Setup and Configuration

Much of the same configuration options for SlingPlayer present have also gone mobile. To access the configuration screens, press "Player" in the lower left corner, and then "Player Options..." There are four different configuration screens: Player, Encoding, Audio, and Advanced.

Player
In the Player menu, you'll find the options to manually set the buffer, or choose automatic. I tend to prefer that the software handles the buffer itself, but if you need to drop it entirely, the option is available. Unfortunately, this build would not allow the buffer to go beyond four seconds, which is unfortunate since additional buffer would help when slinging over low bit-rate connections.

You'll also see a box to enable Sling Media's SlingStream (if SlingStream PC was code named Lebowski, does that make this one Mini-Me?) technology. It's highly recommended you enable it. The fast start option slows playback slightly over the first 10 to 15 seconds to build the buffer; keep it checked if you don't want to stare at a blank screen for a few seconds.



Encoding
Here you'll be able to set your video encoding parameters by hand, or let SlingStream take over automatically. The same high, medium, and low action parameters are also accounted for, which tailor the encoding parameters for whatever you're watching. It defaults to medium, which strikes a good balance for most kinds of video.

Audio
You'll currently find one option in the Audio menu, which allows for adjustment of the audio quality during playback. The selections are Mono, Stereo Low, and Stereo High. I used Stereo Low for the majority of testing, and the audio quality was good enough to listen through a pair of headphones. The high setting provided the best results, but you'll sacrifice bandwidth for the video stream when selected.



Advanced
The "Advanced" menu provides the ability to enable or disable a warning when you enter control mode, which proved irritating after a while. You'll also be able to turn on the statistics option, which will report frames per second and your streaming bit-rate while viewing in small mode. If you also own only one Slingbox, check the option to automatically connect to the Slingbox you were viewing last. It saves you few screen presses when you start up the player.

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