SlingBox

Most people have shows on TV that they can’t miss, and thanks to TiVo and other PVR devices you don’t have to worry about that much. SlingBox is a nice addition to a TV and any PVR device.

It’s a box you buy that hooks up to a TV or a PVR and puts it on the internet. Then you use the slingplayer to watch that particular TV from anywhere in the world over the net. You can watch your TV on your cell phone, work computer, a friends house, a different country, etc. The software is free, and the hardware is one time buy, no subscription. It like being in the same room as your TV, remote and all. A more apt analogy would be it’s like Remote Desktop Connection for your TV. You can even let your friends watch what you are watching. The software is great and very easy to use, the quality is excellent if you have high speed internet. The few downsides are that it’s really like you are sitting in your room so if someone else changes the channel at your house then it changes on your computer screen as well, of course you could get into a remote war if you want. Also each TV can be watched remotely by only one location, so you couldn’t have five of your friends watching your TV at the same time. The best thing to do is hook it up to a cable that is not plugged in to a regular TV so it becomes a dedicated line. The remotes on screen match the remotes in real life so a TiVo remote looks exactly like a TiVo remote, you don’t have to learn anything new. A lot of my friends have a box and they let their friends overseas use it, that way they can get American TV anywhere, also some of my friends, hook it up to a local area and that way if they travel or move for a short period of time they can still watch their own local news and local sports through the SlingBox. Its a cool piece of technology, I’d recommend getting it with some friends because you probably won’t want to use it exclusively. This product can only get better as it grows.