Since its launch towards the end of last year, Sky Glass has been pretty game-changing. For the first time ever, you can get Sky TV without the need for a satellite dish. All you need is an internet connection.
Designed to be completely hassle-free, Sky Glass is a 4K TV with an integrated soundbar and a lot of what Sky Q has to offer. You just need to plug it in, turn it on and get it hooked up to your home Wi-Fi network.
As things stand, you can buy it in three sizes: Small (43-inches), Medium (55-inches) and Large (65-inches).
As well as providing live TV across hundreds of channels, Sky Glass gives you access to all of your favourite streaming services including Netflix, Apple TV+, Disney+ and Amazon Prime as well as catch up services like BBC iPlayer, Channel 4 and the ITV Hub.
In the Sky Glass review, I said that 'this is by far the best TV you can buy for streaming' but has my opinion changed since then? Over 6 months on, I'd still agree with that but I've also learned a few things along the way.
Here's what I've loved about Sky Glass, as well as what I've not been so keen on...
Sky has been putting a lot of force behind its original content, and because you can access it on-demand through Sky Glass, I’ve never been without something new to get my teeth into.
Filled to the brim with huge Hollywood names as well as emerging new talent, Sky has something for everyone. I've loved having such a huge library of shows to watch and thanks to Sky's straightforward user interface, it's incredibly easy to find something you'll like.
Two favourite shows of mine have been a gripping crime drama The Staircase starring Colin Firth, and Brassic, a comedy set in the North of England. More content to be added to their library this year include Gangs of London Series 2, This England starring Kenneth Branagh and Funny Woman with Gemma Arterton, to name just a few.
Because you can see them all in one place, Sky's recommendations are another winning feature. You don’t need to open up and scroll through each app to find something to watch because Sky Glass pulls options from every streaming service and groups them together. It massively speeds things up and the recommendations themselves are surprisingly accurate.
The fact that updates are regularly rolled out to Sky Glass is also worth mentioning because, unlike other TVs, it gets better over time.
Since I started using Sky Glass, new apps like Spotify and Apple TV+ have been added to the mix, and Sky has also tweaked how you navigate through the system. It's easier to restart shows from the TV Guide than it was before, and it's more efficient to add and play content from your playlist.
Sky has even rolled out updates to the HDR picture quality, increasing brightness and enhancing contrast and colours, so the actual viewing experience has been improved as well.
Last but not least, I've grown to be an even bigger fan of the integrated soundbar. You won’t need to buy a separate speaker system because it has one built-in which for this price tag is a pretty good deal.
The audio easily filled up my mid-sized living room and made me feel completely immersed in the action. I rarely turned it up above about 40% volume because it has a huge amount of power behind it.
Music streaming apps like Spotify, YouTube, BBC Sounds and Vevo come loaded onto Sky Glass which means I've been able to use it as an all-in-one entertainment system. It comes especially in handy for listening to the radio because I found it's much simpler to use Sky Glass than to search for a station on my phone.
For the most part, I have really enjoyed using Sky Glass and would recommend it to anyone who wants a hassle-free way to get set up with Sky TV at home. But on the flip side, Sky Glass does have a couple of flaws that I think are worth knowing about.
Firstly, there are some features that don't work quite as they should, like the voice search. The system sometimes triggers voice search unnecessarily which disrupts the show playing on the screen while it listens out for me. I also found that when I did intend on using it, the voice search didn't always hear me correctly so I had to repeat myself a few times to get the result I was after.
Because Sky Glass relies on an internet connection to work, not a satellite dish, you won't be able to watch TV if your internet connection drops and you don't have the Freeview tuner plugged in. If you live in a town or city, this shouldn't be too much of a problem but if your Wi-Fi at home is notoriously weak then it could become frustrating.
Luckily, I live in a city so my broadband is pretty strong but there has been the occasional moment where shows have stopped playing because the TV couldn’t get enough bandwidth. And when I stream sports, it sometimes lags behind what's happening in real-time.
Another issue is the sheer size of the thing. Most TVs are getting slimmer and slimmer - not Sky Glass. Once set up, it does look smart but you will need to make sure you have the space for it, and moving it won’t be very easy, it’s definitely a two-person job.
If you are tight on space then it could be worth waiting for the recently announced Sky Stream Puck which is soon to be released as a standalone product. It will bring the Sky Glass experience to non-Sky Glass TVs. You won't need to splash out on a whole new set to get Sky satellite-free!
