UstreamLiveBroadcaster
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Stream audio and video live from your iPhone with Ustream Live Broadcaster
The floodgates are beginning to open. Just last week we had the first live streamer, Knocking Live [iTunes link], that worked from iPhone to iPhone. Now, Ustream is offering a free app [iTunes link] that lets you put a live or recorded stream on the web that multiple people can watch from a web browser. This is a rather stunning turnaround from just weeks ago when Apple did not allow any live streaming of video from the iPhone. This app supports the 3G and 3GS iPhones, and allows streaming over the 3G network and Wi-Fi. You can record the stream to your iPhone for a later upload, and it even works on 3G phones that don't have built-in video record capability. The app allows you to share your recorded stream on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook and of course the Ustream site. You can relay your GPS location and your URL appears in the video so you can tell your friends how to find you. Finally, you can archive your broadcast to the web for later viewing. To get it all going you must create a free account. I tried it this morning, and it worked on both 3G and Wi-Fi. I couldn't try the app on a 3G phone, but it is reported to work, giving that phone video capability in its unjailbroken state. Video resolution is 320 x 240 pixels, and can be lowered to 176 x 144. In my test, video and audio were lagging about 2-3 seconds, which is to be expected. There are ads on the Ustream web page, so that's where the money comes from to support this app. I'm not sure what is causing the change of heart at Apple/AT&T about live streaming. It may be competition from other phones, or increased scrutiny from the FCC. I wonder if the Sling application will ever be fixed so it can use the 3G network? It seems they would have a good case. It's great to see the iPhone finally get this capability. It's lagged behind some other smartphone platforms, but it is catching up rapidly -- so get the app, and become your own TV station. Let us know in comments about your experiences, your likes and dislikes.
iPhones rejoice as Ustream Live Broadcaster hits App Store, other smartphones wonder what all the ruckus is
When it comes to streaming live video from a smartphone, there's an app for that and there has been for a long, long time -- unless you're an iPhoner. With Qik for the iPhone a delayed broadcast was possible, but it took months for the thing to break out of its WiFi-only shackles. Now you, like Bill O'Reilly, can do it live courtesy of the Ustream's Live Broadcaster, newly available in the App Store. It's not the first to stream live video from Apple's handset, an app called Knocking gets that distinction after getting the nod last week, but it is the first to allow live broadcasting, it works over 3G, and it's available for free right now for iPhone 3G and 3GS models running OS 3.1 and above. So go ahead, start those cameras rolling and tell all your friends how great it is -- just don't be heartbroken if they're not all that impressed. P.S. It's worth noting that Ustream also works in local record mode thus turning the iPhone 3G into a video camera like its newer 3GS sibling. Videos (stuck at 320 x 240 pixels) can then be easily viewed in the Broadcaster app or uploaded to Ustream, YouTube, Facebook, or Twitter.
