Only two days before the United Airlines is set to offer its first Starlink-equipped flight, which delivers internet speeds up to 50 times faster and offers a ‘living room in the sky’ experience, makes the airline more waves by revealing its next generation hut experience.
United Airlines’ Polaris seat offering is already impressive with a large, bright screen, lots of gates and a complete lying seat. But the airline has put many years of work into its next product extending beyond the flagship seat.
Arriving first on the new Boeing 787-9, which United expects to land by the end of 2025, is the next generation of the Polaris seat, and the brand new Polaris study along with upgrades to Premium Plus, Economy Plus and even Economy JA, those traveling in the standard extra leg space will also get some significant improvements.
Polaris gets more ways to recharge, a larger screen and a door to privacy
Returning the improvements with United’s core Polaris Business Class seat is four ways to recharge your device, probably your phone, within your pod. You still get a standard output, but United promise three others, including a wireless charging pillow that supports Qi standard baked in your counterpart, which means you can just put your iPhone 16 or Galaxy S25 Edge on the surface and let it recharge without getting a cord out.
In addition to the standard outlet, you also get USB-C and USB-A ports. Basically, it gives you plenty of power, which is convenient if you hope to work while you are at 35,000 feet.
The entertainment screen is again touch-enabled and gives you access to a wide range of movies and TV shows, as well as a flight card if you are an aviation nerd like myself, but it now extends to a whole 19 inch diagonal and is a 4K OLED panel. This should mean that if you are at a window, the screen can become light enough to compete with the sun and it can also be angled or pulled out.
Of course, Bluetooth is supported so you can connect your favorite Bluetooth headphones or some of the best true wireless earplugs directly to the infotainment system. You also get a pair of Polaris-branded over-ear headphones in the kit of the recreational.
With the touch of a button you get a seat that can be transferred to a bed to a lie-flat experience or various other positions. It is now a wool-mixed covered seat where United promises that the new material is more breathable, and to finish it all there is now a door to the Polaris seat that also acts as a privacy panel.
Polari’s seating will be in a 1-2-1 setup of Boeing 787-9 when it arrives later in the year, with 56 Business Class seats spread over 14 rows.
United’s brand new Polaris Studio is bigger than life if you are looking for the best seating in the sky and are willing to pay for it. As United Airlines teased when it first announced Starlink, it’s our best look at the Sky Vision living room. You get the classic Polaris-lying seat, but you are facing a massive 27-inch 4K OLED screen that should be excellent to look at. It also supports Bluetooth connection to listen with your own cans.
There are also four ways to charge, including Qi Standard Wireless Charger, multiple wall plugs and a USB-C port to be connected straight. However, the right kicker is that when the studio nomenclature suggests, there is an Ottoman to get someone else to attend you in the studio. You also get more table space and more storage.
This one feels unusual. Imagine Starlink connection plus the opportunity to kick back and watch a favorite movie on a 27-inch screen on a plane. It will probably be expensive, but for long trips you may think it is worth it.
More chargers for Premium Plus and Economics
While Polaris is leading the news, United Airlines does not leave Premium Plus-a Step-up class for long-distance domestic and international flights or economics hanging. The ‘purple seats’, as they are known in the aircraft, are getting bigger, lighter 16-inch 4K OLED touches with the aforementioned Bluetooth support, but more importantly, they give you more ways to charge your devices.
Each premium plus seat has a wall jack, a USB port and a wireless charger -so you can charge how you want. You also have a dedicated place next to your seat to hold your headphones.
Passengers in economy or economy plus get 13-inch 4K OLED screens, but the real victory is now six sockets in each row. It is far better than the two spread over three seats or three for four seats in some configurations, and should put an end to the dreaded fight for ports.
All in all, the focus is on tech and making flying less stressful, at least with regard to the experience during flight, a major upgrade. And in addition to the new Cabin Tech, United have committed to bringing much faster, free for MileagePlus members Starlink Internet to all its regional jets by the end of 2025, and this is due to its first Mainline Jet at the end of the year.
Starlink will also be on Boeing 787-9 when it arrives. The new aircraft will be equipped with 56 Polaris seats, Eight Polaris Studios and 35 Premium Plus, 33 Economy Plus and 90 Economy seats.
The first of these aircraft will be delivered by the end of this year, and they will be used in 2026, starting with United’s San Francisco to Singapore and San Francisco for London routes.
