In the past, I had tried this setup with the Blackberry Curve, which of course, did not support streaming media (at least not readily). Let’s just put it this way, I never got it to work with the Curve.  I read a few forums prior to purchasing the Bold where people where having trouble getting it to work with Orb, so I figured that I would share my success here.

Configuring Orb

The setup to make this work is pretty simple.  Download and install Orb as usual.  Make sure the proper ports are forwarded to your Orb server or pc if you are using a router.  The default ports are: 80 (TCP) for the web interface and 554 (UDP) for the streaming.  Port 80 may be blocked by your ISP for security reasons, so you may need to try alternatives.  Mine runs nicely on port 83.  If you have a cable card in your computer (which you will need to stream Live Tv, you’ll want to configure this now.  The only change to the initial configuration or Orb that you will have to make will be from the phone.  Point your Bold’s internet browser to:

http://mycast.orb.com

Login using the username and password that you picked when you created your Orb account.

At the bottom of the page click on the Settings link.

Then click on Stream.

You will then see several options as far as what format Orb will stream to your device in.  Make sure that the third one is selected ( 3GP Format (.sdp) )  Note:  In some cases, this may already be selected.  Finally, click Save and Exit. That’s it.  You’re done.  If you already have music in your library, click on Audio at the top and find a song or artist and give it a test.  Before you play anything the first time, Orb will perform a speed test to determine what quality stream to use.  If the audio works successfully, try a video or your television stream (again, only if you have a cable card in your computer).

How well does it work

Depends.  If you are on a wi-fi connection.  You shouldn’t have any trouble with your stream, and you should get good quality out of the audio and video.  The same should be true of a 3G connection.  However, if you are on EDGE, you may want to stick to just audio as video is almost unwatchable.  Also, I’ve noted that while listening to music in my car, the audio tends to get out of sync as the phone passes from tower to tower.  (This is on the EDGE network.  I have yet to test it in 3G.)  However, if you are stationary, even on EDGE, you shouldn’t notice this loss in synchronization.

Troubleshooting

If you have trouble setting up your Blackberry Bold to stream multimedia from Orb, I recommend Orb’s forums.  It’s pretty safe to say that someone else has already had the same problem you have.  And of course, I welcome any questions or comments here.  I’ll offer all the help that I can.

One Last Thing

For the love of all things good and holy, make sure you have an unlimited data plan before you start messing with Orb on your phone.  Otherwise, you will quickly find yourself with a very large bill from the At&t.  Cheers.

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