zeebox

zeebox Review

by on October 28, 2011

Anthony Rose, the tech brains behind BBC iPlayer’s huge success, is back and this is the result of his past year’s work – and it’s very good. Building on the “even crap TV is good TV if people are tweeting about it” premise, Zeebox is a social TV app that feels like it should have been invented already. Like a cross between an electronic programme guide, instant messenger and Foursquare, it lets you check in to programmes and interact in real time with what you’re watching and who’s watching it. But cleverly, rather than creating a platform apart, it is fully integrated with Facebook and has a fully fledged Twitter client within it, all hash-tagged-up and ready to go.

You can rank programmes by subject, UK popularity (which updates in real time, Mr Viewing Figures), or just by whether your friends are watching. The programme hubs themselves let you chat privately with friends or join the Twitter debate, view the show’s rising or falling popularity, buy contextually relevant apps (who knew Top Gear had so much tat on the iTune store?!) or research what you’re watching with real-time show-specific keywords that Zeebox generates all within the same, Apple-esque minimalist-designed screen (a documentary on the FIrst World War had us listening to the Lawrence of Arabia score within three taps).

Those with internet-connected tellies can even use it as remote control over Wi-Fi with no extra downloads needed, your screen flicking around with your tablet taps. It’s a really intuitive experience that brings the still old-fashioned act of watching telly up to date – and with the smartphone and Android rollout coming next year, big-name telly companies getting involved and the open APIs even allowing apps to be built for the Zeebox platform, the potential is arguably even more exciting than the present.

Get this app now: Zeebox for iPad

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