference and Expo with a promised release date of Q2 2006. The release was later delayed to Q3 2006, and then again to Q4 2006, leading to allegations that Sling Media was promoting vaporware
Vaporware
Vaporware is a term in the computer industry that describes a product, typically computer hardware or software, that is announced to the general public but is never actually released nor officially canceled. Vaporware is also a term sometimes used to describe events that are announced or predicted,...
. In September 2006, Sling Media began selling new Slingbox hardware in packages that had the official Mac OS X logo on the outside, indicating support for the Macintosh platform even though the Mac OS X port of the player software was still not available. Sling Media released the first public beta of their player for Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
on October 31, 2006. A completed version was released in early 2007. Version 1.0 works on both PowerPC and Intel Macs as long as it runs at least Mac OS X v10.3.9. The latest stable SlingPlayer version for Mac OS X is version 1.0.10.
During the 2007 Consumer Electronics Show
Consumer Electronics Show
The International Consumer Electronics Show is a major technology-related trade show held each January in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Not open to the public, the Consumer Electronics Association-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new...
, the firm announced a future feature named Clip+Sling. It allows users to share clips of their favorite TV shows with each other through a hosted Web service. The announcement was made during Leslie Moonves
Leslie Moonves
Leslie Moonves is President and Chief Executive Officer of CBS Corporation.Moonves served as co-president and co-chief operating officer of Viacom, Inc., the predecessor to CBS Corporation, from 2004 until the company split on December 31, 2005...
' keynote speech.
Applian Technologies released a PC-based recording program for Slingbox in 2006 called At-Large Recorder 1.0. Following that event, Sling Media added an encrypted protocol to the communication between SlingPlayer and Slingbox, rendering At-Large Recorder 1.0 useless with newer firmware. In October 2007, Applian Technologies released At-Large Recorder 2, which is once again able to capture and record Slingbox streams on a Windows PC. At-Large Recorder 2 includes a circular recording feature for use in continuously capturing feeds from security cameras or media monitoring.
mReplay provides no-cost rich internet applications that allow Slingbox users to watch, control, record, edit and share the content of their Slingbox all in Internet Explorer or Firefox without traditional software installation called mReplay Live. There is also a mobile version available for Windows Mobile phones for free called mReplay Mobi.
Sling.com
On December 2, 2008, Sling Media announced the public launch of Sling.com, an online video entertainment destination. Users can go to Sling.com to watch clips, TV shows, films, news and sports. This includes video programming from over 90 content providers spanning 150 content brands. In addition to the on-demand offerings, Slingbox owners could connect to their Slingbox through the website, making their Slingboxes available without a software client download.On January 6, 2009, Sling Media unveiled a prototype of their HD solution for Mac OS X. SlingPlayer for Mac HD is a web-based version of the SlingPlayer software that will be accessible from Sling.com. Sling Media also revealed that they would not release a standalone desktop version of SlingPlayer for Mac HD. This signaled Sling Media's intent to cease developing the standalone desktop versions of their software, and to begin migrating users to Sling.com for access to their Slingbox.
, sling.com redirects
URL redirection
URL redirection, also called URL forwarding and the very similar technique domain redirection also called domain forwarding, are techniques on the World Wide Web for making a web page available under many URLs.- Similar domain names :...
to Dishonline.com, Dish Network
Dish Network
Dish Network Corporation is the second largest pay TV provider in the United States, providing direct broadcast satellite service—including satellite television, audio programming, and interactive television services—to 14.337 million commercial and residential customers in the United States. Dish...
's version of online content.
Mobile
Sling Players are available for various mobile platforms such as Android, BlackBerry OSBlackBerry OS
BlackBerry OS is a proprietary mobile operating system, developed by Research In Motion for its BlackBerry line of smartphone handheld devices...
, iOS, Palm OS
Palm OS
Palm OS is a mobile operating system initially developed by Palm, Inc., for personal digital assistants in 1996. Palm OS is designed for ease of use with a touchscreen-based graphical user interface. It is provided with a suite of basic applications for personal information management...
, Symbian
Symbian
Symbian is a mobile operating system and computing platform designed for smartphones and currently maintained by Accenture. The Symbian platform is the successor to Symbian OS and Nokia Series 60; unlike Symbian OS, which needed an additional user interface system, Symbian includes a user...
, Windows Mobile
Windows Mobile
Windows Mobile is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft that was used in smartphones and Pocket PCs, but by 2011 was rarely supplied on new phones. The last version is "Windows Mobile 6.5.5"; it is superseded by Windows Phone, which does not run Windows Mobile software.Windows Mobile is...
, and Windows Phone
Windows Phone
Windows Phone is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft, and is the successor to its Windows Mobile platform, although incompatible with it. Unlike its predecessor, it is primarily aimed at the consumer market rather than the enterprise market...
based devices.
Apple iPhone, iPod Touch
SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhoneIPhone
The iPhone is a line of Internet and multimedia-enabled smartphones marketed by Apple Inc. The first iPhone was unveiled by Steve Jobs, then CEO of Apple, on January 9, 2007, and released on June 29, 2007...
was demonstrated at Macworld Expo 2009 in January and has been submitted to the App Store in March 2009.
The announcement of the iPhone and iPod Touch application began a controversy among owners of older Slingboxes as Sling Media has announced that only the Slingbox Solo, Pro and ProHD models will be supported by the iPhone client. Older Slingbox models Classic, Tuner and AV are unofficially supported, although they do appear to work with the application nonetheless. Owners of these models have been offered a $50 discount, although they in turn have pointed out that this does not bring the price down to even what Amazon sells Slingboxes for as of 2010.
, Sling Media had not offered any public explanation for the cutoff, although one possibility may be related to the DSP in newer models being programmable at runtime to deliver an H.264 stream (the iPhone's preferred format) while older boxes may only be able to deliver a WMV-encoded stream. Other communications from Sling refer to the need to upgrade to be ready for "new features" not yet disclosed.
On May 12, 2009, the SlingPlayer App became available at the Apple App Store, but only for US, Canadian and UK accounts. It sells for $29.99 and will only use Wi-Fi to stream content. Sling's promotional email confirmed that the SlingPlayer for iPhone works with wi-fi connections only "At Apple's request" - a decision believed to have been made at the behest of incumbent iPhone network operators such as AT&T and O2.
On February 4, 2010, the SlingPlayer App gained the ability to stream content on AT&T's 3G Network. This change was done 100% by AT&T as the SlingPlayer App already features quality scaling of content based on connection type.
Apple iPad
On November 24, 2010, Sling Media announced the release and immediate availability of the SlingPlayer Mobile app for the iPadIPad
The iPad is a line of tablet computers designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc., primarily as a platform for audio-visual media including books, periodicals, movies, music, games, and web content. The iPad was introduced on January 27, 2010 by Apple's then-CEO Steve Jobs. Its size and...
. The price is $29.99 for the app. The iPad-specific app will take full advantage of the iPad's large screen by offering a higher resolution stream than on other devices with smaller screens.
Nokia Symbian S60
SlingPlayers also work on NokiaNokia
Nokia Corporation is a Finnish multinational communications corporation that is headquartered in Keilaniemi, Espoo, a city neighbouring Finland's capital Helsinki...
Symbian
Symbian
Symbian is a mobile operating system and computing platform designed for smartphones and currently maintained by Accenture. The Symbian platform is the successor to Symbian OS and Nokia Series 60; unlike Symbian OS, which needed an additional user interface system, Symbian includes a user...
S60
S60 (software platform)
The S60 Platform is a software platform for mobile phones that runs on Symbian OS. It was created by Nokia, who made the platform open source and contributed it to the Symbian Foundation. S60 has been used by mobile device manufacturers including Siemens mobile, Lenovo, LG Electronics, Panasonic...
platform based mobile devices, such as Nokia N73
Nokia N73
The Nokia N73 is a smartphone by Nokia officially described as a "multimedia computer". In common with other Nokia 'Nseries' and 'Eseries' phones of its time , the N73 comes loaded with many software applications, including contacts, messaging, picture and video galleries, a music player, a Visual...
, Nokia E65
Nokia E65
The Nokia E65 is a smartphone in the Eseries range, a S60 platform third edition device with slide action. It shared many of the features of the N95 released around the same time, but thinner, lighter and without the GPS....
, Nokia N95
Nokia N95
The Nokia N95 is a smartphone produced by Nokia as part of their Nseries line of portable devices. It was released in 2007. The N95 runs Symbian OS v9.2, with a S60 3rd Edition user interface. The phone has a two-way sliding mechanism, which can be used to access either media playback buttons or...
and Nokia 6120 classic
Nokia 6120 classic
The Nokia 6120 classic is a Nokia-produced Symbian OS smartphone . It is the first Nokia UMTS / HSDPA dual band mobile which also features quad band GSM.-Interface Changes:...
.
Minimum technical requirements:
- SymbianSymbianSymbian is a mobile operating system and computing platform designed for smartphones and currently maintained by Accenture. The Symbian platform is the successor to Symbian OS and Nokia Series 60; unlike Symbian OS, which needed an additional user interface system, Symbian includes a user...
S60S60 (software platform)The S60 Platform is a software platform for mobile phones that runs on Symbian OS. It was created by Nokia, who made the platform open source and contributed it to the Symbian Foundation. S60 has been used by mobile device manufacturers including Siemens mobile, Lenovo, LG Electronics, Panasonic...
phone (Symbian 9.1 S60 3rd edition or above), with 3G3G3G or 3rd generation mobile telecommunications is a generation of standards for mobile phones and mobile telecommunication services fulfilling the International Mobile Telecommunications-2000 specifications by the International Telecommunication Union...
(HSDPA or UMTS) wireless service and/or Wi-FiWi-FiWi-Fi or Wifi, is a mechanism for wirelessly connecting electronic devices. A device enabled with Wi-Fi, such as a personal computer, video game console, smartphone, or digital audio player, can connect to the Internet via a wireless network access point. An access point has a range of about 20...
InternetInternetThe Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
connectivity - Symbian UIQUIQUIQ by UIQ Technology is a software platform based upon Symbian OS. Essentially this is a graphical user interface layer that provides additional components to the core OS, to enable the development of feature-rich mobile phones that are open to expanded capabilities through third-party...
phone (Symbian 9.1 UIQ 3.0) with Wi-Fi Internet connectivity
RIM BlackBerry
SlingPlayer Mobile will work on BlackBerryBlackBerry
BlackBerry is a line of mobile email and smartphone devices developed and designed by Canadian company Research In Motion since 1999.BlackBerry devices are smartphones, designed to function as personal digital assistants, portable media players, internet browsers, gaming devices, and much more...
devices with these minimum technical requirements. It does not work with operating system 6 or newer.
A supported BlackBerry smartphone with 3G wireless service and/or Wi-Fi Internet connectivity, and these minimum device software versions:
| Smartphone | Minimum version, and above | Optimal version, and above |
|---|---|---|
| BlackBerry Bold 9700 BlackBerry Bold 9700 The BlackBerry Bold 9700 is a smartphone developed by Research In Motion.-External links:* * *... |
5.0.0.0 | 5.0.0.656 to 5.0.0.743 do not work |
| BlackBerry Bold 9000 | 4.6.0.0 | 4.6.0.167 |
| BlackBerry Curve 8900 | 4.6.1.0 | 4.6.1.114 |
| BlackBerry 8820 | 4.5.0.0 | 4.5.0.110 |
| BlackBerry 8350i | 4.6.1.0 | 4.6.1.83 |
| BlackBerry Curve 8320 | 4.5.0.0 | 4.5.0.81 |
| BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8220 | 4.6.0.0 | 4.5.0.174 |
| BlackBerry Pearl 8120 | 4.5.0.0 | 4.5.0.110 |
Google Android
Slingbox released its Android player on June 21, 2010 via the Android MarketAndroid Market
Android Market is an online software store developed by Google for Android OS devices. Its gateway is an application program called "Market", preinstalled on most Android devices, allows users to browse and download mobile apps published by third-party developers...
for 2.1 only at this time.
Microsoft Windows Mobile
Sling Media released a Windows MobileWindows Mobile
Windows Mobile is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft that was used in smartphones and Pocket PCs, but by 2011 was rarely supplied on new phones. The last version is "Windows Mobile 6.5.5"; it is superseded by Windows Phone, which does not run Windows Mobile software.Windows Mobile is...
version of their player on April 26, 2006 which allows users to stream their video over smartphone
Smartphone
A smartphone is a high-end mobile phone built on a mobile computing platform, with more advanced computing ability and connectivity than a contemporary feature phone. The first smartphones were devices that mainly combined the functions of a personal digital assistant and a mobile phone or camera...
s and Pocket PC
Pocket PC
A Pocket PC is also known by Microsoft as a 'Windows Mobile Classic device'. It is a hardware specification for a handheld-sized computer, personal digital assistant , that runs the Microsoft 'Windows Mobile Classic' operating system...
s.
Microsoft Windows Phone 7
On November 9, 2010, Sling Media announced the availability of SlingPlayer Mobile for Windows Phone 7Windows Phone 7
Windows Phone is a mobile operating system developed by Microsoft, and is the successor to its Windows Mobile platform, although incompatible with it. Unlike its predecessor, it is primarily aimed at the consumer market rather than the enterprise market...
. The app is priced at $29.99 and is available through the Windows Phone Marketplace
Windows Phone Marketplace
Windows Phone Marketplace is a service by Microsoft for its Windows Phone 7 platform that allows users to browse and download applications that have been developed by third-parties...
.
Palm OS
A Palm OSPalm OS
Palm OS is a mobile operating system initially developed by Palm, Inc., for personal digital assistants in 1996. Palm OS is designed for ease of use with a touchscreen-based graphical user interface. It is provided with a suite of basic applications for personal information management...
client "SlingPlayer Mobile for Palm OS" is available. The current version is 1.00.22 which was released on April 10, 2009.
Hewlett-Packard webOS
When the Palm PrePalm Pre
The Palm Pre is a multimedia smartphone designed and marketed by Palm with a multi-touch screen and a sliding keyboard. The smartphone was the first to use Palm's Linux based mobile operating system, webOS...
(the first Palm webOS device), was announced in the spring of 2009, Sling Media was a "launch partner", indicating that they would make their SlingPlayer Mobile software available for the Palm Pre at or near the launch of the handset. , no version of SlingPlayer Mobile for webOS has been made publicly available. This has led to complaints from users and allegations of Sling Media promoting vaporware. Using the Classic emulator in webOS, "SlingPlayer Mobile for Palm OS" will start, successfully connect to and control remote Slingboxes; however, the VC-1 video and audio stream will not be decoded.
SlingCatcher
In January 2007, Sling Media announced the launch of the SlingCatcher, a hardware device similar to a set top box, which would enable users to watch their television remotely, without the need for a computer. The SlingCatcher will purportedly ship with a hardware remote control to replace the on-screen remote and thus give a more true-to-life television experience.The SlingCatcher was scheduled for release by the end of Q2 2007. One year later, information about the device could still be found on the Sling Media website and occasional snippets of information referencing it appear in industry magazines, but the absence of a release date led to accusations of the product being vaporware
Vaporware
Vaporware is a term in the computer industry that describes a product, typically computer hardware or software, that is announced to the general public but is never actually released nor officially canceled. Vaporware is also a term sometimes used to describe events that are announced or predicted,...
.
In early September, 2008, Sling Media announced that the SlingCatcher would be available for an October 2, 2008 release date (later revised to "Early October".) Several websites offered the SlingCatcher for pre-order.
The SlingCatcher became commercially available in October 2008, to mixed reviews. Much of the initial criticism revolved around a lack of support for streaming HD, which is now possible after software update v1.0.0.57.
The SlingCatcher appears to have been discontinued as of April 2010. It is no longer available for sale through online retailers or on the Sling web site. There was briefly an announcement on the Sling web site SlingCatcher page that remaining inventory would be sold online through BestBuy.com at $199.99, double the $99.99 price in Best Buy stores from December 2009. As of May 2010, there is no mention of the SlingCatcher or similar devices on their products page. No official announcement has come from Sling regarding the future of this technology. The rumor is that Sling Media has decided to focus on Catcher like devices for provider channels (e.g., cable companies), so will no longer sell a retail device. Subsequently, prices for SlingCatchers have skyrocketed in secondary markets such as Ebay to $300–$400 for a NIB SlingCatcher SC100-100.
Slingbox Solo hardware
People have reported problems with Slingbox Solos "freezing, stuck optimizing, losing connection". The problems were resolved by replacing damaged capacitors on the circuit board.Broadcasting
The SlingBox has found an unexpected niche marketNiche market
A niche market is the subset of the market on which a specific product is focusing; therefore the market niche defines the specific product features aimed at satisfying specific market needs, as well as the price range, production quality and the demographics that is intended to impact...
in television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
broadcasting
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
. Broadcast engineers at several TV stations have installed them at remote "towercam" locations to observe traffic
Traffic camera
A traffic camera is a video camera which observes vehicular traffic on a road. Typically, these are put along major roads such as highways, freeways, motorways, autoroutes and expressways, as well as arterial roads, and are connected with optical fibers buried alongside or even under the road,...
and weather
Weather
Weather is the state of the atmosphere, to the degree that it is hot or cold, wet or dry, calm or stormy, clear or cloudy. Most weather phenomena occur in the troposphere, just below the stratosphere. Weather refers, generally, to day-to-day temperature and precipitation activity, whereas climate...
conditions. KPIX-TV
KPIX-TV
KPIX-TV is the CBS owned and operated television station in San Francisco, California. Through its parent company CBS Corporation, KPIX is co-owned with The CW affiliate KBCW-TV ....
in San Francisco has several connected with wireless network
Wireless network
Wireless network refers to any type of computer network that is not connected by cables of any kind. It is a method by which homes, telecommunications networks and enterprise installations avoid the costly process of introducing cables into a building, or as a connection between various equipment...
ing, using EV-DO via a cellular network
Cellular network
A cellular network is a radio network distributed over land areas called cells, each served by at least one fixed-location transceiver known as a cell site or base station. When joined together these cells provide radio coverage over a wide geographic area...
(mobile phone
Mobile phone
A mobile phone is a device which can make and receive telephone calls over a radio link whilst moving around a wide geographic area. It does so by connecting to a cellular network provided by a mobile network operator...
) provider. This costs only a few hundred dollars for each site, versus well over ten thousand for a setup with a remote pickup unit
Remote pickup unit
A remote pickup unit or RPU is a radio system using special radio frequencies set aside for electronic news gathering and remote broadcasting. It can also be used for other types of point-to-point radio links....
and auxiliary
Broadcast auxiliary service
A broadcast auxiliary service or BAS is any radio frequency system used by a radio station or TV station, which is not part of its direct broadcast to listeners or viewers...
broadcast license
Broadcast license
A broadcast license or broadcast license is a specific type of spectrum license that grants the licensee the privilege to use a portion of the radio frequency spectrum in a given geographical area for broadcasting purposes. The licenses are generally straddled with additional restrictions that...
s. However, the system is not yet reliable or broadband
Broadband
The term broadband refers to a telecommunications signal or device of greater bandwidth, in some sense, than another standard or usual signal or device . Different criteria for "broad" have been applied in different contexts and at different times...
enough to handle live remote broadcast
Remote broadcast
In broadcast engineering, a remote broadcast is broadcasting done from a location away from a formal television studio and is considered an electronic field production . A remote pickup unit is usually used to transmit the audio and/or video back to the television station, where it joins the...
s. Cable TV providers are also using it to provide proof of performance for companies that run TV ads on their systems.
Slingbox versions
- Slingbox Pro HD http://www.slingbox.com/go/slingbox-prohd
- Slingbox Solo http://www.slingbox.com/go/slingbox-solo
- Slingbox 700U
- Slingbox 120 (Only available in the Indian market)
- Slingbox Pro: http://support.slingbox.com/go/slingbox-pro - Discontinued
- Slingbox AV http://support.slingbox.com/go/slingbox-av - Discontinued
- Slingbox Tuner http://support.slingbox.com/go/slingbox-tuner - Discontinued
- Slingbox Classic http://support.slingbox.com/go/slingbox-classic - Discontinued
See also
- LocationFree PlayerLocationFree PlayerSony's LocationFree is the marketing name for a group of products and technologies for timeshifting and placeshifting streaming video. The LocationFree Player is an internet-based multifunctional device used to stream live television broadcasts , DVDs and DVR content over a home network or the...
, a competing product line from Sony - HDHomeRunHDHomeRun-General Details:There are currently 4 HDHomeRun models on the market: a single-tuner ATSC/clear QAM model, a dual-tuner ATSC/clear QAM model, a dual-tuner commercial ATSC/clear QAM model, and a dual-tuner DVB-T/unencrypted DVB-C model. All models are designed to receive unencrypted digital...
, a competing product line from Silicondust - Vulkano, a competing product line from Monsoon Multimedia
- DreamboxDreamboxThe Dreambox is a series of Linux-powered DVB satellite, terrestrial and cable digital television receivers , produced by German multimedia vendor Dream Multimedia.- History and Description :...
, a competing product line from Dream Multimedia - DBox2DBox2The DBox is a DVB satellite and cable digital television integrated receiver decoder . They were distributed widely for use with Pay television channels. The DBox-1 was the first DVB-capable receiver to be produced and distributed in large quantity. It was commissioned by the Kirch group's DF1, an...
, a competing product - NationPhone Remote, Slingbox remote as alternative Catcher
- TV2MeTV2MeTV2Me is a device that allows TV viewers to watch their home’s cable or satellite television programs on their own computers, mobile phones, television sets and even a projector screen anywhere in the world...
, an original placeshifting device, invented by Ken Schaffer