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Samsung 2nd TV is an app for watching and controlling your telly from your Samsung Galaxy S 2 smart phone or Galaxy Tab tablet.
If your family is watching a film and you hear the distant ping of your microwave telling you the popcorn’s ready, you can stream the live TV signal to your phone or tablet over Wi-Fi so you don’t miss anything while you’re running to the kitchen.
We saw the app working with a spectacular Samsung telly, pictured above. The signal from the TV was slightly delayed by the time it appeared on the Galaxy S 2, so it wouldn’t be suitable for amplifying the sound through the phone’s headphones, for example.
If your telly has more than one TV tuner, you can also choose to watch something else on your device when the sitting room is invaded by a bellowing celebrity chef.
You could also watch the signal from your set-top box or DVD player by firing it through the telly to your mobile gadget. That could be handy for catching the last few episodes of a box set from under the duvet, rather than from the sofa.
The 2nd TV app also lets you use your little corner of the gadget Galaxy to control your telly and find programmes.
The remote-control feature works over Wi-Fi, since a phone or tablet doesn’t output an infrared signal like a normal remote. Your TV will need a network connection for the 2nd TV app to work, but we don’t know yet whether it will have to be a Samsung telly.
Meanwhile, an electronic programme guide (EPG) feature gives you the option to sort through your schedule without taking over the main TV screen.
Samsung told us the 2nd TV app should be available within the year. We expect it to arrive on the Android Market so you can download it to the latest Android-powered Samsung phones and tablets.
