You've purchased and received your Sky Glass Gen 2, what are your thoughts on how it performs?
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- last edited: by
KevNewMedia
This review was written by a Superuser who has received a free Gen 2 device from Sky, as part of the Superuser programme
@mikealanr wrote:
Hi All - Got my Gen 2 on Friday and thought I would post this review:
- Ordering and delivery
Gen 2 was ordered by speaking to Sky rather than ordering online. I chose a 55” Blue unit as this is the similar colour as my Gen 1 set. It was a very easy order process. The customer service agent sent key facts via email which I had to open and accept while on the call, or they can read these out to you if you prefer.
I had received an email from AIT Delivery / Panther Logistics before I was off the call informing me that the delivery had been scheduled. I then received confirmation from Sky shortly afterwards.
I received an email with a timeslot the night before from AIT and then the driver called me when he was about 30 minutes away.
- Unboxing and set up
Unboxing the TV was a really nice experience and not something I thought that I would be impressed with. Usually, it is just a case of opening a box and taking whatever you are unboxing out. But Sky have managed to make it an enjoyable experience, giving useful snippets of information as you go along.
Everything in the packaging is recyclable which is great to see. You start by pulling out four cardboard tabs from each side of the box and lifting the outer box up. Then you take the prongs, remote and power cord out of the top and take the two top sleeves off.
The base plate is in a cardboard sleeve at the back of the TV and this has instructions on the box to show you how to assemble, however there is also a quick guide leaflet in the box located where the remote control is.
You take the two prongs and slide them into the gaps on the baseboard. It has been engineered so you can only put them in the correct way around. Once done you lift the TV up and place them down on to the prongs (this takes two people).
After plugging in the unit two ‘step markers’ appeared on the bottom of the screen and after a few seconds I was asked to go through the setup:
- I was asked to choose my language, between English and Italian.
- I was then asked to connect my unit to the WiFi. I did this by choosing my SSID (network name) and entering my password. It connected in a few seconds.
- It then told me it was checking status for a little while and then played a Sky Glass splash screen.
- Next, I had to link my Glass to my Sky account. However, this was prepopulated, and I had to simply confirm my Name, but also had the option to choose ‘not me’ and ‘skip & complete later’. Confirming my name prompted it to check status again for a few seconds.
- Next it asked me if I wanted to use the default settings or enhanced settings.
I chose to use the enhanced settings to match the experience on my Gen 1 set. That was it. It then loaded into the normal home screen with the continue watching rail, playlist and profiles already populated.
Overall, I was unboxed, set up and watching in under 5 minutes! I think this is a record of any TV I have ever had!
- Overall impressions vs Gen 1
The difference in the sound quality and the panel is noticeable vs my gen 1. I didn’t think that it would be as noticeable. The audio quality has been improved, and you can feel the base more causing me to lower the volume rather than crank it up. Speech is crystal clear and when watching movies sounds such as explosions feel more ‘robust’ and ‘directional’.
The panel quality and brightness is definitively better. This TV is in my back room which is brighter than my living room. There haven’t been any issues viewing programs in the daytime with light pouring in from French doors directly opposite where the TV is situated. Programming is vibrant with a really good depth of colour and the blacks are darker the gen 1 panel with far less graininess and the backlight is noticeably more even than the original set. HD quality is good, UHD is even better and HDR is awesome. Navigation of the menus etc and the loading of playlists seems snappier than my gen 1 too.
One small but very subtle change is the remote control. There has been a small redesign compared to gen 1 and puck remotes. I have done a side-by-side comparison:
The coloured buttons for home, microphone and playlist feel more recessed and a small change to the volume up and down button with the small ridge in between. This makes it very tactile and means you can change the volume without having to look down to see if your finger is on the right option. Great for when you are watching sport and don’t want to miss a second.
From an aesthetic perspective the gen 2 unit looks sleeker. The footprint of the baseplate is smaller and having the colour matching speaker cover finishes the design off well. While I love my geometric magnetic cover on my gen 1 set, the fact that its not protruding on the gen 2 set makes it look visibly better.
I also agree that the viewing angles are improved. Very little definition is lost when viewing the screen side on and is visibly better than the original. This is handy if you have corner sofas like me.
Overall, I can see a difference in the performance vs my Gen 1 model, I wasn’t expecting the difference to be as noticeable as it is. On paper the improvements look like refinements rather than revolution but the uplift in viewing experience they provide makes for a far more enjoyable and immersive experience, particularly with blockbuster movies and sport in UHD.
MikeAlanR
An excellent review/first look at the new Gen 2 set. 👍 If this was still available in dusky pink, I'd be sorely tempted to upgrade our 1st gen bedroom set. Good to read that one can see & hear an improvement over the 1st gen performance without restoeting to pixel peeping and numeric measurements.
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