Using Orb to sling video to your Windows Mobile device

Kevin and I have talked about Orb for a long time but recently it seems all the talk has shifted to using SlingPlayer with a Slingbox to place-shift video to mobile devices.  That method works well but Orb is still a great way to play your media at home on your mobile device no matter where you are.  Orb is also free which is always good in the jkOTR book. 

Jason Dunn of The Two Inch View has written a great tutorial that details exactly what you need to do to get that media playing on your Windows Mobile device using the Orb network.  He reminds us that Orb will handle both music and photos in addition to the video place-shifting that most people think of when they think of Orb.  He’s got a lot of nice screen shots to show all the features of Orb on the Windows Mobile platform so check it out. Orb is just so cool.

Comments

[Kevin C. Tofel]

I haven't had a chance to read Jason's article just yet, but will do so later today. He might cover two other fantastic aspects of Orb, but in case he doesn't, I thought I'd share them. You can use Orb with an attached webcam and remotely view the camera. I use this just for fun when I'm not at home to see which of our two cats is sitting in my office chair. There's nothing stopping you from using Orb with a webcam to monitor a location however. Additionally, Orb offers a free voicemail service that integrates with Skype called V4S. We actually use that for our MobileTechRoundup Skypeline; when a listener leaves a message, Orb actually sends us a WMA file of the audio via email! Both of these services are also FREE. :)

[Mark Polino]

I use both Orb and the Slingbox. I find that Orb goes through my company's firewall better than Sling and works better on really low speed connections (GPRS). Sling however, has a more intuitive interface for new users and can be a little steadier (less buffering) with a good connection. You really won't go too wrong with either one ... or BOTH!

[Keith]

I started using Orb a couple months ago and it has made me pine for a 3G network and phone (which would mean switching carriers in my area, unfortunately). I've taken to calling it Orbing instead of slinging, though :-) I like to leave my laptop in the bedroom and just walk around with my Axim watching Family Guy.

One of the features they recently added that I really like is access to all your files, not just media. I needed some information from a PDF and Excel file on my computer at home, so I just downloaded them and saved myself from driving home at lunch.

Maybe the best part, though, is that since all it needs is a web browser, it doesn't even need a PDA or smartphone. I haven't been able to try, but I'm betting a Nintendo DS and PSP could at least look at all the pictures, and the PSP may be able to handle the music and videos.