Slingbox?

[Deleted User] · 01/06/06 - 18:34

is anybody else using a Slingmedia slingbox with their sky system.
i bought one the other day, and i'm running it with my new HD box.
obviously, i dont get HD quality, but i have to say i was really impressed with the quality i could get over the internet.
Also, if i forgot to set up to record, i can do it remotely over the net from work.
On a side note, i heard that sky are trying to ban the use of them, and are re-wording their contracts to say that you can only view IN YOUR HOME. has anyone else heard about this?

Strathclyde · 01/06/06 - 20:08

I've been interested in the Slingbox since I saw it released in the US. How does it control the digibox?

Wouldn't be surprised if Sky tried to ban them, but I suspect it'll be like them saying you can't receive Sky abroad.

[Deleted User] · 01/06/06 - 20:26

Strathclyde wrote:

I've been interested in the Slingbox since I saw it released in the US. How does it control the digibox?

Wouldn't be surprised if Sky tried to ban them, but I suspect it'll be like them saying you can't receive Sky abroad.

it has a 'IR Blaster' that sits under the sky box, which you control remotely. similar to a tivo if you've ever used one of them.

Dickibobboy · 01/06/06 - 22:32

does it cost to run it, have you used it away from england yet?

[Deleted User] · 01/06/06 - 23:25

Do you need to install software on the pc you are recieving the signal on or is it via an internet address?

Steviemac

[Deleted User] · 02/06/06 - 07:04

no costs involved to run it, although if you want to use your windows mobile based phone/PDA then there's a one-off charge of $30 for that software.
You need to install the software onto your pc to watch it away from home/abroad.

[Deleted User] · 02/06/06 - 12:26

I've been using a slingbox with sky+ for a few months now and it works fine (I'm one of the PAL beta testers). You need to install Slingplayer software on your machine and the device is controlled by a software remote which controls IR emitters infront of the Sky box. I'm happy to answer any other questions you have.

Chris

[Deleted User] · 02/06/06 - 13:11

gateshead1 wrote:

I've been using a slingbox with sky+ for a few months now and it works fine (I'm one of the PAL beta testers). You need to install Slingplayer software on your machine and the device is controlled by a software remote which controls IR emitters infront of the Sky box. I'm happy to answer any other questions you have.

Chris

From the details it implies that the UK model has a Freeview tuner built in how well does that work?

Does the Slingplayer work out the optimum bandwidth between the box and yoru player depending on where you are and stream at a suitable resolution or do you manually set it?

Finally can you configure it to download to your PC material which you can watch off line?

Dickibobboy · 02/06/06 - 13:18

if i get the software can i connect to one of yous sky and watch it?

:D

[Deleted User] · 02/06/06 - 13:19

I attended an IPTV seminar and these were mentioned as a big threat to Sky, Home Choice, BT Vision and the Virgin TV (when NTL/Telewest rebrand).

Where is the best place to get one from?

[Deleted User] · 02/06/06 - 13:25

Each slingbox has two passwords one to view and one for admin. You can use the Finder ID to connect to any slingbox but you need the password. You can buy the slingbox from PC World and I think the rest of the DSG Group. I personally haven't tried the freeview feature as I dont live in an area capable of receiving it but reports on the testers site say that it is comparable to a freeview box although not sure about the EPG. www.slingcommunity.com has more in-depth answers to these questions though.

Regards

Chris

digitalsatman · 02/06/06 - 13:52

Could someone post screenshots of the EPG on slingbox?

[Deleted User] · 02/06/06 - 15:28

The Sky EPG or the DVB-T Freeview one.

Regards

Chris

digitalsatman · 02/06/06 - 16:00

The Sky EPG one Chris.

[Deleted User] · 02/06/06 - 17:39

Will do, how do you screen capture from a video source though, i get the usual DVD screen capture effect i.e black.

Thanks

Chris

Reckless · 04/06/06 - 09:47

gateshead1 wrote:

Will do, how do you screen capture from a video source though, i get the usual DVD screen capture effect i.e black.

Thanks

Chris

You get a black screen as the video is not actually being shown on the display. In pretty much all cases a Direct X overlay surface is used. I've not used/seen the sling player software but if you search for directx screen grab tools then you might have some luck!

timo_w2s · 04/06/06 - 10:05

Can you restrict the upstream bandwidth? Have you tried it at 256k?

Am I right in thinking that a 256k stream will consume about 100MB an hour? (I'm just thinking that if you have a 30GB cap you could only use the sling box remotely for about 30 hours every month)

[Deleted User] · 04/06/06 - 11:22

i'm doing a video capture of it at the moment. i should be able to upload it somewhere in a little while.

[Deleted User] · 04/06/06 - 11:29

greatcapp wrote:

i'm doing a video capture of it at the moment. i should be able to upload it somewhere in a little while.

fantastic

im looking at getting a slingbox as it will be good for going abroad

[Deleted User] · 04/06/06 - 12:06

ok, it's up

Link

it doesn't do a bad job of showing the quality you get, but remember it's a screen capture, and i'm a bit of a ****wit so it's the best i could do.

timo_w2s · 04/06/06 - 12:23

Thanks, that was great. What was the connection speed for that demo?

[Deleted User] · 04/06/06 - 14:13

timo_w2s wrote:

Thanks, that was great. What was the connection speed for that demo?

if you look closely at the bottom, the speed is shown there.

timo_w2s · 04/06/06 - 14:26

greatcapp wrote:

if you look closely at the bottom, the speed is shown there.

Sorry, The reason I asked was I couldn't tell if there was a point in there or not. So this was over a LAN then?

Dickibobboy · 04/06/06 - 16:08

it looks really good! wish i had one to connect to when im on holiday, they dont have much english

[Deleted User] · 04/06/06 - 16:42

timo_w2s wrote:

Sorry, The reason I asked was I couldn't tell if there was a point in there or not. So this was over a LAN then?

yes it was over LAN.
i could try to do one over the net if you like.

[Deleted User] · 04/06/06 - 17:19

ok, this one is done over the net.

Link

Bear in mind, to do the video capture, i've had to disable hardware video acceleration, so it looks worse than it would normally.

it's being run on an NTL 512 upload, and being accessed on an AOL 2mb download.

Hey there!

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