[Archived] Slingbox

[Tris]

Slingbox

Just bagged one of these on Ebay and will be interested to see if it does what it's supposed to - and if it does it at all well.

In short, if all goes to plan I should be able to watch the chosen output from my Sky+ box on my laptop from anywhere in the world using broadband or WiFi, or even on my mobile where there is 3G coverage. The software allows full control, even down to watching red button content or setting up / watching Sky+ recordings.

As I have to travel a fair bit for work the attractions are obvious - few hotels offer all the sports channels but most have fast WiFi or wired internet, and even Virgin Trains will soon all be WiFi equipped throughout. The days of planning travel around big football games should in theory be numbered, and the thought of being able to catch up on Sky+ed content remotely / on the move is also an attractive time saving benefit.

As is simply being able to take Sky Sports out into the garden as summer approaches ...

Has anyone else gone with either Slingbox or the Sony alternative (Sony LocationFree)? I don't expect the set up process to be smooth, especially linking the thing to our fussy Orange Livebox router, which is why I've gone down the Ebay route initially. If it all works, then there are newer models of the Slingbox to consider, allowing multiple AV media inputs and HD compatible.

[Lee]

Whilst I don't have one myself, I have seen them in action and over a broadband connection they work very well.

One thing to note though is as you'll be playing content from your Sky+ box, if there's someone at home watching the TV, they'll have to watch the same content as you! In the demonstration i got, the person using it had to call his wife at home to tell her he was about start messing about with Sky!

Once the SlingPlayer app comes out on the iPhone then I'll give it serious consideration!

[Tris]

The Slingbox is up and running, and first impressions are that this is a genius gadget. Slingplayer Mobile has been downloaded onto my phone (N82) and I've been watching SA v Aus live on Sky Sports over Orange's 3G network out in the car!

We've also got round the problem you highlight. We already have Sky Multiroom with the HD box downstairs and the displaced Sky+ box now upstairs ... so I've stuck a wireless video sender on the upstairs box enabling the output from that one to be viewed anywhere in the house. Also handy for during the Ashes as we can have "screen 2" permanently showing the cricket and use screen 1 for normal viewing (football / golf / F1 / Wimbledon / Jools Holland ).

Latest news on the iPhone app is available here.

Best 60 notes I've ever spent on ebay that's for certain!

[Tris]

and even Virgin Trains will soon all be WiFi equipped throughout.

Right on cue, Virgin Trains have turned on their WiFi service this weekend ...

I travelled down to London yesterday watching Spurs v Newcastle as if I was on my sofa at home, and flicked over for some snooker later on. Watching Burnley tonight in a hotel room where the TV only has free to air digital channels.

Happy days, great gadget

[BuckyRover]

Great little gadget you have discovered here. I will purchase one when the iPhone app is released.

Brilliant!

[awhom111]

It's especially great if you move to another country. Several Americans I know who are working abroad have a slingbox attached to someone's TV back home so that they do not miss the shows or sporting events that they cannot watch wherever they are.

[Lee]

The Slingbox is up and running, and first impressions are that this is a genius gadget. Slingplayer Mobile has been downloaded onto my phone (N82) and I've been watching SA v Aus live on Sky Sports over Orange's 3G network out in the car!

We've also got round the problem you highlight. We already have Sky Multiroom with the HD box downstairs and the displaced Sky+ box now upstairs ... so I've stuck a wireless video sender on the upstairs box enabling the output from that one to be viewed anywhere in the house. Also handy for during the Ashes as we can have "screen 2" permanently showing the cricket and use screen 1 for normal viewing (football / golf / F1 / Wimbledon / Jools Holland ).

Latest news on the iPhone app is available here.

Best 60 notes I've ever spent on ebay that's for certain!

I was going to suggest if you had multiroom and an extra Sky+ box and linking Sling to that - it becomes your own personal video player wherever you are.

Pity Virgin charge for the wi-fi, its free on the East Coast line.

[Tris]

Pity Virgin charge for the wi-fi, its free on the East Coast line.

It's free in 1st Class on Virgin

... so I guess if you were to sit in Coach F at the southerly end, you'll be able to pick it up - the freebie pops up on your laptop as "tmobile" whereas I'm told that the one that charges pops up as "tmobile hotspot"

[Lee]

It's free in 1st Class on Virgin

... so I guess if you were to sit in Coach F at the southerly end, you'll be able to pick it up - the freebie pops up on your laptop as "tmobile" whereas I'm told that the one that charges pops up as "tmobile hotspot"

Good work Agent Stock. Pity I've no Virgin Train journeys planned now!

[American]

It's especially great if you move to another country. Several Americans I know who are working abroad have a slingbox attached to someone's TV back home so that they do not miss the shows or sporting events that they cannot watch wherever they are.

I've been offered that by a friend - says it is a great device. (Glad I'm not one of the offenders not allowed to post!)

[Flopsy]

Tris, do you have to pay for the Orange mobile t'interweb? Or do you have na unlimited package.

[Tris]

Tris, do you have to pay for the Orange mobile t'interweb? Or do you have na unlimited package.

Unlimited package. I pay Orange #20.56 per month for an upgraded version of Dolphin 35 (600 mins / unlimited texts / unlimited mobile internet).

[Flopsy]

cool. the one I have. The problem I have is the fact that the places I would want to use it are places with no decent phone reception. Ho hum

[Tris]

Quick update on Slingbox usefulness ...

Mate in the USA couldn't get a feed or a TV for Newcastle v Boro on Monday, we were chatting on MSN at 10 to 8, I just directed him to the Slingmedia website to download the application (free), gave him my Slingbox ID and a couple of other details ... by kick off at 8pm he had the full screen real time pictures on his laptop direct from our SkyHD box in Darwen all the way to New Jersey!

I had forgotten that my Nokia N82 has a video output (as do most N series) ... so now I'm sat in a hotel in Glasgow which doesn't have wireless internet but does have wired. I need the one wired connection for my work laptop which won't allow such frivolities as streaming ... so the hotel 29 inch plasma is connected to my mobile phone, which is streaming Wigan v Man Utd over the Orange network and pushing the picture and sound to the plasma screen.

Sound is perfect stereo, the picture is slightly jumpy ... but *** bollux, Carrick's just scored

[Tom]

Sounds very handy, may be worth looking into. How easy is it for a novice to set up?

[Tris]

Sounds very handy, may be worth looking into. How easy is it for a novice to set up?

I'm no techie, but had the thing up and running 30 minutes after taking it out of the box. The free software you download off their website has an excellent set-up wizard which guides you through.

The only vaguely tricky bit was configuring my Orange Livebox to allow port forwarding, but Google provided step-by-step instructions for that as well. Less obstinate routers will plug and play the Slingbox.

I needed a 15 metre ethernet (patch) cable - my router is on the other side of the room from Sky and the coax aerial (worth connecting to both because Slingbox is also a digital TV tuner). Maplin do any length of patch cable. You could use a wireless solution if you really wanted.

If you intend to use with your mobile, best to check that the mobile version of the software is compatible with your phone - here.

Because Slingmedia have just launched their iPhone app (see << here >> Lee and Bucky) there are a load of Slingbox Classics on ebay just now, I reckon you'd get one for well under 50 quid.

This is because the iPhone app is NOT compatible with the Classic - iPhone users will need to get one of the newer versions of the Slingbox.

[Ozz]

Ah-what about TV licence though? If I set up a slingbox to route my SS coverage of the Ashes on a second PC on my desk whilst I should be working, will I need a new TV licence or does my home one cover it?

[67splitscreen]

I think you will find the TV licence is for the address on the licence only and as many outputs as you like at that address.

This all sounds very interesting, I live in Thailand for around 7-8 months a year.

I pay for sky at this end and for a satellite system over there, mainly for the live games.

So how do I skip the Thai system, we have wireless BB but not at a great speed, it is improving though through the installation of fiber optics.

[Tris]

Ah-what about TV licence though? If I set up a slingbox to route my SS coverage of the Ashes on a second PC on my desk whilst I should be working, will I need a new TV licence or does my home one cover it?

As our VW driving friend says (click here for the rules) ... (that said, will they ever catch you ?!?!?!)

You need a TV Licence for your business if you or any of your staff, guests or visitors uses any TV receiving equipment at your business address to watch or record television programmes as they're being shown on TV.

This includes the use of a TV set, digital box, DVD or video recorder, computer or mobile phone.

You don't need a TV Licence if:

You use a digital box with a hi-fi system or another device that can only be used to produce sounds and can't display TV programmes and you don't install or use any other TV receiving equipment.

You use a TV set or computer monitor for closed circuit monitoring and you don't install or use any other TV receiving equipment.

You use a TV set or computer to watch only pre-recorded DVDs or videos (e.g. for training purposes) and you don't install or use any other TV receiving equipment.

I think you will find the TV licence is for the address on the licence only and as many outputs as you like at that address.

This all sounds very interesting, I live in Thailand for around 7-8 months a year.

I pay for sky at this end and for a satellite system over there, mainly for the live games.

So how do I skip the Thai system, we have wireless BB but not at a great speed, it is improving though through the installation of fiber optics.

For the football in Thailand, I'd stick with what you have. You spend more time there, and it's far less hassle to get a proper satellite TV feed to your proper TV, especially if your broadband over there isn't great.

Also, I guess you will get many more live games on Thai TV for far less money than you would over here paying ~50 quid to Sky and/or Setanta. I'd flip your thinking around, put a Slingbox on your satellite system in Thailand so you can get those pictures back here in the UK, and ditch your expensive Sky and/or Setanta subscription. You must have minimum upload of 256KBPS in Thailand though.

But then, if you wanted to watch BBC1 (eg North West Tonight), BBC2, ITV, Ch4, 5, Sky Sport News (or any other freeview channel) when you are in Thailand, get a second Slingbox and connect it to a coax aerial + router over here in the UK - no Sky needed - because the slingy has a digital tuner built in.

[Tris]

After getting the original Slingbox off ebay ...

... ownership of that entitled me to a substantial discount on buying the latest version new and direct so we now have both, one on each Sky box.

Also now using them as a bit of a home security system. You can get weatherproof day/night (infrared at night) cctv cameras for not much money - Amazon have one at under 20 quid, they're not much more in the shops.

They're now hooked in to an old Sony PVR with a 160GB hard disk which we don't use much (because of Sky+) which I can control via the Slingbox from anywhere in the world from mobile or laptop.

So can go away on hols with the thing set up to record on timer, or actually view the garden live and hit one button on the mobile to trigger recording if needed.

That's if we're not using Slingbox to watch the cricket of course

[pksrover]

Do you get commission Tris?

[brian_gallagher85]

I have only just got mine up and running today, but I can concur with Tris that this is indeed the best £65 I've ever spent on ebay! Even the extra £45 I spent on the homeplug ethernet powerline things was worth it

This thing is amazing, I have only viewed it through my home network as of yet but I have it set up to allow remote viewing, (it took me 5 hours to sort, in he end the "problem" was easily sorted though, I only needed to enter a certain ISP and port number on my modem/router)

I cannot wait to use it to its full potential at my girlfriends house when I'm over for the football next week.

Thank you Tris for introducing me to a priceless piece of kit I didn't even know I couldn't live without

[Tris]

What a great gadget. West Ham v Liverpool on the M56 tonight ...