While all TVs and set top streaming boxes get updates from time to time, Sky Glass TVs and Sky Stream set top boxes are in a league of their own on the update front. New features and upgrades to subscription UK broadcaster Skyâs unique and acclaimed Entertainment OS are rolled out almost every month. Even by Skyâs usual update standards, though, the most recent and upcoming upgrades to Glass and Stream introduce some really substantial improvements.
The two most major enhancements for me are a new fast-response Game picture preset, and a big reduction in the time it takes for live sporting action to stream to your TV. The new Game mode is claimed to reduce the time it takes for Sky Glass TVs to render game graphics by as much as 70% from the current rather lethargic 65.4ms, actually making the Glass usable as a gaming display when frankly it previously was not. I go into more detail on this improvement, which rolls out as part of Skyâs Entertainment OS 1.3 upgrade from May, in this separate story.
When it comes to the time it takes for live sports action to actually arriving into Sky Glass TVs or Sky Stream set top boxes, Sky claims this will soon be reduced by more than 20 seconds. This, again, is a seriously substantial reduction, achieved by improvements and efficiencies in the production chain, that could transform the live sport streaming experience. This feature will roll out for Sky Spots Main Event streams first in the coming months, before eventually spreading to other Sky Sports channel by the end of 2024.
To be clear, Sky isnât saying that the improved live sport streaming situation will result in no lag at all. But a reduction of more than 20 seconds will certainly greatly reduce the sensation that youâre catching the âliveâ action significantly after itâs being seen by others – including potentially loudly cheering or booing neighbours⊠– via non-streamed sources.
Turning to other new features that have recently been added to Sky Glass and Stream or are coming soon, letâs look first at the latest features you can already try out for yourself now. Starting with new personalised movie and TV genre rails as part of Entertainment OSâs tailored viewing experience. So, for instance, if youâve watched Ferrari or Mary & George, your personalised genre raise will show biographical and historical dramas. But this new feature is designed to provide recommendations from more than 30 different genres, including some pretty niche ones, making it even easier to find content youâre likely to enjoy.
Note that while this genre-based recommendation rails feature is available for films already, itâs still classed in the âcoming soonâ category for TV shows.
Another recently added upgrade is the addition of a Cast And Crew rail to Show pages, enabling you to see everything any cast or crew member has ever been in as another potential route to finding other content you might be interested in.
You can now also fast forward and rewind what youâre watching on Sky Glass and Stream using your voice, and voice search features have been extended, too, to the Sky Glass and Stream Amazon Music and ROXi apps. With the latter feature you donât even need to open the apps first; you can just, for instance, say âHarry Styles on ROXiâ and the app will launch before finding every Harry Styles track or album.
One final recently added feature families can try out already on Sky Glass and Stream is a range of new character avatars. These make Skyâs support for personal playlists more fun and distinctive by allowing kids to choose avatars for their profiles from options that include Paw Patrol, Scooby Doo, Peppa Pig, Spongebob, Trolls and Pip & Popsy. Other avatars will be added later this year, apparently, including more adult themed ones so parents can add more personality to their profiles too.
The new v1.3 upgrade to Skyâs Entertainment OS platform arriving in May will introduce the potential to add actors as well as films and TV shows to your Playlist. So anything an actor has been in will be easy to find, including new shows or films that may be added to Sky after you set up their Playlist entry. Once an actor has been added to your Playlist, youâll be able to find their related content again in a People You Follow rail inside the Entertainment OS 1.3 playlist section.
This feature will also extend later in the year to allowing football fans to follow coverage of their teams in one dedicated place.
All youâll need to do to add an actor or football team to your Playlist is hit the Sky remote control + button while browsing for people in the UI using the new Cast and Crew rail on Show pages, or when looking at actor/football team search results.
The May update will also enable you to add films and TV shows to your playlist via voice control, simply by saying âHello Sky, add to Playlistâ while on a TV show or Movieâs Show Page.
Show Pages will from May feature Rotten Tomatoes ratings (both the critics and audience scores), while from the summer Skyâs accessibility features for Sky Glass and Sky Stream will be improved with the addition of subtitles to all Ultra HD on-demand content, from Sky Nature shows to blockbuster movies, and the expansion of Audio Description support to video on demand content.
If youâve added a Sky Live camera to your Sky Glass, new games have already just launched or are coming soon. Basketball Knockout lets you simulate throwing basketballs into moving hoops, either by yourself or one on one versus a friend, while Tennis Smash: Racketville tracks the movements of your body and hands to deliver a more intuitive tennis gaming experience.
Music rhythm game Starri, finally, now supports a two-player mode, so you can see how your moves hold up against those of your friends and relatives.
Thatâs it for now – but if youâre a Sky Glass or Stream user, Iâd recommend keeping an eye on my Forbes channel and/or my Twitter feed (linked to at the end of this article) for news on further updates in the months to come.
â
Related reading
Skyâs âGlassâ TVs Finally Solve Their Big Gaming Problem
Sky Glass One Year On – Still The Future Of TV?
Sky Brings Its Online Service To Any TV With New Sky Stream Box