LAST WEEK, Astro officially launched the Ultra box, a set-top box that is poised to usher in the era of 4K UHD content into Malaysian homes. It is packed with critical features that cater to both on-demand and linear content consumers, both young and old.
However, there is still a lot of room for improvement.
To access the full capabilities of the Ultra box, it must be connected to both the Astro satellite dish and broadband internet connection. It works on current Astro hardware, so there is no need to install new wiring or a new satellite dish.
“Over half a million homes have 4K TV, of which 70% are Astro customers. The launch of the Ultra box is timely to meet the growing demand for 4K UHD viewing,” says Astro Group chief executive officer Henry Tan.
“Additionally, commercial establishments in the hospitality, retail, and F&B sectors will welcome the opportunity to offer patrons live sports and other content in 4K UHD”.
In addition to 4K UHD content and capabilities, Astro also introduces a set of ‘quality of life’ features.
With both a satellite and broadband connection, Astro subscribers can choose to watch what is on offer based on their satellite TV channel subscription, or pick from the over 50,000 videos on demand available.
And browsing through all available videos and channels is made more accessible with a new home screen.
Subscribers can also purchase additional video content, as well as search for their favourite content by title, cast, director, and channel here.
They also won’t ever miss a show or live telecast again with Astro Cloud Recording. It lets customers record up to 200 hours of shows in HD for free, with an option to upgrade to the ability to record up to 1,500 hours, for RM15 a month.
Viewers can also catch the whole show with Play from Start, a new feature that lets viewers rewind shows that are already in progress.
All these features are available on the Ulta box, which is free for existing Astro subscribers with subscriptions above RM100, and Astro Go subscribers.
However, Astro currently only offers three UHD channels. These linear UHD channels cannot take advantage of most of the broadband dependent quality of life features.
In fact, all of the features listed, except for the home screen and UHD channels, would not be possible without a broadband connection.
A broadband connection would also alleviate one of the biggest complaints against Astro’s satellite service – its susceptibility to bad weather.
Nevertheless, switching sources from satellite to broadband is neither automatic nor seamless.
For example, if you were watching a sporting match and it rains, causing the satellite service to be disrupted, you will be able to go to the menu, pick the Play from Start option and fast forward to where you left off, and continue viewing via broadband.
There will be a short delay, but that is better than not being able to watch the game at all. Keep in mind that this option may not be available for all UHD content.
That said, it looks like the Ultra box is able to function without a satellite connection, and – according to Astro – it can.
However, it is still tied to a satellite service which makes it less attractive to those who primarily view content on mobile devices.
To be fair, Tan explains that broadband penetration is not that prevalent in rural areas, and Astro’s satellite service is the best way to deliver such high bandwidth content.
Then again, Astro is not against making more changes, adding more channels and improvements in the future.
