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Sky Go is coming to Android next week — but not to tablets. The service will let you watch Sky programmes on your Samsung Galaxy S or Galaxy S2 or HTC Sensation, but not on the likes of the Asus Transformer Prime or Motorola Xoom 2.
The service will launch on 22 February, according to TechRadar. But it won’t support tablets or devices running Ice Cream Sandwich, such as the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. The lack of Android tablets sold and the rigour of testing an app across the vast range of Android phones and tablets available seems to have put Sky off.
Sky warns you shouldn’t update your Sky Go app to version 4.0 if you’re not using a supported device.
The other phones benefiting from the first wave of Sky Go are the HTC Incredible S and HTC Desire, Desire S and Desire HD.
As usual, the iPad and iPhone are a step ahead on this score. Sky Movies and Sky Go are both available for Apple’s tablet and phone, probably because the iPad is the most popular tablet by a country mile.
Sky has clearly realised we want our films and TV on the go, when and wherever we want. Figures for last year’s BBC iPlayer viewing show just how big online streaming is: we watched and listened to nearly 2 billion programmes in 2011 — and that’s just the BBC, let alone 4oD, Sky Go and the rest.
The popularity of watching telly on devices other than the telly mean that this year, for the first time ever, you can get Sky without a dish.
Rival services Lovefilm and Netflix both let you watch movies and TV on your iPad, but so far Lovefilm’s Android app doesn’t play movies; it only allows you to manage your account. Check out our head-to-head battle between the two to see which movie streaming service is best.
By comparison to all of these services, Virgin Media doesn’t even have an iPad app, let alone any viewing apps. Its only Android offering is a remote record app, which does at least let you record things even if you’re not at home.
Are you a Sky customer with an Android phone? Will this influence you to switch to Sky, or swap to Android? Tell me your thoughts in the comments over on the Facebook wall.
