I recently traveled JFK – LHR and return in club. LHR flight had old club world seats and featured “sleeper service;” haven eaten dinner in the club lounge, I attempted to get to sleep directly after take-off. Despite acquiring a seat in the quiet upper cabin, donning eye shades, etc, I managed only 90 minutes of fitful sleep. After a couple of restless hours, I noticed that the second showing of The Departed was just about to begin and spent the remainder of the flight engrossed in the film. While fully-flat, the old Club World seats are a bit uncomfortable and leave me tossing and turning – I think that they rise up in the center, sloping down on the sides. And the fabric is a bit itchy.
The JFK flight featured New Club World, and I had tons of fun playing with the new buttons, switches, drawers, etc.
I agree with the previous poster who mentioned the “lighter” look of the new design – seats and décor are a dark beige, as opposed to dark blue. The new shoe drawer is much more convenient; the new window shade is wonderful and fully blocks out the person sitting in the next seat; and I found the new seat-adjustment buttons with pre-set configurations convenient. The AVOD IFE system was greatly appreciated, as I was able to start my movie-of-choice exactly when I desired (and the streamlined look of the new movie screen did not go unnoticed). The new tray tables are also a significant improvement - extremely easy to unfold, adjust, and return to storage position. The only two things I missed from the old Club layout were (1) the little drinks coaster and (2) the little cubby hole on the side of the seat.
The new seats are exponentially more comfortable than the old. As a testament: I started my movie selection (Casino Royale) directly after dinner and fell asleep just after Bond hit the casino – the next thing I knew, the FAs had switched on the cabin lights in preparation for our pre-landing snack! Considering my normal in-flight sleep patterns (i.e., little to none, regardless of time of day, length of flight, class of service, or state of exhaustion), this is nothing short of a miracle, and I attribute it to the new seats’ softer feel, shape, and material.
In the future, when traveling BA Club, I think I will be slightly disappointed if my flight hasn’t been re-fitted with the new seats. As an additional observation, it seemed as though the Cabin Crew were very enthusiastic about the new Club product – and that enjoyment permeated through to the service. Can any BA staff comment on whether this is the standard reaction or if I just had a particularly cheery crew that day?