SlingPlayer Mobile For iPhone And iPod Touch Now Offers High Quality Video
December 16, 2010
Tapping and clicking their way through the other excitement this week, some may have missed that SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone and iPod touch received a single feature update on Monday. SlingPlayer Mobile now offers high quality video streaming when used with newer Slingboxes and higher bandwidth connections.
This cool new feature does have a few requirements, outside of having SlingPlayer Mobile v2.0 for your pocket-sized iDevice. Foremost, you'll need to have your home entertainment setup equipped with either a Slingbox SOLO or a Slingbox PRO-HD. Next, you'll need to have the latest software installed on your Slingbox, 2.1.110 for SOLO and 2.1.80 for PRO-HD.
When away from home, you'll need to have at least 800 Kbps of bandwidth when using a Wi-Fi connection and at least 500 Kbps with a 3G cellular connection. How is a person to know this?
To see available bandwidth within SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone and iPod touch, tap the SQ button, then the Options button. The current bandwidth displays in the lower left corner.An alternate method is to use a free bandwidth testing app like Speedtest.net Mobile Speed Test. You can use the website version of speedtest.net from a computer at home to test your outbound (upload) bandwidth. As a final note, Sling Media mentions that:
Users with the Slingbox Classic, Tuner, AV, and PRO can stream with this update, but they can’t use the High Quality (HQ) video mode. Users with these Slingbox models can also continue to use SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone in Compatibility mode on the iPad.If you're considering upgrading to a newer Slingbox, Sling Media offers $50 to $150 off of a Slingbox SOLO or a Slingbox PRO-HD through the Special Upgrade Program for Slingbox Owners program. SlingPlayer Mobile and a Slingbox offer the ability to stream and control content from your: • Cable set-top box and DVR • Satellite set-top box and DVR • Telco / IPTV set-top box and DVR • Basic cable • Digital Over-the-Air broadcasts (Slingbox PRO-HD only) • Tivo • Apple TV • Home security cameras SlingPlayer Mobile is compatible with iPhone and iPod touch running iOS 4.1 or later, and available in the App Store for $29.99.