Sky Player on the Xbox 360: first look

So in the Autumn you will be able to use the Sky Player through your Xbox 360 – with the tie up between one of Britain's biggest broadcasters and the might of Microsoft already looking damn impressive.

Of course, the version that was being shown off to the press was still an early version of the Xbox Sky Player, but it's already showcasing much of the functionality.

TechRadar has had plenty of time to play around with the Xbox Sky Player in its foetal stage, and we have to confess to being entirely impressed by what we have seen.

A note of warning; the demonstration we saw used pre-loaded clips of content rather than the streaming medium that would be arriving through your broadband in the final version, so judging the picture quality on what we have seen would be premature.

First and foremost, the Xbox Sky Player certainly doesn't feel like a hasty add on to the NXE interface that has impressed since replacing those old blades. This is an interface that works, and the Sky Player slots neatly into it like an old friend.

Perhaps even more impressively, the moment you navigate into the Sky Player section through the familiar menus you will have no doubt about where you are. Although it is not as stridently branded as you may expect from a product like this, this is undoubtedly a Sky product.

Getting in and out of where you need to be is easy, allowing options like 'browse by channel' which brings up a traditional episode guide grid and 'Live TV' which we'll discuss next – but the first port of call is the Sky Player Home screen.

This offers genre browsing – bringing quick and easy access to the likes of Sport, Movies, Entertainment and the ones that nobody clicks on.

The electronic programme guide (EPG) – accessible from several places through the menu system – is exactly what you would expect. There is no functionality to set reminders (dragging you out of your Team Fortress 2 map so you can watch the footy, for instance) but don't rule out enhancements in this area over the coming months.

One of the cooler features that arrives with the Xbox Sky Player is the capacity to watch the footy in a room full of your friends…in avatar form.

But wait, it's actually not as gimmicky as you may think; the avatars sit in front of a giant screen, but jumping into full screen football mode (or back out) is just a flick of the left stick away.

You can make your avatars gesture, and you can use your headset to talk to each other, its potential for banter is certainly evident. Also available are some other interactive features like match stats.

In truth, it's early days for the Sky Player on the Xbox 360, but the signs are encouraging. It blends superbly into the Xbox experience, it's intuitive and, while the functionality may not be extensive, it works and enhances rather than detracts from the business of watching telly.