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Original poster
Apr 12, 2001
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Electricpig reports that it has discovered an easter egg in the recently-released EyeTV iPhone application from Elgato that allows the software to stream video content via 3G wireless networks.
Elgato's EyeTV app requires you register your Mac to its free My EyeTV service in order to tap into broadcasts outside the house, but use it when your iPhone has only a 3G connection and you'll see an error pop up, warning that "Live TV playback requires a Wi-Fi network connection."

Tap the OK button, and the app will act as if it can't receive broadcasts. However, tap the text of the warning message instead, and the Eye TV app will stream live TV over a 3G connection.
The report notes that the feature almost certainly went unnoticed by Apple's application reviewers and it is unclear how the company will react to its discovery.

Article Link: EyeTV Easter Egg Allows for Video Streaming Via 3G Networks
 

Ted13

macrumors 6502a
Dec 29, 2003
669
353
NYC
But so long as you keep a copy of the current version of EyeTV you are in business! Wonder if you can have multiple versions of the same app on your iPhone if you rename it manually -- keep the existing one for 3G streaming, get newer ones for whatever future features get added (Remote control, please!)
 

Cartoonkid

macrumors 6502
Apr 29, 2009
369
222
But so long as you keep a copy of the current version of EyeTV you are in business! Wonder if you can have multiple versions of the same app on your iPhone if you rename it manually -- keep the existing one for 3G streaming, get newer ones for whatever future features get added (Remote control, please!)

I don't know if that'll work. Can't Apple just disable or remove apps installed on our phones?
 

zombitronic

macrumors 65816
Feb 9, 2007
1,127
39
I don't know if that'll work. Can't Apple just disable or remove apps installed on our phones?

Automatically? I'm not sure. I would think that you'd have to sync your phone to initiate any changes or removals.

I won't be updating my EyeTV app until someone confirms that a newer version keeps this easter egg intact.
 

QuarterSwede

macrumors G3
Oct 1, 2005
9,778
2,026
Colorado Springs, CO
Apple has yet to delete any app off of people's iDevices. Now that the genie is out of the bottle Apple will most likely pull it from the store until Elgato updates it with the code removed. Then again, with the FCC investigation (Apple, at&t and Google) it'll be interesting to see what Apple does.
 

optophobia

macrumors 6502a
Oct 26, 2007
877
24
Hudson MA
Automatically? I'm not sure. I would think that you'd have to sync your phone to initiate any changes or removals.

I won't be updating my EyeTV app until someone confirms that a newer version keeps this easter egg intact.

wow, so now unjailbroken iPhones are as cool as Jailbroken iPhones using 3G unrestrictor.....

[/sarcasm]
 

slapguts

macrumors 6502a
Jan 10, 2008
661
0
Ha. I just got all excited, clicked over to the App Store, bought this, then remembered I sold my EyeTV Hybrid about a month ago.

Crap. :mad:
 

fpnc

macrumors 68000
Oct 30, 2002
1,979
133
San Diego, CA
I just gave live TV streaming over 3G a try and the results weren't very good. The video quality is okay (not great) but it pauses about every 30 seconds and sometimes you only get the audio with no updates to the video. However, when playing back recorded video you don't have either of these problems. Thus, it appears that the live TV over 3G isn't very well optimized.

I'm running on a 2.66GHz Mac Pro so I don't think these problems are due to any lack of horsepower on the video processing.

Furthermore, EyeTV's standard preset for streaming pre-recorded video over 3G compresses the source down to a pitiful 176x144 resolution at only 80Kbps. The result is often a blurred, artifact ridden mess but it does seem to stream reliably (not like the pauses you get with this "Easter Egg" method to view live TV). In fact, it looks like the live TV compression is set higher than it is for the pre-recorded streaming (that may be why the live TV pauses so often).
 

zombitronic

macrumors 65816
Feb 9, 2007
1,127
39
Update: The easter egg was apparently first publicly disclosed nearly two weeks ago, just days after the application's release, and Apple has apparently yet to take any action in response to the issue.

This is encouraging. Maybe the lack of quality via 3G streaming is considered enough of a deterrent for most users.
 

rstone3

macrumors member
Apr 27, 2007
60
7
Midwest
Automatically? I'm not sure. I would think that you'd have to sync your phone to initiate any changes or removals.

I won't be updating my EyeTV app until someone confirms that a newer version keeps this easter egg intact.

I just downloaded the app as it likely will be pulled. I'll put the icon near NetShare on my iPhone ;)

Apple does have the ability to remotely kill an app but this has never been used and is believed to be a 'fail safe' in case an app that has the ability to hijack your phone or some other virus-like thing got through Apple's review process.
 

Eddyisgreat

macrumors 601
Oct 24, 2007
4,851
2
I just gave live TV streaming over 3G a try and the results weren't very good. The video quality is okay (not great) but it pauses about every 30 seconds and sometimes you only get the audio with no updates to the video. However, when playing back recorded video you don't have either of these problems. Thus, it appears that the live TV over 3G isn't very well optimized.

Mine works OK. The audio is great but the video sometime jerks in high action scenes (or when the audience claps).
 

djdole

macrumors regular
Aug 21, 2007
162
0

kas23

macrumors 603
Oct 28, 2007
5,629
288
It shouldn't be pulled, there's no reason for it.

AT&T is on record saying no video streaming for the iPhone over 3G. They say it is a clear violation of their TOS. Sure, "AT&T doesn't approve apps," but I'm sure Slingplayer would beg to differ.
 

Habakuk

macrumors 6502a
Jul 10, 2007
968
40
Vienna Austria Europe
I tried it but it doesn't work :-(

When I press the text instead "OK" the player will show up (sometimes after a blue progress bar, without any video or sound content) but just for a second or so—and then it will vanish to the list with the tv stations... Everything else works pretty well (watching pre recorded shows; live tv via different WiFis).

Rebooted MacBook Pro with "EyeTV hybrid" USB tuner, rebooted iPhone. NADA live tv via 3G. Maybe it's the carrier? (Orange Austria, I hate them.)

Edit: Success! After the tenth attempt or so it works! (Maybe it was the signal strength of the "hybrid" tuner at DVB-T.) Image and sound very good (like via WiFi). Even the FM radio stations are transmitting with pause and time shift! Great! :) More functions than my TV set at home. Apple please don't change that. Sling is not available in Europe.
 

SimonTheSoundMa

macrumors 65816
Aug 6, 2006
1,033
213
Birmingham, UK
AT&T is on record saying no video streaming for the iPhone over 3G. They say it is a clear violation of their TOS. Sure, "AT&T doesn't approve apps," but I'm sure Slingplayer would beg to differ.

That’s just retarded. 3G everywhere else in the world is marketed for video streaming. It’s why almost every 3G phone (apart from the iPhone) as a second camera as well.
 

wooo

macrumors member
Mar 23, 2006
83
0
risky move...

Bold (possibly risky) move by EyeTV.

When my own app was rejected for streaming video over 3G/EDGE (and it was the 3rd rejection in as many weeks... frustratingly), I took the "safe" road.

So when ooTunes detects you're on 3G and want to play a video stream back, what does it do? It asks if you want to open Safari (yes, apple's own safari) and streams it merrily there. I figured they couldn't reject my app for using their approved app :)
 

rstone3

macrumors member
Apr 27, 2007
60
7
Midwest
Bold (possibly risky) move by EyeTV.

When my own app was rejected for streaming video over 3G/EDGE (and it was the 3rd rejection in as many weeks... frustratingly), I took the "safe" road.

So when ooTunes detects you're on 3G and want to play a video stream back, what does it do? It asks if you want to open Safari (yes, apple's own safari) and streams it merrily there. I figured they couldn't reject my app for using their approved app :)

Clever move...and nice piece of software ooTunes is, BTW. Just got the server myself recently.

Hopefully, as AT&T's network becomes more robust or as iPhone is opened to other networks and people migrate there the lower bandwidth will allow easing of these restrictions on apps. I can't actually imagine them enforcing this sort of thing if iPhones were on Verizon as well.
 
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