Sling Community - Sling in the News

Sling Unwraps Updates for PC and Mac SlingPlayer

SlingCommunity News — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 00:52:19 GMT

Sling Media may seem to be spending more time on their web-based version of the SlingPlayer software , but it looks like they've also been giving the desktop player a little love as well. New builds are available for both SlingPlayer for PC and SlingPlayer for Mac, taking each iteration up a minor tick. Based on what we've gathered, Sling's not adding the world here. SlingPlayer for PC 2.0.4 and SlingPlayer for Mac 1.0.10 appear mostly to be a maintenance upgrade intended to squash a few bugs in the player and firmware, update the remote control base for Macs, and fix some connectivity problems. The PC player, however, has gotten a few extra goodies that are worth mentioning. For starters, users of specific netbooks (namely certain hardware revs of Dell's Mini 10 for now, like the Dell Mini 1010) may be able to take advantage of a new hardware acceleration feature in the menu. If the option's grayed out, your netbook isn't currently supported, but those who can use it should enjoy improved performance when running SlingPlayer. From the looks of things, this is only the beginning, and may be extended to more netbooks and computers over time. Next is...

THR.com: Slingbox Headed to Middle East, 70% of Customers Use at Home Says Sling

SlingCommunity News — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 16:53:41 GMT

According to a report at THR.com , Sling Media's VP EMEA, Stuart Collingwood, had serveral interesting facts to share. For starters, Sling Media's speard across the European continent continues. Right now, users 15 different countries accross Europe have access to the Slingbox and serveral forms of SlingPlayer, including the iPhone SlingPlayer that went global a few weeks ago . Sling's aspriations don't stop there, however. They're currently planning on spreading into Eastern Europe and the Middle East sometime in the next year, though as of now there's no indication on exactly when in the next year that may happen. Also interesting is some use statistics Collingwood shared. According to him, even though the Slingbox enables remote TV viewing, some 70% of consumers claim they primarily use the Slingbox within the confines of their own home. That, he says, is a number that's increased 40% from the year prior. What we don't know is if that statistic is specific to the European audience or is a general reflection from users in all nations, but either way, it's hardly a shocking statistic. If anything, it shows that people are finding more and new uses for Slingbox than just for travel (most are...

Sling Media Plays Domain Name Switch-A-Roo, Adds Online Setup and Watch Live

SlingCommunity News — Thu, 01 Oct 2009 19:57:37 GMT

If you're in the US, things are looking a bit different over at Sling Media's website this week. Not only has the domain name changed from slingmedia.com to Slingbox.com, but they've given the site a look-and-feel refresh and added several new convenient customer features. Click for Full Screen First, gone is the dark and mysterious "black on dark-gray on black" motif in favor of a lighter, cheerier "red and gray" look similar to the style of their website a few years back (which coincidentally was the inspiration for SlingCommunity's current look). The new look extends from the homepage to the product and support pages, which are now easier to navigate and more informative than ever. Click for Full Screen On the new features front, Sling's taken the wraps off their online setup utility and placed a gigantic button to it off the homepage. This feature has actually been around a while in beta form, but wasn't prominently displayed. In effect, this utility allows customers (new and existing) to fully set up a Slingbox without having to download and install the SlingPlayer software. Our impression of this utilities final form is positive, though we're reserving judgement until we giving a thorough...

SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone in Top 20 Grossing Apps List, Follows iTunes Global Spread

SlingCommunity News — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 19:14:37 GMT

Last week, Apple rolled out localized Apps stores for many new countries around the world. Naturally, SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone followed suit, which can now be found in the local iTunes store for sixteen additional nations outside the US, Canada, and UK. That list now includes: Australia Austria Belgium Denmark Finland France Germany Ireland Israel Italy Luxembourg Netherlands Norway Spain Sweden Switzerland In case you're wondering how SlingPlayer is doing on the iPhone, as of this writing, it's #20 on the list of all time grossing Apps in iTunes. UPDATE: Full press release below. Sling Media Launches SlingPlayer Mobile Application for iPhone and iPod touch in Europe Apple approves Wi-Fi only version Foster City, California, USA – Sept. 14, 2009 — Sling Media, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS), today announced the availability of the SlingPlayer Mobile Wi-Fi application for iPhone and iPod touch customers across Europe. The announcement came at the IBC conference in Amsterdam. The SlingPlayer Mobile Wi-Fi application is now available in 16 additional countries - including France, Germany, Spain and Italy. The application was first made available to iPhone and iPod touch customers in the U.S., Canada and the UK in May...

EchoStar Showcases SlingLoaded DVRs for European Digital TV Operators at IBC2009

SlingCommunity News — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 18:59:26 GMT

Good news for our European friends coming from IBC2009; EchoStar Europe is showing off a variety of new solutions for TV operators, including a SlingLoaded (like the Dish Network SlingLoaded ViP922 ) solution with integrated Slingbox/SlingCatcher technologies. Full release below: EchoStar Europe Enables Digital TV Convergence at IBC2009 At IBC2009 EchoStar Europe -- (Hall 4, Stand B.54) -- Will Invite Digital TV Operators to Embrace New Technology to Enable the Optimisation of Network Revenues; With a New Range of Hybrid Products Sporting Value-Added Feature-Sets, Such as OTTTV, Home Networking and Place-Shifting, Operators Will See How They Can Meet Consumers' Changing Entertainment Needs Profitably STEETON, UNITED KINGDOM--(September 8, 2009) - EchoStar Europe ( www.echostar-europe.com ), the leading supplier of added-value, connected device solutions to the digital television industry, will showcase multiple solutions at IBC2009 that support consumers' needs for converged entertainment services. Following its re-launch at IBC2008, EchoStar Europe has swiftly established a new range of products, including set-top boxes (STB) and digital video recorders (DVR), for cable and IPTV operators and is ready to showcase a unique combination of added-value technology, applications and services that converge to form a readily deployable and universal home networking and place-shifting environment -- commonly...

V1.1 of SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone Hits the App Store - No 3G Streaming for Anyone

SlingCommunity News — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 02:25:29 GMT

The word on the street last week was that Sling was looking to push through an updated version of the popular, yet controversial, iPhone SlingPlayer app through the App Store. Rumor had it v1.1 would offer up enhanced control of Dish Network receivers, full screen support for 16:9 material, and 3G streaming capability for anyone outside of AT&T's US cellular empire. The new SlingPlayer app has just hit the App store, and it turns out all had been true... except for the 3G part apparently. According to our friends over at Engadget , Sling has apparently submitted a 3G version for use outside the US (contrary to what we've heard through the grapevine, but have been unable to verify), but is still held up in Apple's "keep-ya-guessing" approval process. In any event, there's an updated app waiting for you ($30 for new users, free for those running 1.0). Give it a whirl, and tell us your thoughts in the comments area below.