Having travelled ont he 74A in J class for the first time a few weeks back I must say the new J class is 10 times better than the old J class seats. I have resolved the problem with lack of width/reading newspaper quite easily.
Recline the whole seat into the bed mode and then ask for some extra cushions and you can make yourself ultra comfortable like at home in a lounge reading the newspaper on full broadsheet, while also have a good view out of the window. Also int he upper deck you get around 10 inches more space than the lower deck and the 33B so I actually can't touch the ottoman even when fully stretch out (i am 5 9") so even if you are over 6 foot there will be no problems for you to stretch out.
I think most of the complaints from people are just based on initial adjustment period and I can say for a Long haul flight (day or night) these seats in any way are better than the old one.
As for the issue regarding communicating with the partner it is actually not too bad and side by side you can almost see each other and exchange converstaions without distrubing others.
The ottoman can be used as a buddy seat on the 74A (upper deck) but not the 33B because of the additional length and it is ok for a brief period. Many people actually did this on my flight. I have confirmed with the ISM the No seat sticker is there to avoid people using it during turbulence.
80A is the best seat now because of the additional HUGE locker just next to it and you can use it as a side table for drinks/food/newspapers etc... I feel like I was at home in my PJs with plenty of room to stretch out and to store things etc.. This is also the first time where I can actually sleep for more than 6 hours in J Class (apart from the BA NCW) and there is actually more room on CX than BA and I don't feel my feet falling off (as the BA ottoman is quite small and the arm rest is not flush even when they are fully retracted).
Also I can create a brekfast in bed mode as the table can now be lowered and you can pull it towards yourself more than the old one.
The PTV situation has slightly improved as the crew have almost master the technique to pass the food onto the table without distrubing you.
Potential improvement points:
1) The TV screen is just support for 1 arm and can be tiltedup or down
2) Wings on the head rest?
3) Potential partition opening to see your seatmate? (just near the head area and relocate the PTV slightly forward.
4) BEtter blankets/ and possible duvets/mattress pad.
5) Extended massage cycle
6) Remove the partition on the ottoman (however, this may cause problems with safety)
7) use the 3 point harness instead of the airbags (as it take up space in bed mode with the huge buldge on the 33B)
Overall I am really happy with the new CX J class product and have no hesitation in now using CX as my carrier of choice on the LHR-HKG run.