Sky customers are pretty used to numerous changes arriving on their screens each year but the first release of 2024 goes to Virgin. The telecoms and telly giant has just started pushing out a TV upgrade that helps improve the user experience. It’s called version 5.06 and 5.07 and is available on both Virgin’s Stream box and Sky Q-style 360 devices.
Virgin began the release last week so it’s worth checking your devices now to see if you can see the changes.
So what’s new?
Well, before you get too excited this isn’t a blockbuster release that is going to change the way you watch TV. However, it certainly improves things
The first change you’ll notice is that Virgin has switched its on-screen tiles from a pretty squeezed portrait view into a more visually appealing landscape option. According to Virgin, this change is all about making the programme tiles more visible.
As you can see from the screenshots, see below, it certainly looks more visually appealing than before.
The next change improves the Settings menu. This upgrade basically offers an explanation of what each mode and option does rather than leaving you wondering what you are about to click on.
Once the update is installed, as you scroll onto a specific option a box pops up alongside it with a full description. “For a better understanding of the various settings options available, these will now display a description next to the setting,” Virgin explained.
There’s also the addition of improved categories when setting up profiles. This should make it easier to see the content that appeals to you rather than being bombarded with inappropriate shows, films and sporting events.
If you have that terrible habit of not finishing a show, Virgin has now revamped the progress bar which now means you’ll only see how much of a show you’ve seen when you tap on it. This is instead of the previous design which showed the progress of everything in your recordings – that made things look pretty cluttered.
Finally, the My Watchlist functionality has been improved. Whereas previously you could only add upcoming shows to your watchlist you can now add any programme, including those that have already aired through Catch Up.
There’s no word on when a full rollout is taking place but it’s worth checking your box to see if things are updated with the new features.
Virgin is also teasing that more changes could be inbound. “We will keep you updated on future updates,” the company confirmed so watch this space.