OT: Anyone familiar with Slingbox?

[lionroar88]

I live in the DC market and want to be able to watch Steelers games when they aren't on locally. Was thinking of picking up a Slingbox (not sure which model - need recommendations if this is possible) and hooking it up at my parent's place in Pittsburgh. Then when the games are on, watch them on my Android tablet, phone, or desktop... or if possible connect an Amazon Fire or Chromecast device to my TV and watch over the TV...

is it possible to do this? if so what Slingbox do I need? etc

 

[Philly Lion]

I live in the DC market and want to be able to watch Steelers games when they aren't on locally. Was thinking of picking up a Slingbox (not sure which model - need recommendations if this is possible) and hooking it up at my parent's place in Pittsburgh. Then when the games are on, watch them on my Android tablet, phone, or desktop... or if possible connect an Amazon Fire or Chromecast device to my TV and watch over the TV...

is it possible to do this? if so what Slingbox do I need? etc

My wife and I live in Rotterdam, The Netherlands and have a Slingbox setup at a friend's home in Downingtown. There is a Comcast (Xfinity) cable connection that comes into their home and goes to a Comcast DVR/cable box. The Slingbox connects to that cable dox/DVR and to the Internet. From December 2012 until June 2015 we had a Slingbox in Rotterdam that communicated with the Slingbox in Downingtown but we now have an Amazon Fire TV box in our apartment and a new Slingbox in Downingtown. It works great!!!

The original Slingbox(es) was difficult to setup as my wife spent quite a bit of time on the phone with Comcast and the retailer in NYC who sold us the Slingbox while out at our friends' home in Downingtown. When the Slngbox in our Rotterdam apartment went bad in June 2015 it was fortuitous as my wife was already planning a home trip to the U.S. She went to see her mother in VA and then went up to Downingtown, PA where she replaced the Comcast box and the Slingbox. The new Sling technology was SO MUCH easier to connect. When she flew back to Rotterdam she brought the Amazon Fire TV box with her and it connected quite easily and handshook with the Slingbox in PA.

I can watch (and/or record) PSU games or anything that I want. We are 6 hours ahead of EST/EDT so a 3:30 PM EST/EDT game comes on at 9:30 PM CET/CEST but without the Slngbox/Amazon Fire TV connection I could not see American TV in Holland.

 

[HoustonNit]

I live in the DC market and want to be able to watch Steelers games when they aren't on locally. Was thinking of picking up a Slingbox (not sure which model - need recommendations if this is possible) and hooking it up at my parent's place in Pittsburgh. Then when the games are on, watch them on my Android tablet, phone, or desktop... or if possible connect an Amazon Fire or Chromecast device to my TV and watch over the TV...

is it possible to do this? if so what Slingbox do I need? etc

 

[BeefSkull]

philly lion - do you think the PSU Pitt game will be on in any bars in Amsterdam ? I go every year for IBC and never can find a bar that will show the PSU game. Watched Rutgers game 2am from hotel on Internet and last year the buffalo game via some ESPN paid stream.

 

[Philly Lion]

philly lion - do you think the PSU Pitt game will be on in any bars in Amsterdam ? I go every year for IBC and never can find a bar that will show the PSU game. Watched Rutgers game 2am from hotel on Internet and last year the buffalo game via some ESPN paid stream.

BeefSkull- that is a good question. I do not know of any bars in Amsterdam that show American sports, but to be honest and fair, there could be ten of them. I simply do not know the ins-and-outs of Amsterdam well enough to say. I get up to Amsterdam now and then but do not know it well enough to answer your question. I would HIGHLY doubt that there is anywhere in Rotterdam (where I live) that would show the game. I hear that the Breakaway Cafe, near Rotterdam Centraal, shows American football but I only go there to watch the Dutch national team (soccer). I watch the NFL at my apartment. I just don't think that there is enough of an American audience for Dutch bars and restaurants to bother to try to get American football.

 

[lionroar88]

The Slingbox controls the Comcast box?

 

[Philly Lion]

Yes, it controls the Comcast box.

 

[91Joe95]

I live in the DC market and want to be able to watch Steelers games when they aren't on locally. Was thinking of picking up a Slingbox (not sure which model - need recommendations if this is possible) and hooking it up at my parent's place in Pittsburgh. Then when the games are on, watch them on my Android tablet, phone, or desktop... or if possible connect an Amazon Fire or Chromecast device to my TV and watch over the TV...

is it possible to do this? if so what Slingbox do I need? etc

Yes. No problem, any model will do. Its just a matter of what bells and whistles you want. Sling box merely transmits, and then you watch it in your browser or on their app. Mirroring to the TV is handled by your phone or tablet and TV, and is independent of the sling box. Just remember, what your parents watch is what you watch, and yes you can control their satellite/cable box wherever you watch TV. Internet speed requirements are listed on their website, they are not that much.

 

[JBDLion]

Any slingbox after the M1 will cast to Chromecast and do what you want to do. It depends on what you want your input to be. I think component is actually easier than HDMI (some HDMI cables don't play nicely with slingbox). Will this be an extra set top box in Pittsburgh? If not, you'll only be able to watch what they're watching or vice versa. Take it from personal experience, offer to pay the $10/month to get another stb dedicated to your slingbox.

I had a Pittsburgh slingbox for years when I lived out of town. When I moved back to Pittsburgh, I sold it and quickly realized how much I missed it and bought a used replacement. I'll often use it to watch a game on my phone in a different room or outside or use the audio only mode to listen like a radio. It's great for business trips too. Good luck.