I just returned last night on CX890 to EWR, also my first flight on the A359. I was seated in J, 12K. I agree with the cabin noise being far less.

I've been flying frequent long hauls on the 77G out of EWR for the last few years, split between PEY & J. The flight on 11/13 was very quick, just over 14 hours in the air. For some reason, we took a polar route back to EWR rather than the usual route across Alaska. After the plane flew along Japan it went north over Russian airspace rather than the typical westerly heading. We arrived in EWR around 8:20. I would have been out of the terminal before 9, except for nearly 1 hour delay in getting the baggage out.

I've seen comparisons about the air in the A359 being less dry than the 777, but I don't know if I felt that. I did drink over 4 bottles of water during the flight in addition to soft drinks, tea and water as part of normal service. I did feel dehydrated, but that may have been due to eating the salty prepared food in Pier J lounge. I usually have some nasal congestion on the 77G, but did not experience any on the A359. That may be attributed to the more humid cabin.

I know the A359 is only 9 inches narrower than the 77G, but the J seat felt a bit narrower and just a bit shorter when fully reclined. Still very comfortable, but feeling just a bit more cramped. I missed having the storage compartment below the armrest. I liked putting my shoes in there. I didn't find a good use for the seat extension flap. I'm a large man, but it didn't help to give me additional room. It also took a little time for me to get used to the control buttons. I like the new feature with one-push for full recline and back to seated position, but it took a few times to remember to push again to stop instead of holding the button. I also felt the seat sits a little higher in it's recline position. Seems to me that the zodiac seats on the 777 is lower when fully reclined. I didn't feel that the seat was any more comfortable than the older seat. Padding seemed about the same.

The IFE is better. I'm not sure about the numbers, but the screen resolution is much better and of course the screen is bigger. Controls on the IFE took a bit of getting used to, since the IFE on the 777 is burned into my brain. I found the touch screen to be a little finnicky. I found the new remote to be less useful. I did not use the screen in the remote at all and the control buttons were not as intuitive. The new favourite feature is much more useful than the old playlist, easier to manage. After I board and get settled, I like to scroll through the selection and pick movies to watch. Getting the the favorites section is much improved and it's easier to see the thumbnails and descriptions. I don't know if the headphones are a newer model, but they did feel more comfortable.

I did miss the big lavatory near the galley on the 77G. All the lavs I tried in J were very small. The big lav on the 77G is much more comfortable, even the smaller lavs up front seem bigger than the lavs on the 359.

I did miss the location of the water bottle, snack box area. I looked around but couldn't find it. On the 777 it's in the main J galley off to the side between the two J cabins. After looking around the cabin for it, I returned to my seat and rang the bell. The ISM came and I asked her, she said she'd bring it to me. But I prefer walking around and grabbing my own snacks.

Mid-flight, I took a tour through the plane, especially to check out the PEY cabin since I use it frequently. I usually sit in 30A/K. I noticed that the flight info/magazine rack is different. On the 77G, it's a soft leather-ish pouch. On the 359 it's seems like hard plastic. I usually take out all the papers and use the pouch as an additional footrest, even with the extended footrest in the front row of PEY. I will miss that when I fly PEY.

For some reason, I did not sleep the entire flight. I tried to sleep around 4-5 hours into the flight, but just couldn't. I usually fall out around this time. I gave up after an hour of trying and started another movie. I was definitely as comfortable, if not more, than being on 777. When we landed, I did not feel particularly exhausted or fatigued. I just felt as if I had been awake for over 24 hours, which I was.

I know I might sound negative on the A359. I am not. Overall it was a very pleasurable flight and comparable to the 777. However, I didn't feel that it the whole experience was better. Aesthetics were similar, with the A359 being new and a bit more polished with a slightly updated design.

I've been flying CX890/899 on the 77G regularly for 2 years now. I know the 77G doesn't get a lot of love here, but I definitely preferred the PEY cabin to 77H, even without the dedicated lavatory. I'll see over the next few flights how the differences pan out with PEY and E being smaller, how that might translate to op-ups. I anticipate my next flight will be in PEY sometime in December and I'll be able to compare that experience.