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SlingPlayer Mobile for Android now available in the Market for $30

By | June 21, 2010, 11:48pm PDT

Summary: Google Android owners have been anxiously waiting for the SlingPlayer Mobile client to be released and the wait was worth it. I am finally upgrading my Slingbox to take advantage of all the great capabilities in this new mobile client.

It has been several years since I started using a Slingbox Classic and I never upgraded to a newer model. However, with the launch of the Google Android SlingPlayer Mobile application I was encouraged to finally make the upgrade to a Slingbox PRO-HD to take advantage of all the great features in this new mobile client. The Android client is $29.99 and I purchased it immediately to use on my Sprint HTC EVO 4G. The application does work with my SlingBox Classic (check out my video below), but has some limits on functionality and I want the optimal experience on my EVO 4G. I wish that Sling Media would include at least one SlingPlayer Mobile client with the purchase of a new Slingbox though as paying $30 for each client I load on my numerous smartphones adds up quickly.

SlingPlayer Mobile for Android starts up quickly and looks fantastic on the large 4.3 inch display of the EVO 4G. That EVO 4G kickstand sure will come in handy too as I plan to use SlingPlayer Mobile quite a bit while traveling and commuting. I would love the ability to connect and control my Roku from the Slingbox, but will be satisfied with the ability to view content from my Comcast DVR too. The SlingPlayer Mobile for Android client includes quick control buttons on the bottom of the display so you can jump right in and view your content with very little effort.

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Matthew Miller started using a Pilot 1000 in 1997 and has been writing news, reviews, and opinion pieces ever since.

Disclosure

Matthew Miller

Matthew is a professional naval architect by day and a mobile gadget freak at all other times. He purchases his own devices and then sells them on eBay or Craigslist to buy more. Many other devices are sent for review on a 30-day loaner basis and then returned to the carrier or manufacturer. If any are provided as “long term loaner units” this will be clearly disclosed in his reviews.

Biography

Matthew Miller

Matthew Miller started using a mobile devices in 1997 and has been writing news, reviews, and opinion pieces ever since. He is a co-host with GigaOM's Kevin Tofel on the MobileTechRoundup podcast and an author of three Wiley Companion series books. Matthew started using mobile devices with a US Robotics Pilot 1000 and has owned over 125 different devices running Palm, Linux, Symbian, Newton, BlackBerry, iOS, Android, webOS, Windows Mobile, and Windows Phone operating systems. His current collection includes an HTC Radar 4G, Dell Venue Pro, Apple iPad 2, HTC Flyer, Samsung Galaxy Nexus, Nokia N9, Apple iPhone 4S, MacBook Pro, and many more, along with tons of accessories and classic devices like the Apple Newton MessagePad 2100 and Sony CLIE UX50. Matthew can be found on various discussion forums under the user name of "palmsolo".
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RE: SlingPlayer Mobile for Android now available in the Market for $30
Tech Savvy Buff 5th Jul
whoops the youtube video accidentally got deleted...

here is a new link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_AFAPJGSLs
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Battery life
Daniel Breslauer 22nd Jun 2010
Just how does this impact battery life? Android is a battery-killer (just like iPhone OS/iOS), and the HTC 4G EVO doesn't seem to have a great reputation for battery life compared to other Android phones, which sounds really bad.
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For $30 you've got to be kidding. $3 maybe
Johnny Vegas 22nd Jun 2010
Crap like this for android should be free...
Awesome. I don't think the $29 is too high for something like this. Would be worth that just to get to my DVR. If you don't already have a slingbox, it gets pricey. If they had given the app up for less, they would probably sell some slingboxes to those of us who don't yet have one.
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License Fee
Hotheaded Turdburglar 22nd Jun 2010
Thanks for posting the video displaying how the Android slingplayer app works with older slingboxes. I have a Slingbox AV, so this is good news.

Regarding the $30 mobile app fee, Slingbox allows you to port that license over from one device to the next as you graduate through cellphones. So you only have to pay $30 once!!

I've ported my license from my old XV6700 to my Samsung Omnia and will soon move it over to the Droid X.
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Multiple smartphones???
kidtree 22nd Jun 2010
So, you have to pay $30 for each of your several smartphones, just so you can watch TV on all of them. Obviously, you work; you keep submitting coherent articles here. It makes one wonder how you manage while watching TV on several little phone screens at once.
I just wanted to comment that the Sling box app is free if you purchase your Sling box from DISH Network. I work there and I have purchased Sling and hooked it up to my android phone. This is great and helps a consumer save money. So now you can get on your way to the true TV Everywhere experience.
HECK YES!!! i just picked up the Slingbox ProHD and LOVE IT!!!! It looks so dang good on my Asus Transformer

in fact i spazzed out a little and made a youtube video of me using it with a portable micro M2 projector that I got from http://www.aaxatech.com

here is the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=buHfv4NtLA4
whoops the youtube video accidentally got deleted...

here is a new link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_AFAPJGSLs

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