Sling shoots AppleTV rival into UK stores
Sling Media's SlingPlayer-in-a-box gadget, SlingCatcher, is now available to Brits.
SlingCatcher takes the network-beamed feed from a Slingbox tuner and displays it on a TV screen. Sling's pitching the product as an alternative to the laptops, desktops and mobile phones Slingbox users current remote watch their favourite TV shows on.
Sling Media's SlingCatcher: SlingPlayer in a box
Think of it as way of streaming content from your Freeview set-top box, Freesat unit or Sky+ box over your network to a second telly in the bedroom.
The company's also steering SlingCatcher at folk who might be tempted by Apple's AppleTV set-top or other internet aware media boxes. So SlingCatcher will allow you to view YouTube videos on your telly. It's also compatible with the BBC's iPlayer and other net-based video-on-demand offerings.
Curiously, net-source content needs to be cached to play. If you want to do this, you'll have to plug a Flash drive or HDD into one of the SlingCatcher's two USB ports.
Standard-def and HD TVs catered for
Got content stored on your PC too? No problem, SlingCatcher will find and display that, Sling said. Indeed, you could even use it without Slingbox, as a gadget hooked up to your main telly. Got content stored on your Mac or Linux box? Tough luck, Sling's Projector software doesn't run on those platforms.
Unlike Apple's box, SlingCatcher intentionally supports composite-video and s-video connections as well as HD-friendly HDMI and component-video links.
Available now, the SlingCatcher costs £200.
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COMMENTS
TV over Cat 5
A lot of the senders can seriously screw up your wireless network. The only smart system for transferring signals I've heard of is Milestone from bluedelta.co.uk. It ships video and remote control signals over Cat 5.
TV Senders
So I could by a 'TV Sender' that works on microwave frequency radio links, for say £40 quid, and they want to charge me £200 for much the same thing?
A case study in product management
A couple years ago Slingmedia said we'll build a box to pair with a Slingbox to show the output on a TV as an alternative to using a PC. That box would have cost maybe £40 or £50 and they would have sold one to about half the Slingbox users. But then someone said we need to add network sources (UTube, iPlayer,...) so they added a pile of software (and some additional hardware to hold it), while that was being done someone said we need to add local storage to hold the net content (for replay), so the added USB ports, while that was underway someone said we are a year late on this thing so we might as well add the HD stuff, well you get the idea. Two years late and 4 times the price point.
Lesson, make a plan, stick to it and ignore all of the "someones".
Beck
Skip
£200 for a plastic skip (Uk for dumpster)? Noooo. I hate all sling shapes.
Damn it
I wanted a couple of these as I have no aerial sockets in the kitchen or second bedroom, and wanted to put TVs in there, since I can't do any rewiring as the house is rented. But for that price? Hell no. Anyone know of any alternatives for sending TV signals along ethernet along powerline adaptors?
