Slingplayer has come to my rescue more than once during the current World Cup, relaying games live to my mobile device when travelling.
A beta version for Android on my HTC Evo has taken the experience to the next level – providing better controls and a great picture on the phone’s large 4.3-inch screen.
I had started out watching matches using the HTC Evo’s Wi-Fi hotspot capability to provide the internet connection for my iPod touch and the Apple version of Slingplayer Mobile.
That worked well, but the native Android application is even better and has offered a great picture over its 3G connection (I have not used it in a 4G coverage city) – I am watching Cameroon v Denmark on 3G as a I type on a netbook with the Evo propped up on its kickstand next to me.
The Slingplayer software obviously requires a Slingbox attached to a cable or satellite box at home, but, although it showed me an incompatibility warning for my old version of the Slingbox, I had no problems getting a picture or controlling my Dish satellite box remotely.
With the bigger screen, the increased number of controls were easier to handle. The PC version of the software allows a copy of your home remote control to be produced on screen and clicked with a mouse, but a cellphone screen is too small for this and the Sling Media people have had to divide the controls into various screen overlays.
One, from the phone’s menu button, offers buttons to bring up the programme guide, DVR, change the aspect ratio, mute the sound, see different devices and disconnect.
Tapping on the screen brings up a choice of four different function sets – one has play, pause, fast forward, rewind,another puts up,down, left, right arrows on the side of the screen, a third allows channel numbers to be entered and a fourth “Misc” button brings up a confusing and rather ugly array of sub-buttons covering commands from channel up/down to swapping picture-in-picture.
The range of functions does seem wider than in the iPhone/touch app, although the Apple app looks more elegant and allows features to be turned on such as touch-gestures to change channels.
The iPhone app costs $30 and the Android version, expected to be available soon, is likely to be similarly priced. For me, it would seem a small price to pay just to catch World Cup matches live – poor England performances apart, of course.
