PAx view
Well, if anyone is interested in what pax think....here are my impressions after two flights on the QF 380 in J class and about six on SQ's.
The flat seat is an improvement but for me only marginal. I have no trouble sleeping on the inclined version. The much greater pitch is great but still not sufficient to avoid the step-over problem completely. SQ's solution is superior in this respect. But some people don't like having to flip the seat on SQ to access the bed and some don't like sleeping diagonally across the space. I am happy with both and enjoy the additional privacy.
The IFE is substantially better than the notorious Rockwell-Collins (better screen, sharper image, more selections) but ominously, the whole aircraft had to be re-booted on my last flight and then individual screens were re-set for the rest of the flight.
The crew are certainly different from other longhaul QF staff I encounter (roughly every month for the last 15 years). On average they are more enthusiastic, smile more often and generally engage with pax more than the veterans. (Please note I am not complaining about the latter; on the whole I am a satisfied customer and acknowledge that performance varies. Not so much on SQ though.) I don't know whether it's the aircraft or the organisation but service takes ages on the 380. On both occasions it has taken almost an hour from departure for me to get a drink (not wonderful when departure was delayed for two hours after boarding on the last flight). I sit towards the back of the J class compartment but still....
The worst feature of the J class experience on the 380 is the fact that the four toilets are clustered around the galley. This reduces the effective ratio of toilets to pax because some are just not accessible at times. While anything is going on in the galley, the left and right toilets are isolated from each other. At some times, the forward toilets are not accessible except to the first few rows so most of the pax are restricted to one or another of the rear toilets. Four toilets for 72 pax might sound similar to the proportions for the 747 but believe me that is not how it feels.
And then there is the interminable delay in getting off in Sydney. Sigh.
It pains me to say it but I think SQ have done it better.