Orange to launch new Ultra HD Livebox next week

Orange is to launch its new Livebox on May 19, the company has revealed.

The French service provider initially unveiled the device, which which enables multiscreen connectivity throughout the home, on March 16 at its Hello Show event.

The set-top element of the Livebox is Ultra HD-capable, enabling users of Orange TV to view Euro 2016 fixtures in the format on TF1 and M6, along with UHD films on its own OCS Go and OCS Max channels, and French rugby and football coverage on Canal+. UHD content is also available via Netflix, Orange VOD and nature and travel channel Ultra Nature.

Orange is bundling three months’ free subscription to Netflix with the box, along with three Orange VOD films for permanent download.

Through the My Livebox application, Wi-Fi quality is tested in every room, allowing the user to optimise the home configuration and maximize coverage.

The Livebox will be available in France as part of two new offerings – Play, from €39.99 a month, and Jet, from €47.99 a month. The Play offer provides the user with the New Livebox and its TV decoder and includes the Livebox Storage and Airbox Confort mobile broadband options, each for €5/month. The Jet offer includes Airbox Confort, Livebox Storage and a 450-Gb TV recorder.

The box combines 802.11n and 802.11ac Wi-Fi, enabling connectivity at 2.4GHz and 5GHz respectively and delivering Wi-Fi that Orange claims to be four times faster than that previously available.

According to Orange, the Livebox will be of particular benefit for its fibre cutomers, who will benefit from cumulative Wi-Fi speeds of up to 1.9 Gbps on their home networks.

Orange is including a 4G Airbox with its New Livebox, to connect equipment immediately to the mobile network pending installation and connection.

Orange is also offering a storage option, incuding a 1TB hard drive that can store 500 HD videos of one and half hours in length, all of cwhich can be accessed remotely via Orange Cloud.

“We’re proud of this box. It responds to the change in needs expressed by our customers, who want unrivalled connectivity and expect an incomparable Internet experience on every screen in the home. The New Livebox feeds into our fibre development strategy in France and will help us achieve our objective of 1.6 million Fibre customers by the end of the year,” says Fabienne Dulac, Senior Executive Vice President, Orange France.