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Today's Show:
With the digital switch taking place right in the middle of Hurricane and Tornado season many of our listeners wonder what will replace the trusty old portable analog TV in emergencies. Apparently a lot of people have been thinking about this. In Amazon.com's list of popular TVs there are two portable digital models. So for today's show we thought we'd rundown your options.

Slingplayer for the iPhone is now available

So Ara has been playing with the Slingplayer for the iPhone. Here are his initial impressions.

The Good

• Works well via wifi
• Image quality pretty good
• Nice interface
• Like the favorites selection
• Like the way you can flip to change channels

The Bad

• No 3G support
• Reduced frame rate
• No full 16:9 support
• No Slide show mode
• No way to turn your DVR on and off via a power button.
• Cost
• Lip sync is decent but you can see issues
• Slow

If it were a free app, you should jump in and deal with the issues. There should be updates coming to improve the experience. But at $30, you can probably wait until it improves. Not sure why they don't display full screen 16:9. That one issue alone makes it less enjoyable to use. The other deal breaker is not Slingmedia's fault but rather AT&T's limitation of the application that prevents usage via their 3G network.

Portable Digital Televisions

Axion AXN-8701 7-Inch Widescreen Portable Handheld TV with Built-In Tuner $129

This is the number one best selling TV at Amazon right now. It finally pushed Samsung out of that position. Its rated 4 out of 5 stars by 116 customers

Features:

• 7-Inch widescreen LCD portable handheld TV
• Built-in NTSC/ATSC tuner for both analog and digital channels - so it WILL work after Feb 19, 2009
• Built-in antenna allows for easy repositioning for better reception
• A/V input for external audio/video sources
• Includes AC adaptor, instruction manual, remote control, external antenna, car adaptor and A/V cables

Haier HLT71 7-Inch Portable LCD TV $117

This is the number three best selling TV at Amazon. Its rated 3 1/2 stars out of 4 by 194 customers

Features:

• 7-inch portable LCD TV with ATSC/NTSC tuner, that WILL work after 2/19/2009
• Selectable screen aspect ratio of 16:9 or 4:3
• Audio/video jack and coaxial output; detachable antenna
• Multi language OSD- English, French and Spanish with detachable antenna
• AC adaptor, car adaptor and remote control

CTA Digital TV-P7 7-Inch Portable LCD TV $130

This one does not make the top 10 at Amazon and it has no star rating.

Features:

• 7 inch Portable LCD TV w/Adjustable Stand
• Plays MP3/MP4/JPEG Files via SD/MMC/MS Card Reader
• Built in Rechargeable Battery
• Functions with the New ATSC Digital Signal Switch
• Portable / Just Charge and Unplug

Envizen Digital EF71001 10-Inch Digital Photo Frame and Digital TV Tuner $195

This is an interesting take on the portable digital TV. When you are not in need of an emergency device it is your digital picture frame. In an emergency unplug it from the wall and away you go. This device has no star rating.

Features:

• Digital photo frame + ATSC TV tuner
• MP3/MP4 player
• For Office, Kitchen, Bathroom
• Remote control
• A/C adaptor

Other Options:

You can use your cell phone if you have VCast from Version or AT&T's Mobile TV. To a lesser degree you can use the Slingplayer for mobile devices. The issue here is that you need a TV with power connected to it. It might work on a national level if your Slingbox is located outside the affected area or you still have power.

Posted by The HT Guys, May 14, 2009 11:03 PM