Orb Networks is taking its Orb Live streaming content app to the next level with an iPhone and iPad version (Android is slated to be released later this month) that allows users to stream content from their PC or Mac.
The company has opened up the options for content considerably, with full support for ABC, FOX, ESPN, Hulu, VEVO, Netflix streaming, Amazon VoD and much more. Since the app streams from a user's computer, there are no additional charges. They are able to use their existing streaming accounts that they have already set up, except this time with much more flexibility. One unique feature is the consumer can throttle their streaming speed. Since the app can stream via various existing networks such as Wi-Fi, Edge and 3G, in the app settings is a slider to adjust the streaming speed for maximum quality or minimum bandwidth usage.
How the service works is pretty straightforward and does take a little setup. First, you have to install a program on your PC or Mac called Orb Caster. Once this is installed, the software actually does real-time capture of Web streaming video and transcodes it into a compatible format that your phone or tablet can understand. The beauty of it is that as long as you computer is on, and you have network access to say Wi-Fi or 3G, you can stream content direct no matter where you are, a park, in your car or anywhere. One extra benefit comes from Hulu. Typically on a phone you need to purchase a subscription to Hulu Plus to watch videos from the service. But since Orb Live is streaming from your PC or Mac, you can actually watch video from the free basic Hulu Web service and stream it directly to your device. This is handy because some content from Hulu is actually only available on the Web and not with the premium Plus service. So if you had a Hulu Plus account and Orb Live you could pretty much watch anything and everything that Hulu has to offer right on your iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch or Android. Orb Live is available now in Apple's iTunes store.
