FlyWorld

I'm confused. There will be "entertainment" but there will be no screens on the ceiling and no screens on the seats? So, how does one "consume" this entertainment? Telepathically?

Agreed. That's the question here.

Maybe the goal is to make long-haul even more excruciatingly painful than it is today so they can justify a higher price for the TODs?

My point is that CO pushes small framed aircraft much further than UA ever did. So, now that UA is CO, we see more longer flights on smaller aircraft, in general, than we did before.

As for the screens, give me a break. You turn it off, then they turn it on. You turn it off, then they turn it on. You turn it off, then they turn it on. You turn it off, then they turn it on. You turn it off, then they turn it on. And, then, after that, the "on" button is raised, so if you use your armrest, it goes on again. And, again. And, again.

Not to mention that all the screens around you are always on and endlessly repeating the same **** advertising over and over and over and over and over again.

Have you ever flown a CO aircraft?

Exactly!

+100

tryathlete

Aaron, I'm like most of the folks here in that we see incremental revenue as the only driver of this airline now. Selling our upgrades and reducing complimentary offerings is obviously the new UA revenue model. Wifi and Direct TV are revenue enhances. The same goes for M fare instant upgrades for us 1K fliers. Nickel and dime us to death.

I'd like to know if UA could offer us higher value fliers something like free Direct TV or WiFi as a reward for our loyalty. AA provides free snack boxes to EXP even in economy. Where is the love on UA?

bse118

On your own device via streaming over WiFi. Which is quite clear in the OP.


I've flown more CO 737s than I'd care to. Last one was SFO-DCA in March. During which I turned off my screen after the safety video - and it remained off for the duration of the transcon. Certainly wasn't off/on over and over again.

In reality the on/off cycling you mention happens only when the FA's have to reset the DirectTV system, which is usually ONCE per flight.

I don't spend much time watching other peoples' screens, but to each his own.

The background bother from other people's seatback screens is far less intrusive, IMO, than the annoyance from drop down screens that no-one can turn off and that rarely play anything worth watching. Won't miss them.

Chris1000

I hope UA will consider "under seat space."

It looks to me like aisle seats will have significantly less space then center/window due to:

1. Position of "legs" being offset from center
2. Metal "arm" extending down on aisle side removing several inches of space

In this age of paying for checked bags, with the overheads usually full, its frustrating to be in an aisle and not be able to fit a backpack under the seat in front....

catocony

I very much disagree with you there. A dropdown screen every 4 rows or so that's actually playing a movie or Anthony Bourdain or Big Bang Theory or whatever is far, far less intrusive than 150 screens in the seatbacks playing a very short loop of ads for six hours straight. I can dim my screen, I may be able to ask the person next to me to dim theirs if they're not watching it, but I can't do it to the passengers in the other 22 seats that are generally in my visual range.

And this whole crap about bring your own device. Here's some news for you - not everyone owns a tablet. Sure, most people at least have a smart phone, but watching a movie for $6.99 (cost of on-board wi-fi) on a three-inch screen isn't really entertaining. If you weigh over 120 pounds or are over 5'8", I seriously doubt if you'll be able to comfortably have a laptop on the seatback tray with the new seats.

I understand how they'll cram in the extra row in E+ - they'll Tedify the non-Ted A320s and the 319s by taking out the F closet and half the galley. You'll board and there will just be the half-galley in front, then the divider, then F starts. So, F is reduced in the new scenario by eliminating the closet so the FAs put their stuff in the overheads. Plus, no space to stash a bag if you're late arriving in F and the overheads are taken. With a closet, the FA can pile your stuff in there on top of their bags. Now, they won't.

But, to get that extra row into E- means that the seat pitch is going to have to drop about 2 inches, down to 30" or so. The fact that the seats are thinner and they fiddle with the arraingment of the seatbacks so that the magazine pouch is higher doesn't change the fact that you are physically closer to the people in front and behind you. Thus, the jammed-in feeling.

I guess to sum up my feelings - Conited is trying to fix something that isn't broken in the name of increasing dollars. That's ok, but as the old saying goes, don't piss down my neck and tell me it's raining. A lot pmUA customers go out of their way now to get an Airbus because we don't like the 737s for a lot of reasons. Now, that option is disappearing. I doubt if too many pmCO customers seek out Airbuses, since they seem happy with the 737s and AVOD.

I like that nomenclature. Conited is becoming a grumpy, expensive version of a discount carrier that happens to fly internationally.

mgcsinc

I like that the streaming entertainment concept is so silly that mitchmu presupposed that it couldn't possibly be the case

bse118

Sure, this is a matter of opinion. Me - i read a good old fashioned paper book. I spend my days in an office staring at a screen - don't need to do the same when I'm on a plane.

There's something of a fallacy here. On one hand you are suggesting that few people pay to watch DirectTv on pmCO planes ("150 screens in the seatbacks playing a very short loop of ads for six hours straight"). On the other you're arguing that it's "crap" to make people pay for IFE on their own device that they may not have.

Well if no-one's paying for IFE in the first place on pmCO 737 seatback screens, why does it matter if pmUA Airbi becomes on your-own device only? They're still not gonna pay for it - whether they have a device or not. In other words it doesn't matter if the pax doesn't have a tablet - if willingness to pay for the content is zero.*

(* Note: this is different of course from a discussion about whether the IFE in-general should be free or for-pay. Or why UA seems intent on maintaining such a disparity in IFE product across the fleet..)

Actually: continuing this line of reasoning suggests that on balance the removal of drop down screens, combined with no seatback screens, and for for pay-IFE requiring your own device, should result in overall less intrusive light pollution in the cabin from other passengers' entertainment.

lhrsfo

Undoubtedly the seats will feel much more crammed than previously, because the magazine space takes up about 2" of space right in front of your face. So, whilst your knee space will have increased, your face space will have reduced (I've flown these seats many times in Europe, so I do know them quite well) and you will feel closer to the seat back.

And forget about using any sort of normal-sized laptop, even in E+. The protrusion from the magazine space is too great.

LarkSFO

No streaming involved. We receive the content 'telepathically'.

Man, people sure do get worked up around here...

So, 1" of additional pitch is worse?

When you board on one of these new aircraft, remove all the literature from the seat pocket and put it on the floor or in an overhead bin.

bob_the_d

maybe i'm in the minority or perhaps i'm just nitpicking, but i actually hate flights that make me use some sort of PMP for media viewing (i'm looking at you, p.s. flights in C and three class AA transcons in C).

i guess the bottom line is they're rather inconvenient and they make my neck hurt.

when i'm watching something, it's sitting on the tray table so i'm looking down for hours and my neck kills. when a meal comes suddenly i have no space to put it anymore (i amusingly watch everyone on p.s. flights do the same thing as i do when the meals come out, you end up playing tray table tetris for a few minutes figuring out how to make everything fit). and in Y if i have to use my own device, i'd end up having to hold up my device to eye level for hours to watch a movie.

whether it's DTV or free IFE, i always appreciate anything that's fixed at around eye level for me. saves me a lot of neck pain.

actually with regards to this i get what he's talking about. on these seats the literature pocket is actually a fixed plastic shell. that's what protrudes out and makes it feel smaller than it really is. there's nothing you can do about it and when the person in front reclines, it really does feel like it's smack right in your face. it does free up some knee space so you can claim a bigger pitch, but then it reduces space up by your face.

https://www.brusselsairlines.com/com...s/_MG_3759.jpg

it's an airline seat at the end of the day though. you can add space somewhere, but it's going to come at a cost somewhere else. it's always going to suck in some way. it's just a journey to find what sucks the least.

BTA

I had a recent transcon on the oddball United 757 that formerly had Row44 wifi and still has slimline seats (N593UA). Based on photos upthread, I believe these are at least similar to the Recaro seats as described, but presumably they don't have the comfort upgrades that the new Airbus seats will. Certainly the seatback configuration seems to be the same, with the magazine slot above/behind the tray table.

I was in the exit row aisle. Due to support bars, I couldn't fit my backpack in the narrow space of seat in front of me. There was no winged headrest, and the seat was very stiff with bad seat padding. I was exhausted, so I slept some, but I really hope the new Airbus seats are better than this. I did use my laptop briefly, and that seemed okay, but since I was in an exit row, there was no way for the seat in front to recline. The elastic pouch in front was tiny, and barely fit the (2nd) pair of headphones that were there.

For those interested, I discussed my experience on this trip in slightly more detail here: Delayed on United

Here is a photo I took from my seat showing limited legroom (I'm 6'3") and the seatback arrangement:

Overall, I'm happy about the wifi rolling out on these, but lack of power for is a problem. I don't always have the luxury of a fully charged device before flying.

The seats seem like a clear negative change for passenger experience. I can't believe the A319 will still have only 8 F seats.
Big on the lack of free IFE options. Seeing United go the LCC route and charging for everything is highly annoying. I would hope for some discount for elites and first class, but I don't expect that.
Worst of all, I can't help but think the end is near for Channel 9.

edcho

Yup! You have to bring your own devices (iPads, Tablets, Laptop) to get streaming video (i.e. you turn on WiFi and click on movies that pop up on the landing page/webpage for a charge apparently).

janicerobertson

I took liked the TED leather seats. In fact, the leather seats on the United Express flights are far more comfortable than United's other planes.

What I find almost amusing is how the standard of travel has degenerated so far in the American carriers. I was on a Star Peru flight several weeks and on the 50 minute flight I was treated to friendly yet professional flight attendants, a drink service, and a meal! Same for an hour Turkish Air flight.

catocony

I read newspapers and magazines on flights. That's been my MO for over 16 years. In fact, if I go a few weeks without flying, newspapers and magazines start to pile up at my house.

So, do I watch video? No, I don't. However, I do have peripheral vision, and do occasionally try and sleep on flights. So, the 150 screens that don't have an explicit on/off button means that the kettles leave them on the whole flight, generating lots of light pollution.

Now, regarding the wi-fi, my fault for mixing several arguments into one diatribe. While I do not watch videos, I do like channel 9. However, plenty of passengers do come on board who don't bring anything to read. Or they find it difficult to read on flights, with poor lighting and everything. The point being, not everyone comes on board with a tablet. So, taking the position that the airline will just charge for wi-fi and provide some content to those that have a tablet and wish to pay $6.99 is BETTER than just playing a movie and some TV programs on the overheads is incorrect. Yes, if it's a predominately business flight, where everyone is an experienced traveler, not having decent free audio/video is fine. We come on with stuff to read, with devices charged up and with content ready to roll, or we're prepared for sleeping for X hours. However, on flights with a lot of kettles, the free audio/video is fairly important, especially on 5-6 hour transcons.

The basic change is that something that is currently "free" - movies and TV shows played on dropdown screens - will no longer be available. You either get a screen in the seatback that the uninitiated don't explicitly know how to turn off that you have to pay to get content or watch an ad loop. Or, you don't have to worry about the screen, but in addition to the cash you may want to pay, you have to have a charged-up device that you can watch for the duration of the flight.

The best case scenario is the personal system like on pmUA 777s/767s. It's "free", and you can easily turn the screen off if you want to read, or sleep, or use your own device. The second best would be a seatback system that has maybe one channel "free", with paid options for those that choose it. With an explicit on/off button, and no freaking ads.

LASUA1K

I find the UA seats as the most comfortable in coach from all carriers. I sat in E- yesterday on the Airbus and honestly it wasn't bad.

The new WN seats are awful on the back and thighs. It seems like they have either lowered the seats or have decreased the seat cushion. WN is my airline of choice these days, but flights over an hour you start to notice how bad those seats truly are. I haven't flown on LH version, but I've heard enough complaints to know, those would probably not work for longer than an hour flight. I'm very sad to see Ch 9 go,we know it won't be back. Once it's gone it's gone.