Friday means you’re done working (hopefully), and also that it’s time for another Premium Travel Insider face-off! This week we’ll be looking at several Greater China carriers to see who has the best business class IFE — EVA Air, Hong Kong Air, or Cathay Pacific? While most people walk around with multiple devices for amusing themselves these days, relaxing with a nice IFE system in business class is always a plus. On the long flights to the Greater China region, it’s even more important. So let’s see who’s the best!
As a reminder, Premium Travel Insider aggregates reviews from around the web and scores them on a 1-3 scale. A 3 indicates that a given category exceeded reviewer expectations, a 2 indicates it met expectations, and a 1 failed to meet expectations. We evaluate a variety of categories, the most important of which we call the “Big 5” that are most important to a premium travel experience: seat, food, drink, service, and in flight entertainment. You can learn more about our methodology here.
Top Line Scoring of the Best Business Class IFE
| Airline | Number of Reviews | Aggregated IFE Score |
| Cathay Pacific | 11 | 2.25/3 (Good) |
| EVA | 14 | 2.00/3 (Acceptable) |
| Hong Kong Air | 10 | 1.78/2 (Below Average) |
The winner here is pretty clear, but it’s not a pretty victory. Cathay Pacific business class comes in first, scoring 2.25/3 for IFE. But while this wins our Greater China IFE face-off, it’s not going to win any awards in broader business class. EVA comes in a clear second with 2.00/3, with the IFE being the only “Big 5” category EVA doesn’t do well. Trailing in last is Hong Kong Air, scoring a below-average 1.78/2. Let’s see why the bloggers and reviewers felt this way about these airlines.
Cathay Pacific Business Class IFE – Best and Worst
Cathay Pacific – The Best
Cathay Pacific received praise from several bloggers with regards to the quality of their IFE.
“The A350 uses the Panasonic eX3 platform with 11.1-inch personal HDTVs packed full of movies, TV shows, satellite TV, magazines, city guides, games, and music.”
Greg Stone of Upgraded Points, traveling from Hong Kong to Amsterdam.
“I found Cathay Pacific’s IFE system to be extensive…. There was seemingly an endless number of movies and TV shows, including full seasons of quite a few shows as well as three channels of satellite TV: BBC World News, CNN (international feed) and Euronews. I ended up getting lost watching the entire first season of HBO’s “Barry,” which certainly helped pass the 16-hour flight.”
JT Genter of The Points Guy, traveling from Washington D.C. to Hong Kong.
Cathay Pacific – The Worst
Although Cathay Pacific was generally well reviewed, our friends at Upgraded Points did not have a good experience on one of their older A330s.
“This old cabin features a 15-inch touchscreen that isn’t competitive compared to newer cabins…. Despite the dated entertainment system, there was a huge selection of content that included 90 movies. But you will tire of the 3 minutes of advertisements before each movie starts.”
Greg Stone of Upgraded Points, traveling from Sydney to Hong Kong.
EVA Air Business IFE – Best and Worst
EVA Air – The Best
EVA came in right at the middle at 2.00/3, but it wasn’t a case of being average across the board. Instead, some people loved their IFE, and some hated it. The biggest driver was the content, as some reviewers found plenty to watch, and others did not. Let’s see what they had to say:
“EVA Air has quite an impressive onboard entertainment collection, which I’m sure many passengers would appreciate on a flight of over 14 hours in duration.”
Ricky from Prince of Travel, traveling from Taipei to Toronto.
“I found the movie selection to be solid and overall the in-flight entertainment package was very good.”
Daniel from Upon Arriving, traveling from Houston to Taipei.
EVA Air – The Worst
But not all is well in EVA Air IFE world. Several reviewers did not find the product to be up to par at all.
“… the entertainment selection is one of the few weak points of EVA’s product, in my opinion.”
Lucky from One Mile at a Time, traveling from Los Angeles to Taipei.
“Each seat featured a crisp, 17-inch touchscreen TV that popped out of the seat in front of you, but that’s about the only good thing I can say about EVA’s inflight entertainment. The content selection was abysmal, especially from an airline that pays such great attention to detail otherwise.”
Ethan Steinberg of The Points Guy, traveling from Houston to Taipei.
Hong Kong Airlines IFE – Best and Worst
Hong Kong Airlines – The Best
Hong Kong Airlines came in a distant third, scoring 1.78/3. While Hong Kong Airlines had several “acceptable” reviews, no reviewer found their IFE to beat expectations.
Hong Kong Airlines – The Worst
Hong Kong Airlines struggled from both content and quality of screen critiques from some reviewers.
“The IFE was a bit disappointing…The TV shows were mostly Chinese.”
Ariana from Point Chaser, traveling from Los Angeles to Hong Kong.
“Out-of-date inflight entertainment system” under a bottom line “What is Not Great” summary.
Matt Moffitt of Point Hacks, flying from Sapporo to Hong Kong.
Conclusion: Best Business Class IFE – EVA Air, Hong Kong Air, Cathay Pacific
When you’re flying from the Americas or Europe, it’s a long haul to Greater China. If you’re anything like me, you need to keep busy on the plane to make the time fly by. This is a rare instance where three carriers who give an otherwise enjoyable experience struggle on the IFE front. While Cathay Pacific is a clear winner for this competition, the airline didn’t exactly crush it. Bringing your own entertainment may be a good idea if you’re picky and flying any of these carriers.
But entertainment is just a part of the overall story, and each of these carriers delivers a very different overall experience. Make sure to check out the full story at:
Not happy with those carriers? Check out all of our business class reviews and see if you find someone else you like. Or perhaps you’d like to upgrade to first class — in which case our first class reviews might be to your liking. No matter how you fly, Premium Travel Insider has you covered.