Sling Media of San Mateo, Calif., has created a fascinating convergence product, the Slingbox, that makes it possible for a user to access home television programming from anywhere in the world where broadband Internet access is available. But as amazing as the Slingbox is, I can't consider it any more than an interesting novelty. The ability to watch local channels remotely could be valuable if you absolutely can't live without your local news or broadcasts of your hometown sports teams. But I can't imagine watching live television in a little streaming media window would be a satisfying experience once the newness wore off.
The Slingbox is 10.6 inches long and 4 inches wide, so it's small enough to be fairly unobtrusive on a computer desk or sitting on top of a video component such as a cable or satellite tuner box. There are no controls on the Slingbox itself; all Slingbox functions are managed through a connected computer.
Setting up the Slingbox for a test was fairly complicated, but if you're used to connecting video components like DVD players, you should be able to handle it.
At the back of the Slingbox are inputs for lines leading away from a video component. You can send video to the Slingbox using an S- video connector, RCA-style connectors (red, white and yellow plugs) or a co-axial cable. You'll also need to connect a pair of infrared emitters near the video component's remote control window.
Once the Slingbox is connected to the video component (a television, a DVD player, a digital video recorder, etc.), the Slingbox is connected to a router using an Ethernet line. The router must also be connected to a broadband Internet service and to a personal computer running Windows XP.
The user then loads the software that comes with the Slingbox onto the computer. Once the software is loaded, a streaming video screen will appear that shows the programming being pumped into the Slingbox from the video component. The program's sound comes through the computer's speakers.
The software set-up program allows the user to program an onscreen, virtual remote control that will use the infrared emitters to control the video component. That way the user can get the component to change channels, pause and rewind, and so on to control the programming that appears in the computer's streaming video window.
The software set-up also allows the user to create a port that will upload the Slingbox's video stream to the Internet. To access the programming remotely, the user must install the Slingbox software on a laptop or another computer, connect to the Internet through a broadband connection and enter the 36-character address the software assigns for his home Slingbox.
When used at home, the Slingbox allows a user to view programming from the connected video component on the screen of any computer connected to the home network. Someone with a laptop with a wireless connection to the home network could watch television outside in the back yard, for instance.
Frankly, though, streaming video produces images that are smaller and generally inferior to the images produced by even the least expensive portable television. There are much better, cheaper, simpler ways of moving video around the house than using Slingbox.
The ability to move video onto the Internet is attractive, but you're still limited by streaming video technology. Under nearly perfect conditions, streaming video is an iffy proposition, and your remote Slingbox reception will be further limited by the rate at which your home Internet Service Provider allows you to upload data.
Slingbox has won numerous awards including recognition as the best new whole-house entertainment product at the Consumer Electronics Show in January.
The product can be purchased through Best Buy and CompUSA stores and has a suggested price of $249.99.
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