patndoris.com

So I stumble on yet another nice site for watching free TV on the internet. Surprised? I’m quite sure you’re not. I seem to have quite a collection of them going at the moment. (And, ummm, not enough time to really watch any of them.) Sling.com is still beta, but I’m reasonably impressed. Easy sign up, quality is great, good selection of TV shows and movies, and my 14 year old male offspring can even watch clips of his beloved WWE wrestling (which I despise).

Follow up:

But the beauty of Sling lies somewhere in the future for me (maybe…one day…it’s good to have dreams right?) There is this…this thing…this player…this mysterious Slingbox one can purchase (for a pretty penny at the moment). It connects your home TV (yes cable, DVR, satellite and HD too) to your wireless network at home. Once connected, this (highly overpriced at the moment) box streams your home TV channels to your computer (or laptop) - anywhere you have an internet connection. (Well, let’s be fair, you do have to install some software on your computer first - but after the price of the Slingbox at least the software is free and it can be installed on as many computers as you like.) You can stream and control your home TV from literally anywhere! (Uh, anywhere you can connect to the internet.) It sure is a nice idea!! There are no monthly fees to use Slingbox, but if you don’t have unlimited broadband or DSL you could end up with additional ISP fees. And from the specs, if you’re on dial up or a slow connection - don’t bother even dreaming about it.

They also have a mobile version for cell phones, but it doesn’t work on all phones and there is a one time (fairly reasonable after you’ve already spent way too much on the box itself) set up fee. (True - it’s cheaper and would offer far more than my limited TV service on my cell phone - but alas, my phone does not meet the necessary specs.) If you don’t have an unlimited data plan you could be in for a world of hurt when you get your cell bill.

Basically, Slingbox allows you to stream your own TV service to yourself. Kind of cool if you have a computer in the kids room but not a cable hookup. Or, if you travel frequently, it might be nice to have your home channels available. Of course, if your power is out, so is your internet TV access - that kind of goes without saying - but I’m sure they get technical support calls for help anyway.

Oh well, it’s one of those nice pipe dreams for the future. I don’t really feel like spending the $200+ dollars to get one of the boxes at this point. Not to mention the male offspring would likely want his own for his TV just because I was getting one. Yes, we each have our "own" DVR so that we don’t fight over what’s being watched or recorded. But truly, this is a big step forward in TV, internet, and mobile TV access. The Slingbox has been around for a few years, but I suspect now that the site is available and being publicized, the box will gain more media attention. I did notice some Hulu references when videos start, so somehow they are obviously connected or partnering in some way. It’s the wave of the future. I’m going to stand here and wave at it for awhile. Of course if the really nice executives at Sling.com want to send me one of the Slingbox PRO boxes (for free) to test and blog about - I’d be more than happy to oblige. I?d even say really nice things about it, I promise! (I’m not going to hold my breathe - that would likely be a very bad idea.) Maybe if I’m really good this year I’ll get a Slingbox for Christmas instead of my customary lump of coal….