Using SB Mobile in China using 3G?
 

hey everyone, wondering if anyone has had success using their Slingbox Mobile on a cellphone in China, using 3G service (not wi-fi). i'm contemplating upgrading my phone since my current blackberry isn't 3G. if i can use SBM on 3G in china, would it fall under my unlimited international data plan? thanks everyone!

You've cross posted in three threads.
Answered here: http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/14458592-post3.html

sorry, wasn't sure where to add it, so i posted the question on several threads.

I love my SlingBox. I bought it when there was only one model, the SlingBox. It has been sitting on top of my receiver for years -- actually, I'm on my second or third receiver and the SlingBox just keeps on ticking.

Is there any real advantage to upgrading to newer technology?

no real benefit to upgrade if it's working well for you. i have the slingbox pro, and it's working fine, so i'm holding off on upgrading. the only thing is if it does have issues, customer service is horrible, so they'll charge you just to try and diagnose the issue. since you're out of warranty, you can't get any help to resolve an issue. SUCKS.

Slingcatcher
 

I have taken my use to another level...

On trips where I can manage to pack it, I bring along a slingcatcher box so that I can use the hotel room TV.

When staying domestic, I almost always stay at a Hampton Inn, so I bought a custom (green) remote that lets me "hack" into their TVs and enable the HDMI input.

With the HDMI input enabled, I then connect the Slingcatcher box to their TV via HDMI, and then either use their wireless or mine (usually mine) to get the slingcatcher on the internet. From there, I have full access to my slingbox at home with a nice physical remote control to boot. Even the commercial skips work great.

I agree that their customer "service" is terrible. I fortunately haven't had to use them much. Their apps for my iPhone and Android devices work generally well against my Slingbox also, I am just waiting for the full-screen version of the iPad app, and I will be all set!

-Rob

HD
 

HD streaming is nice, especially if you use something like a slingcatcher at a remote location. I get "HD" streaming with about 800kps, but of course with 1MB upstream it gets much better. I also find things like the ProHD are faster and it SEEMS to play nicer with my iphone and ipad.

i'm pretty sure my sb pro also does HD, but i don't have the HD hooked up at my parents house. don't have a slingcatcher, so the HD signal doesn't really matter on my sprint phone. is the slingcatcher still available? it doens't show on the slingbox website.

I'm curious how all of this is going to pan out when the internet providers start enforcing their upload/download caps. My ISP has a new limit of 250GB/month; at standard use, my SB uploads at about 1.2GB/hour, so I've started being more aware of my usage.

only hd
 

only the pro HD does HD. the pro can send the signal, but it is not an HD signal at all. but then again, while the RESOLUTION that the proHD sends is HD, it isn't sending anywhere near the 10+MB that would truly be required. It is all about the max resolution that it can transmit.

I'm not really concerned about having a better signal or watching on the hotel TV. For me, the ability to watch something I couldn't watch (or something off my DVR) is what I like.

I was at the Austin DO this February and remember a handful of people huddled around my iPhone watching the gold medal men's hockey game on the Slingbox App. I find the resolution on a small screen like this to be remarkable, even with the old, old SB I have.

Slingcatcher is no longer made. You can probably find one on ebay. I remember reading something about it a few months ago in the Tech forum and how the prices were incredibly high on ebay. Link here. I have one and wondered why the prices skyrocketed but no one elaborated on the issue.

Comcast has the 250 is most markets now, not sure if that is who you are using, and I have to say that I think that is a reasonable limit. You have to realize there are only 30 days in a month. Not sure how much you are watching your SB. Though lets say you use it for 3 hours a night and you are on the road 75% of the time during the week. Thats maybe 15 nights/month depending on how you look at it. That would consume 54GBs still leaving you with about 200 to consume when you are at home, more than enough for heavy use.

Wifi at some hotels is so poor, it kills your enthusiasm for products like this.

I've just received a new SlingBox ProHD as an early Christmas present from my wife. Mainly so I could use the new iPad app. The picture it sends is stunning in comparison to my old SlingBox.