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- Quick specs
- Price: Free
- Operating system: Windows XP
- Date added: March 08, 2006
- Total Downloads: 26,320
- Downloads last week: 179
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A newer version of Orb is available.
(Download doesn't provide access to previous versions of this program.)
- CNET editors' rating: stars
- Average user rating: stars out of 22 votes
See all user reviews
CNET editors' review
Reviewed by: CNET Staff
This is not a flashback to the chart-defying tricks of ambient house music progenitors The Orb, although if you have their music you can use this Orb to play it anywhere. No, this Orb melds module-based personal portals with your hard drive's media content and lets you stream it to almost any Internet-connected handheld device.
The setup will probably be challenging to users who aren't familiar with how to open ports, but, fortunately, there's plenty of help in Orb's user forums. Once you're good to go, the program launches in your browser and you can choose whether you want your video module to be front and center, how wide your music module should be, and if you really need yet another weather widget.
Uploading your media files is a time-consuming and tedious process that could be greatly improved upon. After that, you can "MyCast" them. MyCasting is what Orb's publisher calls Webcasting when done with its program. If your home PC has coaxial access, you can stream television, as well as photos, video files, and music.
By circumventing the need to reload media files on a second machine and having the handheld connection, Orb seems pretty nifty. The system requirements, though, are stringent, and the upload process is slow-going, making this a useful product with room for improvement.
Publisher's description
From Orb Networks :Orb takes the home out of home entertainment. Orb gives you secure access to the digital media on your home PC through a Web interface. Orb streams your content safely to virtually any Internet-connected device. Just install the Orb software on your PC, and then access your media anywhere.
Version 1.01.0639 may include unspecified updates, enhancements, or bug fixes.
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User reviews of Orb 1.01.0639
- Average user rating: 0 stars Not yet available
- My rating: 0 stars Write review
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Showing 2 of 2 user reviewsSee all 2 user reviews
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18 out of 29 people found this review helpful
Version: Orb 1.01.0639
"Holy s**t...I can't believe this is free!"
Pros: ITS FREEEEEEE!
It streams your TV over the web.
The web interface (for accessing your orb software remotely) is awesome!
It comes built in with the very popular XMLTV. This is the software which downloads TV listings. My guess is that it is downloading right from Zap2It, a popular TV site. Regardless, all the lists are 100% correct.
TV can be streamed, or it can be given a record command, in which it will be recorded to the folder set in the program which can be streamed at a later time.
You can not only stream TV and TV recordings but you can setup the program to look for locally stored photos and videos for remote viewing.
Software setup is darn easy. Choose the video source, set up a remote if you have one, choose your provider based on your zip code (for XMLTV) and thats it.
The stream quality is quite awesome. Then again, I was trying it locally. I havent tried remote viewing.
It lists a certain list of TV cards it works with. Mine wasn't on there and it worked anyway.
It also indicates it works with set top boxes...and can also do composite and SVideo-in connected TV's. Amazing really.
Cons: Each time you change the configuration you have to go through picking your local provider. I wish there was an option to either skip this step or tell it to keep the currently selected provider.
XMLTV takes a little while to get the initial TV listing download at first setup.
Kind of expensive on RAM cost. Tray icon is like 10MB phys, 24MB virt. The orb program is 11MB/18MB. Then when a stream is requested a couple more programs run to initiate and run the stream. Very hefty load of programs. It really requires a lot of RAM and a good processor.
Supposedly only supports a short list of TV tuners. Mine, not listed, worked though.
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Cant go wrong with this software if you have a TV tuner or a TV connected by composite or SVideo to a computer.
This is like that product called SlingBox which is a set top box which connects to the internet to stream TV. The only difference between SlingBox and this (besides the fact that SlingBox is a real "box" while Orb is just software...however the slingbox comes with similar web-software) is that SlingBox is $250 for the box, and $30 for the software (starting April 26, 2006, while Orb is free! Well...it does require a PC with a TV tuner, where as SlingBox is a standalone product.
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2 out of 2 people found this review helpful
Version: Orb 1.01.0639
"Works well enough for pictures and music"
Pros: Pictures, amd music work well. If you have a large music collection on your PC which is connected to the net, it would be good to access it through a laptop. Though I got it to connect to my wireless laptop, and even streamed a video from my laptop, and back to my laptop through the orb site using p2p.
Cons: The tv listings are only for the USA. Having codec problems with streaming video, though I got one video to stream itself. Could not connect it to Freecom(USB Freeview TV), maybe you need a tv card.
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