Streaming Video Anywhere with TVersity or PlayON

We've cut the cord on the cable/satellite and using Boxee on the main TV to watch Hulu, Netflix, MLB baseball games, NHL hockey games, and just about anything else available online, on the big-screen TV.  So what about the other 3 TV's?  Sure, free over-the-air HD is fine for network shows, but what if we want to watch Psych in the Den (there's no computer attached there but there is an XBox360).  What if the kids want to watch the newest Deadliest Catch on their iPod Touch?

In the near future, all the TV's in my house will have their own Boxee Box but until then how do we get more than 3-4 "local" networks?

There is a solution (actually a few, but, this article will focus on the option I chose to solve everything for multiple devices in my house).

How Will This Work?

It all hinges upon getting the content into your home from the internet either via Hulu, Netflix, or a download from uTorrent; then getting it to your PS3, XBox360 or iOS devices like iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch.  So how does one accomplish this?



DLNA (the Digital Living Network Alliance) has established a standard for Video communication from a source to a player.  DLNA is supported natively on the PS3, XBox360, and many TV's and Set-top boxes -- even the DirecTV receivers support DLNA.

A DLNA Player can "find" video sources "shared" by devices in your home on your home network (and audio but we're focusing on video at this point).  DLNA sources can be your Windows Media Player files, files attached to a DLNA Network Attached Storage (NAS) such as many LinkSys routers (my Linksys E3000 can do this with a USB hard drive attached) and Western Digital My Book storage devices.  The only thing I don't like about these options is they are fairly limited in that they only play local content.  This is fine if you have plenty of local content, but, if you're like me, you want access to Hulu, Netflix, and even MLB or NHL games on your TV's (and iOS devices).

This is where software like PlayON and TVersity come into the picture.  These are programs you run on your computer that find video sources on your computer, your local network, and even on the internet from Hulu, etc; organize them; and make them available to your DLNA players.

Both have free versions -- TVersity's free version only handles local content; PlayON's got a fully functional version free for 14 days.  We tested both free versions in my house.

PlayON wins for my house, because:
   a) it lets us actually test everything for free
   b) it has the most sources (NHL hockey was the decision maker here)
   c) it allows for independent developers to add "plugins" for more sources
   d) it has a built-in service for working OUTSIDE the home when traveling
   e) it has its own free player for your iOS device (iPod, iPhone, iPad)


So I've installed the PlayON free trial on my computer -- what's next?

1) Make Sure PlayOn is running on the computer and your settings are how you want them in the PlayON configuration screens.

2) Go to your TV and turn on your XBox or PS3, browse to the choice in the menus for My Videos, and start browsing for something to watch.  You'll find various ways to find the same shows -- by Genre, Network, Title, etc.  Pick a show and start watching!  Its that easy!

What about my iOS device?

1) While connected to your home network via WiFi, open your iOS (iPod, iPad, iPhone) safari browser.

2) Go to m.playon.tv

3) Follow the on-screen instructions to add PlayOn to your home screen

4) Go to your home screen and tap the PlayOn icon

5) Pick a show and watch Hulu, Netflix, MLB, NHL, or any of your local content on your iPhone (or other iOS device)

6) As an added benefit, next time you're away from home, you can still watch your shows on PlayON over 3G and WiFi.

Its truly simple and equally amazing.

ONE LAST POINT


PlayOn (or TVersity) sometimes has to do a lot of "work" to translate the video from its original format to one that is compatible with your playback device (a process called transcoding).  As a result, you will probably want to make sure your computer running your PlayON server is sufficient to handle the load.  According to PlayON my computer is not fast enough to provide an optimal experience (its a 5 year old single-core so I believe them).

As long an I'm only using it for one show at a time, its fine.  When all the kids try watching different stuff at the same time, it does start to become "choppy" on certain video streams.  Keep that in mind -- and give it a good workout during your free trial to make sure your computer can handle it.

Enjoy and let me know how it goes for you!

References:
    http://www.playon.tv
    http://tversity.com
    http://dlna.org