What is it?
Next generation wireless home entertainment system.
How will it change my life?
There's no doubt certain corners of the TV realm have been stagnating for some time with only the odd new HD channel popping up to stoke the imagination. In recent years, Sky and Virgin media have duelled for business and in doing so started a technological innovation war: Sky Go was met with Tivo which was countered with HD and so on.
The two seemed content with their respective shares until BT began to gain significant ground on the content front at a time when internet services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime were also winning over viewers by providing cheaper and more dynamic entertainment.
In a bid to woo the telly watching public, the soon to launch Sky Q – available from Tuesday – uses snazzy terms such as "fluid viewing" offering wireless streaming throughout the home but will it be enough to make us overlook a distinct lack of Champions League football?
Good points?
Possibly the biggest change involves the hardware of the boxes with dedicated streaming units. Two choices of TV box allow either one or two terabytes of storage. The 2TB version, known as the silver box, provides recording of four channels while watching a fifth simultaneously. The standard 1TB box allows for three channel recording while watching a fourth.
Multi-room services are no longer received via a full standalone box connected to the satellite dish, instead provided through a mini-box to which the signal is relayed by the main Sky Q unit. This makes for much more practical viewing across multiple rooms.
The remote control has also been revamped and includes touch-pad capabilities which complements the updated Netflix-style menu system complete with recommendations based on your previous viewing habits.
Bad points?
It doesn't come cheap. The cost of the premium silver package is £88 per month with an additional £99 installation. Each additional mini-box costs £99. The mini-boxes are not standalone and receive their signal from the main Sky Q box which means that any technical fault will have a knock-on effect throughout your home.
Best for ...
Early adopters looking to spice things up.
Avoid if ...
Good old fashioned cooncil telly does you just fine.
Score: 8/10.
Sky Q, from £42 plus installation (sky.com)
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