Gaming gets a remote player, like Slingbox

The video game equivalent of Echostar’s Slingbox, Spawn Labs’ HD-720 lets you remotely play a variety of gaming consoles over the Internet.

Joystiq reports that the Spawn box streams games at 30 frames per second in resolutions up to 720p. It works with the Playstation 3, Xbox 360, Playstation 2 and Gamecube, but not the Wii. That’s probably because remote play requires a controller adapter, and I’m guessing it translates button signals and not accelerometer motions.

This may seem like an unnecessary or even worthless device, considering that most consoles are disc-based and would essentially restrict you to one game while you’re gone. Still, I think the Spawn box would be surprisingly useful. I always seem to have some big trip ahead of me just after I’ve purchased a killer new game, with no means to play it short of hauling the entire console. Besides, more games are being offered for download these days, so there’s more to a console than games on disc.

Another interesting feature of the Spawn box allows other people to play from afar, even when you’re at home. That means you could lend a controller and an adapter to a friend, and continue to play together when meeting up is a hassle. Spawn Labs says the device has no latency from a home network and minimal latency over broadband, but of course that claim needs to be taken with a grain of salt, as any Internet connection is susceptible to slow-down.

At $200 for the player and $30 per adapter, the Spawn box will cost too much for many gamers. It’s a neat idea, but I’d rather see Microsoft or Sony buy the underlying technology and put it in their next console.