Tag: Sling media »

Welcome, one and all, to another 148Apps holiday shopping guide! Are you having trouble figuring out what to get for a distant relative, new neighbor, or estranged second cousin? Thankfully there are people like us putting together handy-dandy holiday shopping guides for you! Whether you’re looking for new hardware and accessories, or just something a bit less impersonal than an iTunes gift card, we’ve got you covered.

Other 148Apps Holiday Gift Guides: for [Health Nuts] [Socializers] [Creative Types] [Gamers]

Today’s guide is for the intense “power users” you may know. Business folks, diehard Apple fans – anyone who tends to push their device’s battery to the limits every day, mostly. If you’re looking for something to make their trips easier, help out at the office, or even just keep their iPad running for a few more hours, check out our list below for some ideas.

iPad users get ready: SlingPlayer has just received its newest update (3.0) today!

First in today's software overhaul is an improved interface that makes it easier for users to search for the content they want using special filters and third-party services. Next on the list: Sports. Now finding the Big Game, or even a smaller one that you just really want to see, is a snap. And once that game is found users can check live statistics, find scores, and rant/gloat all over social media from directly within the app.

On the more technical side of things we have Second Screen Control and Split-Screen Navigation. Second Screen Control allows current SlingBox customers to turn their iPad into a "second screen companion," which is sort of like a super-fancy remote control that can also be used to view media directly. Split-Screen Navigation, on the other hand, is pretty much exactly what it sounds like: users can search for stuff to watch, do their social media thing, and check up on The Sports while simultaneously watching a video on their iPad. Neat stuff!

The SlingPlayer update is live right now, and requires iOS 7.0 or later. Oh, and all these nifty features are only available for the U.S. and Canada for some reason.

Sling Media, the company behind Slingbox, has announced new firmware and software updates that brings AirPlay support to the iPhone and iPad version of SlingPlayer. This allows Slingbox customers to view live TV on their Apple TV, and also gives them the ability to watch TV on a second TV without needing another set top box.

Nearly a year ago, Sling Media announced that they planned to bring Slingbox connectivity to the iPhone and iPod Touch. That makes sense, considering that the app is already available for Windows Mobile, Palm OS, Symbian, and BlackBerry platforms. After being held up in the approval process for unconfirmed issues, we can now say that the wait is finally over!

According to our source at Sling Media:

"Apple will post our app (Wi-Fi only) on the iPhone Store between 9:01pm (PDT) Tuesday, May 12th and 3:01 AM (PDT) Wednesday May 13th."

Last week, I was lucky enough to receive a Slingbox and an ad-hoc copy of the latest build of the Slingbox iPhone app for review purposes. While I won't be able to release a review of the app until it goes live, I'm thoroughly impressed.

Today, all over the internet there has been "an unconfirmed tip from a source close to Apple’s approval processes" claiming that the app had in fact been denied due to pressure from AT&T. The app is slated to allow use over 3G and WiFi, meaning that it would in fact be a bandwidth burden for AT&T, but considering the app already exists on the BlackBerry and Windows Mobile phones which AT&T sure carries a few of, there's no reason to believe this rumor to be true (even BGR agree's!)