Polaris Studio Review
I flew UA 901 from SFO to LHR this weekend and experienced the Polaris Studio for the first time.
Thoughts below for anyone debating whether the Studio upgrade is worth it. I recognize anything negative below is a champagne problem, so please picture me typing this while a tiny violin plays softly in the background.
Service - unrelated to the Studio itself, but the cabin crew were fantastic. It seemed like many of them were also figuring out the new plane configuration in real time, and they handled the various hiccups with impressive grace. Truly no notes for the crew.
Hard product - overall, good. I liked the additional space, loved the giant TV, and spent a concerning amount of time discovering new little storage compartments like a raccoon in a luxury kitchen (and then worrying about all the things I likely left behind in said compartments).
That said, I do question the wisdom of putting the “premium flagship product” directly next to the galley, humanity’s most reliable source of clanking and crew chatter. All the classic Row 1 issues are still there, except now you get to pay extra for them. It’s a little frustrating to spend more money specifically to be seated inside the noise funnel.
(Also: how does every fork dropped in the galley sound like a gunshot, yet I’ve never once heard the person behind me make a peep?)
Food — I had read another Redditor’s legendary review of the caviar/shrimp/steak experience, but felt like I needed to try it for myself.
tl;dr: do not order the Polaris Studio special.
Caviar: good, but I’m not exactly a caviar expert. My standards are essentially “salty” and “does not hospitalize me.” United met both benchmarks admirably.
Champagne: delicious, though to be fair, “cold champagne” is relatively unfuckupable.
Shrimp: the infamous “poop loop” previously documented by the Redditor was absent (huge win for SFO catering!), and the shrimp themselves were giant and juicy. Easily the highlight of the meal.
Steak: so overcooked it felt like a strong overreaction to the previous Redditor’s complaints about the steak being underdone. I had about three bites before quietly conceding defeat.
Soft product - functionally nonexistent.
Pajamas? Crew couldn’t find them.
Landing gift with the AirTag and playing cards? Apparently loaded only for the return flight.
Special amenity kit? Missing.
Fancy headphones? I opened the fancy headphone box and it was empty, which felt emblematic of the overall experience - a big exciting box and nothing inside.
Summary: I paid $500 for a bigger seat, a worse meal, and front-row access to the industrial sounds of cutlery. Was it worth it? Probably not.
In retrospect, I don’t think the missing soft product items would have transformed the experience into some transcendent luxury moment. But after all the hype around Polaris Studio, it was a bummer to receive what felt like the beta version of the product. Great concept, weak execution.