Filed under: Hardware, Software, Internet Tools
SlingPlayer for Mac OS X (beta) lands 10/31
We've seen screenshots, and we've even seen it in action, but now Sharon R., in her first corporate blog post for Sling Media, has laid down the law by announcing a Tuesday, October 31st release date (yea, All Hallows' Eve) of their much-anticipated SlingPlayer for Mac OS X public beta. She even went so far as to 'guarantee' it, so that's gotta be worth something. We'll see whether they get hung up by a little too much partying over the weekend soon enough. Stay tuned (hah!).Thanks Mr. Zatz
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Ron Martinez said 2:16PM on 10-25-2006
You know, I reject the KoolAid on this one. Believe routing tv to phones and computers is based on the false premise that people want more access to stuff delivered via cable or satellite. Programming delivered this way is on the way to dead. iTunes video and film makes more sense - you get it, sync, and go, with complete control. And probably the hardest thing to sell is yet another box attached to the tv or cable intake. Believe this is a hack in search of a market - digitizing, converting to rtsp, and streaming/saving elsewhere.
The future is in unplugging cable and satellite feeds, not in hanging more boxes onto them.
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Eyad said 2:27PM on 10-25-2006
Y'know that just the typical attitude of an american who never wanders beyond their work and neighbourhood McDonalds.
I know many ppl who travel, often for extended periods, and who appreciate the fact that now they can stream some familiar shows from their TVs and feel more in-touch with home.
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David Chartier said 2:53PM on 10-25-2006
#1: In addition to what #2 said: I'm an iTS customer myself, but these SlingBoxes come in handy in a wide number of ways. For example: what if the iTS doesn't have the shows I watch and record? Aside from the Daily Show, they don't have roughly 85% of the TV I watch (Family Guy, Futurama, [adult swim] on cartoon network, etc.). Plus, we live in an older townhome and we *can't* get a cable outlet installed in an upstairs room where we just moved our office. While it might seem like overkill, a SlingBox is one of the few solutions we have left for getting any TV up here. Further: I love the iTS for music, but not video. I'm already paying for cable television, and I sit on the side of the fence that believes I should be able to record that programming and use it in more ways than one. I'm not paying $2/show that I'm already paying $50/month to watch. A $150 box that allows me to stream this programming anywhere in my house, or across the rest of the planet, is a lot more appealing to me (and many others) than paying an extra fee for programming I've already paid access to.
Products are created for a lot of uses and interests outside your own. Please consider stepping out of your own shoes when thinking about stuff like this in the future.
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oliver said 3:00PM on 10-25-2006
Ron—what about live TV?
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martin walker said 3:52PM on 10-25-2006
I am aperson that travels a lot and loves college football. You can not watch live events through the iTunes store. I have a question though? Does one have to wait until the 31st to get the slingbox for a mac or can you buy it now and wait until the software download is available and then set eveything up to work on my mac?
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Brian said 4:03PM on 10-25-2006
I can say that I liked being able to watch the Cardinals games on my phone while at the Blues game with friends. Also being able to watch/listen from work on those late nights is a plus when I'm in a building where I cannot even get am/fm frequency. I use it when traveling in a car going state to state.
I'm sure it's not for everyone, but there is definitely a demand for it, even more so since they came out with 3 new versions of it.
It's definitely not on its way to dead by any means.
-my 2 cents.
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Ron Martinez said 5:12PM on 10-25-2006
I think there's a sea change away from hierarchically programmed, streamed content from centralized distribution points. Video programming is more interesting as an encapsulated object. Put another way, "Appointment TV" is dead or dying, and while some on this message board don't know it, those in the television business do. Witness, for example, ABC programming delivered via the Web. No SlingBox required.
Delivering a router for a dying media form is just a hack, though it might make a few sports-oriented viewers happy.
By the way, I travel extensively here and abroad for both business and pleasure. I don't eat McDonalds. And I'm guessing a SlingBox would be useless on the plane where someone might want it. My advice to Eyad #2 is if you're in another country and the only thing you can think of doing is streaming American tv to your laptop, you might just want to stay home. But then again, you don't travel yourself; you just know people who do. ; )
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Darren said 4:29PM on 10-25-2006
Sweet. I just picked up a Slingbox pro from CC today for $202.
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Ron Martinez said 5:33PM on 10-25-2006
David (#3), yes there are uses for people for almost anything. But in fact, the vast majority of products fail, even if some have found them useful. Please don't assume that I take a solipsistic view of product viability.
My comments are intended in the broader sense, meaning is this likely to be an important new category of digital media product. I can probably come up with a dozen reasonable use-cases for SlingBox, as can you and others. Some may even be applicable to your own needs. But that doesn't mean this product is meaningful beyond a subset of potential users, and the marketplace is littered with such interesting but insufficiently useful products. Bet you can name a few yourself.
On a side note, my comment was pretty clearly my opinion, and from my perspective. I wonder about the purpose and intent of this comment board, if ad hominem comments ("typical attitude of an American," "please consider stepping out of your own shoes when thinking about stuff like this") greet reasonable opinions that may be of value to this community, or at least be a basis for discussion.
David, as a key blogger here, I'm curious as to your view on this. Are our opinions welcome here, even if they are negative about products you're interested in?
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Greg said 12:03AM on 10-26-2006
"Y'know that just the typical attitude of an american who never wanders beyond their work and neighbourhood McDonalds."
Oh my, that's helpful, and I guess I feel put in my place by your superior intellect and experience. What a moron.
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Trevor said 3:04AM on 10-26-2006
I recently installed a SlingBox system for a client with a MacBook and used Parallels and the Windows Sling software as a temporary solution. It works great. He can be anywhere in his house or at another site and have televion and access to recorded TiVo. Pull up Thomas the Tank for your kid to watch, and not have permanent tv screens all over the house. Put a live news feed next to your web browser. If the technology exists, the client is always right.
I think this is another piece of media defying technology, increasing consumer choice for what, how and when to watch. It is still -consumer- technology; it's a linkage to existing media. Sling/TiVo/Cable or Satellite == variety of content thats endless and frankly superior, with better interface than anything I've seen on videostreaming sites. The Sling model doesn't apply to independent media in the form of blogs, video streams. There's already access to those on computer screens. It sounds like Apple's upcoming product for computer video to television is the reverse stream to the SlingBox.
It also works on handhelds, but not the Palm OS Treos, only the PcketPC OS version. Who's the project manager on that one? Will we have to wait as for this as long as the Mac OS version, or ever? Looking forward to Tuesday's release, but damn you Sling for taking this long. We're all hoping this beta of yours is delivers and is stable.
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