The perfect UK TV abroad placeshift set up?

Connecting a Slingbox with YouView

You may have noticed that in recent months, the latest craze to hit UK free-to-air TV is the YouView box; released by Lord Sugar in conjunction with the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Five. With the unveiling comes a new realm of entertainment via a smart EPG that equips users to watch up to 7 days worth of TV back in time, using an integrated system with BBC iPlayer, ITV Player, 4oD and Demand Five.

As a guy who watches a huge amount of UK TV streaming from my lounge abroad, the one stumbling block to any timezone difference is the lack of choice in realtime. Ok, so any TV addict can set up recordings on a regular PVR but like all TV, new shows, new series and changes in schedules occur which means you could be missing out on some excellent UK TV entertainment. Also, there are many times when you simply want flip through the networks to find something worth enjoying when there's simply nothing decent on the television.

In the past, clicking though the iPlayer sites and alike on your laptop or PC is a pain. It takes an age to find any decent programming and frankly, the interfaces aren't geared towards finding shows across multiple channels. YouView has answered that issue with a range of Freeview PVRs that if integrated with a Slingbox, giving even the most hard lined non-subscription TV viewer a much more varied choice of TV viewing entertainment.

YouView & Slingbox - a match made in place shift heaven!

I decided to give this new system a test run and it was well worth the time, effort and extra cost. I plugged in the latest Humax T-1000 into my recently bought Slingbox 500 and HD, on-demand British TV streaming was at my fingertips instantly. This is what I had really been missing. The ability to scan through the days entertainment, select what I wanted to watch and just sit back and feast in it. No headaches using websites, searching and messy cables. Just me, my remote and my Slingbox.

I was doubtful at first but I can comprehend why Lord Alan Sugar has spent so much time getting the networks on board and capital in creating this system. Put simply, it works and works great!

Of course IPTV is not a new system and I am well aware that there are many alternative products, most of which are unofficial that can provide UK TV with a time shifted EPG. I have used them and frankly, these mostly illegal and in the main, poorly supported UK TV overseas services are terrible. I wanted a system that was dedicated. Geared to my tastes, demands and completely stable. This system gave me exactly that. So if you are based abroad and want a low cost, on-demand UK TV streaming service; then paring up a YouView box with a Slingbox could be a partnership made in heaven!

The F1 season closes out in style!

Vettel is World Champ again!

If like me, you may have decided to spend the weekend in front of the TV and sit back to watch F1 online this past weekend to see the final showdown between Sebastian Vettel and Fernando Alonso. It didn't disappoint.

Sebastian Vettel is F1 champion for a third time

The final race of the season at Interlagos, Brazil was full of incident, controversy and a dose of disappointment. In his final ever race for McLaren Mercedes, Lewis hamilton was once again struck by some awful bad luck that saw his car taken out by Force India's Nico Hulkenberg and at that moment, his race ended prematurely. Up to and including that point, he was enjoying one of his best weekends, leading the race for 54 laps from pole. It was a terrible end to a long and emotional relationship with his boyhood team. Next season could be very interesting, if not bumpy for the 2008 World Champion.

As for Vettel, it was his third title in a row and yet again, another season that was down to the wire. Alonso gave him a hard ride for his money and he really had to earn it this time around. Poor starts and finishes aside, the German showed his true quality where it counted and he is arguably the best driver out there right now; not taking into account the cars and teams they drive for.

Every lap enjoyed on my iPad!

I watched the action live and online via my brilliant uk vpn which I have supplied to me by the folks back home at UKTV2C. The quality of the Sky Go streaming is really impressive and at full screen, beamed via bluetooth straight to my TV, it was a joy to watch. I was flipping between stations as I was keeping a close eye on the football on Sky Sports online as well so it was great to have all these satellite tv stations at my fingertips, on my iPad.

Anyhow, there goes another season of Formula 1. I'm intrigued to know how things will pan out next season. I have a sneaking suspicion that Jenson Button could be the surprise package as he will undoubtedly be the main man at McLaren, with no close rivalries or expectation. Watch this space as they say!