Sling Media has been the go-to provider for video placeshifting solutions for nearly seven years now. The California-based company launched its first Slingbox in 2005, enabling users to watch live television exactly as it was being broadcast to their homes on any Internet-connected PC. The company rolled out its first SlingPlayer Mobile application the following year and it hasn’t looked back, continuing to expand its mobile offering to support a wide range of popular platforms and devices. Sling Media will launch the latest addition to its mobile app lineup on Tuesday when it releases SlingPlayer Mobile for Amazon’s popular tablet, and we spent much of our weekend enjoying placeshifted live television on our Kindle Fire to test the new app. Check out a small gallery of screenshots below and hit the break for our early impressions of SlingPlayer Mobile for the Amazon Kindle Fire.

We have been using various versions of the SlingPlayer Mobile application here at BGR for years, but it wasn’t until Apple initiated the tablet boom that SlingPlayer Mobile was really able to shine. Having the ability to watch live television or even on-demand and DVR-recorded content on a mobile phone is fantastic, but the relatively small size of cell phone displays makes the experience a mixed blessing. Not missing a moment of the NFC divisional playoffs while being dragged around a mall is fantastic, but viewing a game with wide camera angles on a screen that only measures about 4-inches diagonally is less than ideal.

Tablets changed things for SlingPlayer, however. While these slim devices are typically much larger than smartphones — though the line continues to be blurred — they’re far more portable than laptops and much lighter as well. More importantly where Sling is concerned, tablets also feature more substantial screen sizes that are far better-suited for displaying video.

With an iPad-optimized build and support for a number of Android tablets out of the way, Sling Media’s collective eyes turned to Amazon’s Kindle Fire when the tablet launched late last year. The retail giant’s first slate was expected to be a huge success before it was even announced and once it finally hit virtual store shelves, that expectation became a reality. The Kindle Fire has been Amazon’s best-selling electronics device since mid-November.

“Amazon has created a wonderful device and experience for people looking to consume media — and at a good price point, Sling Media’s marketing VP Jay Tannenbaum said in a statement. “Now anyone with a Slingbox Solo or PRO-HD can turn their Kindle Fire into a TV with our latest version of SlingPlayer, available on Tuesday in the Amazon App Store. We are very proud of the video quality and performance of our app and believe the combination of a Kindle Fire and a Slingbox provides a great value.”

Sling’s Kindle Fire app launches on January 31st, but we spent some time testing a preview version this weekend and it absolutely impressed us. For those unaware of Sling’s solutions, the company takes a complicated problem and makes the solution relatively simple considering how capable it is. Sling’s TV placeshifting solution involves two components, the Slingbox that connects to the set-top box provided by a cable or satellite TV provider and the SlingPlayer software, which can be installed on a desktop PC, a notebook PC or a variety of tablets and smartphones.

With Sling Media’s solution, SlingPlayer becomes a window into the user’s living room. The software features integrated remote control functions that allow the user to send commands over the Web and through the infrared transmitter running from the Slingbox to a cable box, meaning SlingPlayer can do nearly anything a standard remote can do. Users can therefore change channels, view guides, navigate to and watch DVR content, purchase and watch on-demand content, schedule DVR recordings and more.

On the Kindle Fire, Sling’s app performs as expected. Connections to the Slingbox are made quickly and when video first begins streaming, quality is a bit low until enough content has been buffered. Provided the Fire is connected to a network with decent Wi-Fi speeds, quality improves within about 30 seconds and remains quite clear and impressive as long as the connection is not interrupted. There is also a low-quality setting in the event bandwidth is not up to snuff.

The low-quality setting is important on the Kindle Fire, since it is a Wi-Fi only device with no embedded 3G or 4G connectivity. This means that plenty of bandwidth is available when the tablet is connected to a home network or in an office, but those who connect on the go will likely be tethered to a smartphone or MiFi. While Wi-Fi tethering is becoming more reliable thanks to 4G, fast and reliable LTE service is still relatively scarce in the U.S. so most users make do with 3G data connections.

Whether in high quality or low quality mode, however, SlingPlayer for the Kindle Fire performed as advertised. Operation using the on-screen controls was straight forward and commands were received by the Slingbox quickly. I did manage to trip up the connection once or twice by sending multiple commands too quickly, but seasoned SlingPlayer users know not to overload the controller and beyond that, performance was very impressive.

The gravity of being able to reproduce the living room experience — access on-demand content, DVR content, programming guides and everything else that one is able to access while at home in front of a TV — while on the go is something that cannot be fully appreciated until it is experienced. There are a variety of streaming video solutions for mobile devices but none of them come close to providing the same wide range of live TV and varied content that home cable or satellite services provide.

SlingPlayer Mobile for the Amazon Kindle Fire launches on January 31st for a one-time fee of $29.99, and it can be purchased directly on the tablet through the Amazon Appstore. As with all of Sling’s solutions, there are no monthly subscription fees for the service.

It looks like Sling Media and Verizon Wireless have inked a partnership that will bring the Slingbox experience to Verizon LTE smartphones. The service and accompanying fee, which was not disclosed, will provide users with the Slingbox hardware and software necessary to stream live television directly from their TVs to their Verizon, 4G mobile devices.

“Users can enjoy their TV while having their oil changed, waiting for a flight or taking a study break,” reads the press release. “Verizon Wireless customers will be able to sign up for the offer through V CAST Apps, Verizon Wireless’ mobile storefront, beginning later this year.”

The announcement also notes that the subscription fee will be applied to customers monthly wireless bill. Hit the jump for the full press release.

SLING MEDIA announces SUBSCRIPTION offering for verizon WIRELESS 4G LTE customers

Complete Package to Include Slingbox and SlingPlayer with Easy Billing for Subscribers

LAS VEGAS and BASKING RIDGE, N.J. – From the 2011 International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), Sling Media, Inc., today announced a subscription offering that will soon be available on select 4G smartphones on the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Mobile Broadband network.

Sling Media has created a subscription service offering that gives Verizon Wireless customers the ability to watch their home TV on new 4G smartphones. The subscription service provides a Slingbox®, the SlingPlayer™ application and networking accessories.

“With significantly increased speeds and reduced latency, the Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Mobile Broadband network provides an ideal environment for a fantastic Sling viewing experience with great video quality,” said John Gilmore, senior vice president and general manager at Sling Media. “Sling’s subscription offering is a new, easy way for consumers to start enjoying their home TV wirelessly, with one monthly bill from Verizon and without a long term contract for the Sling app.”

With a Slingbox at home and a Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Mobile Broadband connection, the award-winning SlingPlayer application gives users the ability to watch live sports, catch up on the news or enjoy movies on their smartphones. Users can enjoy their TV while having their oil changed, waiting for a flight or taking a study break. Verizon Wireless customers will be able to sign up for the offer through V CAST Apps, Verizon Wireless’ mobile storefront, beginning later this year.

The Verizon Wireless 4G LTE Mobile Broadband network, launched in December 2010, is the fastest, most advanced 4G network in the United States, providing speeds up to 10 times faster than Verizon Wireless’ existing 3G network. Consumer devices with a wide range of applications are expected to be available later this year. Verizon Wireless’ 4G LTE Mobile Broadband network currently reaches one-third of all Americans, with plans to expand the network to the company’s entire 3G coverage area over the next three years.

More details about the Verizon Wireless and SlingPlayer offering will be available during CES in Verizon Wireless’ booth (#35216 in the South Hall of the Las Vegas Convention Center) and at the Sling Media booth (#9014 in the Central Hall of the LVCC). For more information about Verizon Wireless’ 4G LTE network, visit www.verizonwireless.com/lte. For more information about Verizon Wireless at CES, visit www.verizonwireless.com/ces or follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/verizonwireless.

Sling Media announced Tuesday that its popular SlingPlayer Mobile software is now available for Windows Phone 7 devices. The mobile app will allow Windows Phone 7-powered handsets like the HTC Surround to stream live TV content from a home television via Wi-Fi or 3G. Sling Media uses a hardware component — a Slingbox — to capture signals from a user’s cable or satellite box and rebroadcast the content over the Internet using a private stream. Slingboxes can also stream content recorded with a DVR using the same technology. SlingPlayer Mobile for Windows Phone 7 is available immediately in the Windows Marketplace for $29.99. Hit the jump for Sling’s full press release.

Foster City, Calif. — Nov. 9, 2010— Sling Media, Inc., a subsidiary of EchoStar Corporation (NASDAQ: SATS), today announced the availability of SlingPlayer Mobile™ for Windows Phone 7.  As a Microsoft Launch App Partner, Sling Media is making the new SlingPlayer Mobile software available for purchase and download from the Windows Marketplace on the same day as North American mobile carriers introduce the new handsets in their retail stores.

“The big story about SlingPlayer Mobile on Windows Phone 7 is the quality of the user experience,” said John M. Paul, executive vice president of Products at Sling Media. “From the fully revamped user interface to the clear, sharp video images, customers are going to thoroughly enjoy watching TV on their Windows Phone 7 handsets.”

How it Works
When connected to a Slingbox SOLO or Slingbox PRO-HD via the Internet, the award-winning SlingPlayer Mobile software makes it easy to watch your home TV on a variety of handsets. Now Slingbox® owners with Windows Phone 7 devices can change channels, control their DVRs and watch their favorite shows anywhere they have a 3G or Wi-Fi internet connection.

Pricing and Availability
SlingPlayer Mobile for Windows Phone 7 is available now for $29.99 (US), £22.99 (UK), €21.10 plus local VAT (Europe), and CN$31.99 (Canada) from the Windows Marketplace, accessible on any Windows Phone 7 handset or via the internet at http://www.microsoft.com/windowsphone/en-us/apps/default.aspx.  SlingPlayer Mobile for Windows Phone 7 can be purchased, downloaded and installed in minutes. Initially, the software will be available only in English, with other languages to follow soon.

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Today is a great day for the forever on the go TV addict, as the the latest version of SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone has arrived and brought 3G streaming with it. Available in the iTunes App Store for the princely sum of $30, SlingPlayer Mobile the other week won AT&T’s nod of approval thanks to its a new optimization live streaming optimization method that AT&T has been tinkering with since late last year. So far we’ve heard and read that the app runs fairly well in heavily congested metropolitan areas, but we’re pretty keen to know the experience of our readers first hand. After all, you’re one good looking and intelligent bunch and we think this version is slightly different than the 3G-enabled version we’ve been using.

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Yesterday, we told you about an official AT&T press release that boasted of a partnership between AT&T and Sling Media, maker of the popular streaming television appliance Slingbox. In the press release AT&T CEO Ralph de la Vega said, “Just as we’ve worked with Sling Media in this instance, we look forward to collaborating with other developers so that mobile customers can access a wider, more bandwidth-sensitive, and powerful range of applications in the future.” AT&T’s CEO was referring to a compromise reached over the Slingbox Mobile media player that was banned from AT&T’s network due to bandwidth concerns. In a subsequent interview de la Vega continued, “They [Sling Media] made important changes to more efficiently use 3G network bandwidth and conserve wireless spectrum so that we were able to support the app on our 3G mobile broadband network.” So, what’s the problem? When Ars Technica caught up with Sling Media’s John Santoro, he had this to say: “We didn’t change anything, AT&T never discussed any specific requirements with us.” Santoro went onto explain that the code to optimize the Slingbox Mobile’s video stream, based on connection quality and network traffic, has remained unchanged since Slingplayer Mobile was first launched. A little egg in the face for AT&T, but hey, we’re getting Slingplayer Mobile, and in the words of Sling Media, “whatever the reason, we’re just glad AT&T has approved it.”

UPDATE: It seems that SlingMedia did, in fact, work with AT&T on getting this approved after all. Apparently while no code changes to the streaming portion of the application was changed due to AT&T’s requests, Sling did update it during continued development. AT&T later approved the application on their network for usage on iPhone devices. 

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We all know that AT&T defended its decision to cripple limit the iPhone SlingPlayer application with claims that such an application “would use large amounts of wireless network capacity” and “could create congestion and potentially prevent other customers from using the network”. The company further elaborated upon its stance by claiming that “applications like this, which redirects a TV signal to a personal computer, are specifically prohibited under our terms of service”. A Gizmodo tipster claims however, that these publicly proclaimed reasons are only half of the story and a more nefarious reason for a WiFi-only SlingPlayer exists. According to the tipster, AT&T is hard at work with a version of its own Slingplayer-like software, codenamed i-Verse. The i-Verse mobile application will reportedly interact with AT&T’s U-Verse television service and allow U-Verse subscribers to stream recorded video from their DVRs to their mobile phones. The i-Verse application was supposedly well-received when demoed last year and AT&T has been working overtime to get it up and running. Yeah, we can understand AT&T being sore that Sling beat them to the punch with its SlingPlayer app for the iPhone, but deliberately crippling a competitor’s application to give preference to its own app? That is a bit over the top and we hope for AT&T’s sake that this tipster is less than accurate in his claims.

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Remember that story we broke last month? Unfortunately it looks like our tipster was indeed correct. While SlingPlayer Mobile for iPhone is about to become available in the App Store, it only will work over a Wi-Fi connection as opposed to a cellular data connection. It also will run you $29.99. The only good news we could scrounge up is that Sling has allowed/enabled the iPhone client to work on any Slingbox, but they won’t officially support it. All in all, we’re sad to say, we really don’t see this going over well. $30 for an application you can only use over Wi-Fi really doesn’t sound that appetizing. We love you Sling, but this isn’t exactly optimal.

Well, we’re going to hold on to our demo apps that work over 3G — who knew some applications would become collectibles? We didn’t have a chance to put a formal review together even though we’ve been using the application for the last month or so, but quick thoughts? Really solid product that had a ton of potential (and a nice revenue stream for Sling) had it launched with cellular data support. Couple laggy spots, but hey, it’s your TiVo (or whatever crap DVR you use) on your iPhone. Anywhere. AT&T really bent them over with a hot iron stick on this one…

Some feared it might happen, others thought it would pass with flying colors, but unfortunately we’ve got a tip that tries to shed some light on the situation. This was from an anonymous tipster and we’re posting it for information sake. We’ve already reached out to Sling Media PR, so in the meantime, while we wait, here’s what we’ve been told:

The application (SlingPlayer for iPhone) conformed to every single Apple guideline for applications and user interfaces, etc. The reason it was denied (actually denied today if our tipster is to be believed) was because of an executive decision on Apple’s end. AT&T had asked that the app be rejected due to worries about bandwidth consumption (this doesn’t make too much sense given that other devices has been using SlingPlayer Mobile for a long time…).

What do you guys think? We’ll update this when we hear more!

UPDATE: Sling says that they “have had no word from Apple.” Yay!

Here we go peoples. Get excited, because Sling has just opened the doors to all of you BlackBerry-lovers who want some TiVo on the go. Download link is below, so get out those ‘Berrys, hit the download button, and let us know what you think, ok?

Thanks, Justin!

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We bet y’all thought this day would never come, huh? Well, change your pants, people. It’s officially unofficial. Sling has just updated their website, and is in the process of sending out emails to people announcing that the much-awaited SlingPlayer Mobile for BlackBerry software will enter into a public beta on December 30th. A nice late Christmas gift? You betcha’. We’re sworn to secrecy at the moment, but, how do we say this… You. Will. Love. It. The software supports pretty much all current models (ones with 3G and/or Wi-Fi are preferred) like the Bold, Curve 8900, Curve 8320, and Pearl Flip 8220. All in all, it’s awesome that this is finally being released. Boardroom meetings will never be the same…

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Woh, woh! Hold on there killer! It’s not like the image above suggests that’s what WE would watch if RIM and TiVo built a streaming application… We’re just saying, you know? If you happen to have a TiVo hard drive full of old episodes of a certain show you enjoy, whatever that may be, this would enable you to watch them on the go. Ok good, we’re clear then. It’s easy to get ahead of yourself when you hear that RIM and TiVo have announced a partnership, but Sling Media and HAVA shouldn’t be shaking in their boots just yet. The initial announcement only covers an integration that would let BlackBerry-rocking TiVo users remotely view program guides and schedule recordings. Ok, that’s cool. Some might say however, that Jim’s statement alludes to the fact that we can expect a bit more as this new partnership evolves:

As the BlackBerry smartphone continues its evolution as a modern lifestyle device, the importance of home entertainment integration will continue to grow and TiVo will be the key in providing consumers with greater flexibility in accessing television content.

Being able to schedule your box to record the next few episodes of Entourage while on the go is hardly “accessing television content,” so we’d like to think that Balsillie was pretty clear with his intentions. Now that the Bold gives us some 3G love, there’s no reason that someone shouldn’t provide a solid TV streaming app for BlackBerry!

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