Virgin Media unveils new Virgin TV 360 box with voice remote

Virgin Media unveils its new Virgin TV 360 box with voice remote

(Image credit: Virgin Media)

Struggling with lockdown? Virgin Media is hoping to lift everyone's spirits with its new TV platform. Virgin TV 360 features all the top TV channels as well as Netflix and Prime Video in 4K HDR, plus voice search and the ability to restart any live TV programme.

Virgin TV 360 is bundled with a new Mini box that promises 4K streaming around the home, as well as a new remote that allows subscribers to open apps, pause, skip forward or back, and search using their voice.

Virgin Media is also touting Startover, a function that lets you restart live TV shows (provided they're on one of the major channels that supports it). There's also personalised user profiles, so individual viewers can dive straight back in to their last paused programme, without too much of a faff.

If you're an existing Virgin Media customer, you might have noticed that the platform currently lacks Disney+. No Mandalorian for you, then. There was talk of Virgin Media announcing the streaming app's arrival today but that didn't happen. Instead, a representative for Virgin Media told TechRadar: “As of next year I'm very confident we will have [Disney Plus] on the platform”.

Virgin Media also hinted that Alexa integration may be on the way, allowing users to connect their Virgin TV 360 box to Alexa smart speakers. The company is also said to be considering integrating Netflix's voice search.

Fancy upgrading your entertainment offering? Virgin TV 360 will be available to all new customers as well as existing customers who already have or are willing to upgrade to the ‘Ultimate Oomph’ tier.

The top-of-the-range package gets you 250 channels – including Sky Cinema, Sky Sports and BT Sport channels – plus two mini boxes, ultrafast M500 Fibre broadband (up to 600Mbps thanks to the recent speed boost), landline and an unlimited mobile SIM. Cost? £79.99 per month.

It's also worth noting that many of the apps and similar features can be found in media streamers such as the excellent Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K and Apple TV 4K.

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2 Comments Comment from the forums

Cobrabay 10 November 2020 21:04

As one of the unfortunate early users of the Virgin 360 TV box I'd strongly recommend people avoid it. The hardware of the box itself is a mild improvement, more energy efficient, faster start-up, but the remote is a poor replacement for the old V6 one, far fewer dedicated buttons, it didn't even have a stop button, which means you are much more reliant on navigating on-screen. The software however is the real travesty. It has Minimal Viable Product and Public Beta written all over it. Compared to the mature Tivo-style interface of the V6, the new UI has much less functionality, and appalling navigation. If I could revert to the old V6 I would. This box is is so bad I'm considering moving my TV to Sky, even with the higher cost of breaking the bundle.
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xbian 10 November 2020 21:42

Thanks for the heads up!

I am on a bundle , virgin box , internet and phone which I never use.
Hardly use the Virgin box as there never seems to be much on TV.

I prefer streaming on the TV, Netflix etc. The picture quality is far better than the Virgin box.

If it was not for the wife recording and watching the two American dudes doing up houses , I would never turn the virgin box on!
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