Hands-on with Sling TV for Android devices [VIDEO]
Sling TV was arguably the biggest announcement at CES this year. It’s an internet TV service that includes a small bundle of popular channels for only $20 a month. For many people the inclusion of ESPN is the big selling point. $20 a month far cheaper than most cable packages that include ESPN. Sling TV is invite-only right now, but I was lucky enough to get an invite.
Android is one of several platforms that support Sling TV right now. The app isn’t available in the Play Store yet, but if you get an invite they send the APK file for sideloading. The app is very simple and easy to use. At first launch it shows what’s “On Now” in scrollable list across the bottom. Just above that is a scrollable list of the 11 channels: ESPN, ESPN 2, TNT, TBS, HGTV, Food Network, Travel Channel, CNN, Cartoon Network, ABC Family, and Disney Channel.
When you select a specific channel you can see the upcoming schedule. You can even watch old episodes from HGTV, Food Network, and Travel Channel. A few channels also let you rewind and pause. Sling TV also has movies available for rent, which can be accessed by swiping from the left of the screen. In the apps settings you can choose the video quality, which is very important for those of us who don’t have unlimited data.
This is a very basic app that does everything you need right now. Sling TV is expected to go live for all users on February 5th. Hopefully we’ll see more features added to the Android app. Watching TV on every device you own is clearly the future, and Sling TV is a step in the right direction. You can sign up for an invite here.
