TV Time Shifters
Digital video recorders gained fame with TiVo. New competitors range from rented boxes to Media Center PCs--and our TV addict tried them all.
Lincoln Spector
Slingbox: Move Your Content Around
A DVR frees TV from time constraints. Sling Media's upcoming Slingbox aims to free it from location constraints, enabling you to watch your home TV signal from any computer with a broadband connection.
The Slingbox wasn't ready for testing in time for this article, so I saw a demonstration by Sling representatives. The unit should be available by the time you read this, with a list price of $249.
This box contains a tuner and an ethernet connection and sits between your TV signal (antenna, cable connection, or set-top box) and your television. Programs that go into your set-top box can also travel over the Internet, so you can watch the shows on a Net-connected PC.
Because of the tuner, the Slingbox can change channels--unless you have a set-top box. Then it uses an IR blaster to change the box's channels.
The receiving PC must have a broadband connection and Slingbox software. Only one PC can access your Slingbox at a time.
How does it look? Sling Media uses a unique technology dubbed Lebowski (yes, it's named after the movie The Big Lebowski) to ensure a steady video stream despite uncertain bandwidth. Judging from what I saw, the result is not that great. It's fine for watching news shows or other talking heads, but not movies or sports.
