Beginner's Guide to Wireless Television
Screens abound in our everyday lives. We have them on our iPods, digital cameras, computers and, of course, televisions. One screen spends more time with us than any other and that is the one on our mobile phone. Cellular phones started their existence with now antique vacuum florescent displays and progressed quickly to one-color liquid crystal; that is black numbers on a grey display. Today, you will find most phones feature 65,000 color capable displays, though these are not necessary for dialing numbers or displaying caller-ID; but they sure make it easier to look at digital photos.
The future use of this handy display, however, is moving pictures. America is behind Asia, particularly Korea, with the rollout of advanced mobile phone functions such as television viewing. There are multiple reasons for this, one being that the majority of Americans drive our own vehicles rather than depend on public transportation such as trains or buses, which makes watching TV while commuting downright dangerous.
That being said, the latest generation of networks incorporate fast data transfers and the next generation of mobile phones will decode and decompress this fast enough to enable high-quality video. Before you get too excited about watching this week's "Lost" episode on your mobile phone, remember that most of these services only give you short clips of your favorite news or programming, especially if they are carrier-provided. Also, note the phone screen's small size and expect your battery power to be consumed at a much faster rate than when you are using the phone for calls.
Here is a look at the current group of software and services designed to let you keep up with your favorite television shows while you're on the go!
MobiTV
Cost: $9.99/month
Launched over a year ago on Sprint's lower-speed Vision data network, MobiTV brought television at half the frame rate (16 versus 30) that standard television operates. This service is the most compatible with many North American carriers including AllTel, Cingular and Rogers. The MobiTV product is also one of the few devices that work on generally lower-tech, yet very popular, flip phones as well as the Treo Smartphone.
Channels: ABC News Now, Chaos, CNBC, CNET, CSPAN, CSPAN 2, Comedy Time, Discovery, Discovery Espanol, ESPN TV, iFilm, Fashion TV, Fox Sports, MAXX Sports, MLB, Mobi Trailers, MSNBC, NBC Mobile, Shift, The Mic, The Weather Channel, TLC, V40
Orb Networks
Cost: Free
If you have a Windows or Mac OS-X PC, then this software is all that you need to connect to it and stream photos, music and videos to many phone brands, PDAs or another computer. Compatible phones include all Windows Smartphones and many of the Nokia 60, 80 and 90 series phones. Originally released just for Windows Media Center Edition, this software works well and continues to support new devices and computing platforms.
Its engine is Web-based, which means you can access your content from nearly any device that has a connection to the Internet. Orb will "find" your PC even if you are connected to a DSL or cable modem that may change your IP address occasionally. It also automatically adjusts to network conditions by performing a speed test on your host and remote devices, which should mean that you get the best connection possible. But with Sprint's network the software incorrectly says that your phone is connecting to your home PC at 10 megabits, a speed that Fortune 500 network administrators would die for.
Channels: Any photos, music or video clips that are stored on your PC or television programs that are piped into your Media Center PC though broadcast, cable or satellite, except for high definition content. Add-ons like weather and TiVo connectivity give even more functionality.
Sling Media
Cost: $249 for the encoder; phone decoder software TBD
Sling Media's Slingbox gives you access to multiple channels and content stored on your PVR to a PC running its free software client or a compatible mobile phone. The Sling mobile client runs on Microsoft Smartphones that use Windows Mobile 4 or 5 and will even allow you to program your TiVo remotely. Power users could also use this device to check in on cameras monitoring your work or home.
Sling's CFO and VP of Business Development Jason Krikorian says "The beauty of the Slingbox is that instantly, the consumer is able to watch all of the programming that he has become accustomed to at home. This includes every channel in your lineup, and the ability to watch live as well as content recorded on your DVR. And, of course, all this [comes] without a monthly service fee."
Because this stand-alone appliance takes the computer out of the video equation, I find it to be more robust and trouble free than the Orb software that relies on the stability of your Windows host computer. The software for your mobile phone should be available by the time you read this, and the demonstration that I saw in January was beautiful, even with the large screen sizes that the Microsoft Windows Mobile platform supports.
Sprint TV
Cost: $15 to $25/month
Sprint started testing TV years ago with a service called 1KTV, which was more PowerPoint slides than actual television. Thankfully, its PowerVision network now is of the faster EVDO variety, which makes for a more compelling video experience. The base TV subscription includes just a few channels while the top package provides premiums from the Discovery Channel franchise. Sprint's video is very clear, and its content partners are strong. You will have to pay a premium for the additional channels, but the Sirius Satellite radio programming is a nice bonus if you do not wish to partake in their $2.50 per song download service.
Channels: ABC News Now, Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, ESPN, Fox News, Fox Sports, Fuse, Fashion TV, NFL, NBC, The Weather Channel, Toon World, Comedy Time, Music Choice, Sirius Hits.
Verizon V-Cast
Cost: $15/month
Verizon's network uses the latest EVDO technology as well, but currently has a limited set of content available. Also noteworthy, the company has recently teamed up with TiVo to allow users to program their PVR remotely, but it has not announced plans to allow subscribers of both services to access the video stored on their TiVo hard drive. By looking at what Verizon has done in the past with their closed gaming applications and music download system, I do not expect this to occur any time soon.
Channels: Accuweather, CBS News to Go, Comedy Central, ESPN, Fox News, NBC Mobile, The Weather Channel
Dave is a road warrior who has been tweaking his mobile phones to connect to PCs and data services since the early 1990s. Thankfully, he no longer has a swarm of antennas on his vehicle. More stories can be found on his website at www.davemathews.com.
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