Slingbox or Vulkano

[Chrizzzie]

I had a Hava device which I've been using for some time but now it has stopped working and therefore I'm looking for a replacement

The two option I found are:

Monsoon Vulkano (http://www.monsoonmultimedia.com/)
Cheaper as Singbox but poor software support and no webbased player

Slingbox Solo (www.slingbox)
Expensive

I need it to watch and control my TV remotely when I'm not at home.

Are there other alternatives than this?

[DEAD_MAN_WALKING]

A quick google search thru back these - Hava, LocationFree TV & Apple TV.

To be honest with you its only apple tv i have heard of out of the 3.

[Redbullsnation]

Forget bout it. You should get a Boxee Box :p

[Chrizzzie]

Checked Apple TV and Boxee Box but both seem to be for watching streaming content on your computer.

What I need to do is to watch my tv cable box somewhere else through internet.

[Redbullsnation]

Checked Apple TV and Boxee Box but both seem to be for watching streaming content on your computer.

What I need to do is to watch my tv cable box somewhere else through internet.
Well, theres always the slingbox. But if you're looking for something cheaper, you can try a internal tv tuner (with an irblaster + RCA input) + Orb (orb.com)

[Chrizzzie]

Well, theres always the slingbox. But if you're looking for something cheaper, you can try a internal tv tuner (with an irblaster + RCA input) + Orb (orb.com)

Thought about it but for that I'll have to have a PC running all day.

Also I've a laptop so I'd have to buy a PC first which would be more expensive.

I'll be traveling to the US for business for a few days. If I buy a Slingbox there would it also work in Europe? (With Pal / NTSC?) Also would I've a problem at the Customs?

[livesoccer]

yes sure it does work, you will only need a electric cord adapter since there electric sockets are different

http://casanovasadventures.com/catalog/travelgear/WS-027Cord.jpg

[Chrizzzie]

Or a convertor

[I.LuV.ManUTd!]

In the UK we're sane enough to have a ground wire on our plugs, which means it's safer as it's the first connection made (the pin is longer) :D:P

[alterecho]

I just did a review of the Vulkano...and I can tell you that the Vulkano blows away the Sling. I was a long time Sling user and I dumped it on my family after using the Vulkano.
And it does have a web-based player.
Here is my review:

A quick overview of my setup...BTW, the Apple client is still free.

The Vulkano hook up is:
Network: Wired and segmented 100mb cat5
To TV: HDMI
From DVR: Component
Storage: 500gb eSATA drive


The Vulkano setup went without a hitch except for what is listed below. Vulkano found the network and grabbed an IP address with no problems. Vulkano includes all the cables for a complete setup, so no searching or shopping for last minute connections.
The only issue I ran into was setting up the IR Blaster with my Verizon FiOS HD DVR. It is a Motorola QIP 7216-1, which was not a choice available. Instead I chose the 6416 which works.
Once the Vulkano was up and running, I watched a few channels to make sure we were all set.

Now for the clients. I will start with the Apple client, first. I tested the Apple app on a Iphone 3g (wifi only) and a Touch 4g. Both clients installed and setup went perfectly. Both devices were connected onto a 54mb (G) network at Barnes and Noble. With the strongest signal, quality was exceptional on all channels. Even sports channels looked fantastic without a trace of smearing or blocking. Bitrate was between 600-900K and was optimized on-the-fly. Sound was superb with no dropouts. Channel changes went smoothly with a 5 second (approx.) buffering after the change. I felt the channel changes were timely and precise. I would have to say that on wifi, the Apple client for the Vulkano, is a win.

The pc client was updated the last night, or so. So, I have not had the time to go over all of the settings. Install went well on a Windows 7 x64 laptop. I will not go over all of the features but talk about quality, instead. This is for the previous client Vulkano_V1.8.3.52. At first I was getting some stuttering, but no dropouts. I also noticed that when stuttering it was while trying to optimize the stream. So I reduced the stream limit from 2000K to 1000K. this took care of the stuttering and never had a hiccup after that. The newer client is supposed to recover from optimizing much quicker. But once the steam was reduced I did not have any more problems. On a 17 inch laptop screen the quality looked excellent. Of course, on a larger screen I am sure it would be more noticeable. I would give the pc client a A+ also.

Now for the Android client. The client installed without a hitch. When getting a strong signal the client optimized quickly and had excellent results. Remote control was timely without to much delay. All functions seemed to work including scheduling recordings as well as viewing the EPG. Even when the signal dropped to two bars the picture was great. The picture did suffer when the signal dropped to a steady one bar, though. Streaming speed was variable from 66K to 100K. Sound was steady but picture was a tad rough. How rough, you may ask...Sports playing (football action) was hard to watch due to smearing. But you could still figure it out. In a pinch it would due, but it would not be my favorite way to watch. Now regular shows (Jay Leno) were quite good. Very watchable...And the whole time the sound never dropped. The only issue that happened once, was while switching channels. After the switch I had no sound. So I typed the same channel number in again and the channel refreshed restoring sound. I would give the Android client an A+, also. The client is sound and seems to work very well on Verizon's network.

So, that's my little review. Remember, you might get different mileage due to all of the variables that are involved. But, I am very, very pleased with the Vulkano. Granted, I have not had the time to check every feature available. But it does what I purchaed the unit for. It streams live (or recorded FiOS) programming to my clients with clarity and reliable accuracy. Good bye Slingbox...Hello Vulkano!

[Chrizzzie]

I already went for the SLingbox. When I bought the hava Box I wasl also pretty happy with it and the Vulkano also has a great potential however the company behind them (Monsoon) is the one I'm slightly worried of. They don't provide many new updates and also no new software development like mobile OS support.

[alterecho]

My only problem with Sling is the newer units. The older units seem to last much longer. Mine went out just after warranty. Luckily, a person on another forum told me about checking a capacitor within the unit. Since I was out of warranty, I had a friend open it up (he does board level work for one of the national boutique pc makers.). Sure enough he identified a bad capacitor removed it and replaced it with a quality one. So if you experience the same thing, don't throw it away...pop it open and check that component.
Anyway, once it was fixed I started looking for a replacement. It really irked me that Sling had not resolved this issue by now.
As far as their clients went, I had no trouble with their software and really liked the unit overall. The iPhone app (once I jailbroke the phone and fooled Sling into thinking it was on a wifi network when using 3g) was really good and was the only reason I stayed on AT&T for as long as I did.

[Chrizzzie]

I got an old Slingbox AV. An oldie but cheap and does the trick.