Sky UK Reveal Price of Sky Live 4K Smart Camera for Sky Glass UPDATE
Sky has today finally taken the wrapping off their new dedicated 4K HDR smart camera add-on for the Sky Glass TV product, which otherwise uses your broadband ISP and Wi-Fi connection to stream their on-demand video content and live TV channels directly to Sky’s own brand TV sets (without a satellite dish).
The new Sky Live camera – designed exclusively for use with Sky Glass (it will magnetically attach to the top of their TV set) – includes various features, with video calling via Zoom being the most natural one (other Zoom users don’t need Sky Live to reach you), supported by noise-cancelling technology to improve audio clarity and group watching (i.e. syncing the show you’re watching with friends/family in another location, while still allowing video chats – max of 12 people on one call).
The device, which uses a 12MP (Megapixel) wide-angle 106-degree Field of View (FoV) camera that connects to Sky Glass via both USB-C and HDMI ports, will also feature movement sensors to help support video gaming and exercise – somewhat reminding us of Microsoft’s old Xbox Kinect camera (at launch it’ll only support 27 games, such as Fruit Ninja, Whack-a-Mole and Monopoly). Sky Live can also be adjusted to account for people of different heights, and it has auto-framing technology to help follow users around the room.
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At the time of writing, the new device is not yet available to order via Sky’s website, but we expect that to change later this morning. Customers who add the device can expect to pay a whopping £290 if they want to buy it outright, but you can alternatively spread the cost by paying either £6 per month over a 48-month contract or £12 on a 24-month term.
In addition, new Sky Glass customers will be able to take a special introductory offer that bundles the TV and camera together for £17 per month on a 48-month contract, at least until the end of July. This offer is interesting because Ofcom generally doesn’t allow consumer contracts that are longer than 24-months. We assume Sky must be keeping some contractual separation between the two sides of their bundle.
Fraser Stirling, Sky’s Global Chief Product Officer, said:
“We surprised everyone when we launched our streaming TV, Sky Glass, in 2021. Now we’re doing it again. Sky Live makes your TV much more than just a TV, by introducing new entertainment experiences for the heart of your home.
Get active with motion control games, work out with body tracking technology, video call on the big screen and watch TV with loved ones – even from afar. And this is just the start. With our powerful Entertainment OS ecosystem, it will keep getting better with every update.”
On top of all that, there are also some other caveats to consider. Customers who wish to ‘Watch Together‘ with other Sky Live users must all have the same TV package. Furthermore, this feature doesn’t yet support non-Sky streaming services, such as Netflix or Disney+, which is hardly a surprise.
Overall, it’s an interesting, if quite expensive, addition and some people will no doubt enjoy it. But the fact that it will only work with Sky Glass, and not even Sky Stream, does rather limit its appeal. Not least since Sky Glass remains a tough sell for those who don’t want to swap out their existing TVs for Sky’s bulky own-brand set.
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UPDATE 8:43am
We’ve just copied the official features’ table below.
Key Sky Live Features
Watch Together when you’re not together
Enjoy TV together, even when you’re apart.
See and hear family and friends in their own homes alongside your favourite content on your TV screen, so you can celebrate Premier League goals together live, discuss the latest drama on Love Island, and chat through every episode of And Just Like That, S2.
Working across live channels and Sky on demand content – the dedicated Watch Together button on screen lets you invite your family and friends to watch with you*.
And with Auto-Tracking, everyone will always be in shot and in focus. Plus, Sky Live’s background noise suppression technology means sound will be crystal-clear.
Workout with a personal trainer on your TV
With the exclusive Mvmnt fitness app, you can choose from over 130 interactive workouts, including a range of strength, mobility, Pilates and yoga classes for all abilities.
Built-in Body Tracking technology improves your technique by analysing your form, providing real-time feedback as you move and counting your reps.
Developed in partnership with WithU and qualified coaches, Mvmnt is exclusive to Sky Live for innovative and easy ways to work out from home on the big screen.
Download the Mvmnt companion mobile app so you can also get real-time feedback on your form directly to your mobile. Plus, you can plan your workouts, track your personal progress, and share to social media.
Play hands-free immersive games for the whole family
Use your body as the controller in fun active games like Starri, PAW Patrol PAWsome fitness and Fruit Ninja with Sky Live’s ground-breaking Motion Control technology, which uses AI-powered body tracking and gesture control. With more games like Peppa Pig coming soon.
Play solo at home, or challenge family and friends to join in a range of fun multiplayer games and experiences like Monopoly.
With VideoBooth you can capture short videos and photos on your Sky Glass. Immerse yourself in some of your favourite TV shows and films with AR filters for PAW Patrol, Trolls and more. Download your creations and share with your family, friends and on social media.
Also coming soon is the Stingray Karaoke app, allowing you to record, play back and easily share your best performances on social media.
Video Call on your TV
Make Zoom calls to family and friends from your sofa to any device.
Have better conversations and see people in HD, large as life and crystal-clear on the big screen – no more juggling iPads, laptops or mobiles.
Everyone will be in shot with Auto-Tracking and you can hear every word with the background noise suppression technology.
You can even switch from a call on your mobile to your TV if you’re signed into the same account on Sky Live. Just use your existing Zoom account and log in with your regular e-mail address and password.
Simple set up
Sky Live has been designed with the same simplicity and privacy credentials as Sky Glass. It’s easy to set up, with no remotes, headsets or controllers, and the magnetic base sits securely on top of your Sky Glass, with cables to connect to the TV. Giving you complete control over your privacy, there’s a dedicated button which lets you switch the camera and microphone on and off – when the front light is off, you know it’s completely off.
Pricing and availability
Sky Live is available to buy in the UK from today (Thursday 22 June) at Sky.com, in Sky retail stores or with our customer services.
Buy for £6 per month interest-free credit on a 48-month contract, £12 per month on a 24-month contract, or £290 RRP in the UK.
Buy Sky Glass, your smarter than a smart TV, from just £14 per month. Add Sky Ultimate TV with Sky TV, Netflix and discovery+ for just £26 per month
Mark is a professional technology writer, IT consultant and computer engineer from Dorset (England), he also founded ISPreview in 1999 and enjoys analysing the latest telecoms and broadband developments. Find me on X (Twitter), Mastodon, Facebook, BlueSky, Threads.net and Linkedin.
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A very mediocre TV coupled with an expensive spycam. Can’t see this being much of a success.
I would not have a camera in the house that is permanently on and connected to the cloud. how long will it be before Sky uses it to count people watching or something like that?
I have a webcam, that is plugged in when I need it.
Would be weird if they charged for movies by how many people are watching!
This just feels like Kinect 3.0, your post could easily have been made immediately after the Xbone/Kinect 2 announcement just swapping Sky for MS.
MS from what I’ve read did patent the concept of counting viewers in a room.
I will be surprised if this isn’t an overall failure in the market, just because of the extra cost alone.
@Chris, they would if they could, I am sure of it and people would be silly enough to pay it. the amount people pay for sky is horrendous
A shame it’s dependent on having glass.
Would make more sense if it had stream built in and was a way for those who prefer to buy their own tv to use it too.
I wouldn’t be buying it anyway but it seems unnecessarily restrictive.
It bafles me why you would buy the glass TV – its a rebadged Samsung QLED, and with the finance deals around, you could buy the original Neo QLED + a decent Atmos soundbar, and not be tied into that vendor lock in junk.
It’s actually a TP Vision – same ones that Philips stick their badges on.
What ever it is, from what I have heard it is not that good a TV. I would never buy a TV that is linked to one service.
It would be like buying a hi-fi and only able to stream music from one provider
Absolutely bonkers.
Sky have lost the plot.
Years ago, but people still paying the sky-high prices.
It’s dead on arrival, a product seeking a use case and failing to find one.
This seems so pointless, Sky well and truly out of touch with what the customer base wants and needs. Glass is a wreck, needed a heck of a lot more time in the oven before launching and for the price it should be significantly higher quality than it is. Glass feels like a massive downgrade from Q, even from +, due to the lack of recording features and the replacement Playlist feature being flimsy at best.
The convenience factor does work well for Glass, i.e no dish and no cables other than power and HDMI inputs; allowing for easy movement of the TV anywhere in the room or the house even. Conceptually Sky without the dish is a fantastic idea, but the implementation in the early phases of Glass and even now as we head towards 2 years since launch leave a lot to be desired. Instead of working on improving the Glass platform and adding necessary features they’re launching a camera which, if the rest of the Glass experience is anything to go by, will likely be buggy as heck and a nightmare to work with. Poor show from Sky, very poor.
You (and I) are likely not the demographic Glass is aimed at. I would suggest it’s mostly meant to be for the poorer end of the workforce, who don’t have any technical expertise, who already maybe take Sky but who could never afford to buy a large flatscreen TV. It’s aimed at those who can’t tell and probably don’t care it’s not that good a TV. It’s still much bigger/better than the 32 or 40″ ASDA no-brand TV they bought for £200.
It’s the modern equivalent of Radio Rentals where you get an average TV for a monthly rental and with it you get Sky.
I can’t imagine there will be any widespread demand for this.
I quite like Sky Glass, yes you can get better but the price is set at a medium level and no interest charged for those wanting to pay monthly. Don’t see the point in the camera though at all. Since the Google Pixle, iPhone and most laptops have 1080p and 4K cameras anyway for video calling and the need to not use Zoom I cannot see this taking off
£290? It’ll be cheaper to buy an Apple TV and use your existing iPhone with tvOS 17
They are saving lots of money for stupid products like this by moving their workforce to Bulgaria and india