Most skins for Kodi take on a specific theme and develop it, doing quite a nice job at that, too. You can see this trend if you browse our previous lists for the 6 best Kodi skins or the 10 best Kodi skins for touchscreens. However, there are exceptions to this rule: some skins develop two or more themes that you can switch to and from, without changing skin; while others just develop a hybrid theme, for example, being modern and retro at the same time. In this last group, we find the Kodi Metropolis skin, one of the nicest looking skins for Kodi, that we will be reviewing today. [Read: Kodi Nebula Skin review: light and dark skin for your HTPC]
When I started writing this Kodi Metropolis Skin review, I instantly had my eye caught with the nice icon aesthetics that I was able to see in the settings screen. Vertical icons, looking as if they were brought out of a pop-art gallery greeted me, and a smooth transition as I moved the mouse was the first sign of a well-performing skin that held many surprises. I guess this skin would go very well with a wireless HTPC keyboard, or even a remote such as the Lynec C120.
Best Wireless HTPC and Android TV Box Keyboards:
- Logitech K410 Living-Room Wireless Keyboard with Built-In Touchpad - $37.75
- Logitech Illuminated K830 HTPC Wireless Keyboard and Touchpad - $69.99
- iPazzPort KP-810-10AS Wireless Mini Keyboard Remote with Touch - $15.99
- Rii i8+ 2.4GHz Mini Wireless Keyboard with Touchpad - $22
- LYNEC C120Pro Mini Wireless Gyro Remote Keyboard Mouse - $13
Kodi Metropolis Skin review: a different main menu
Another surprise I got when writing this Kodi Metropolis skin review was the fact that the main menu is split in two, in an elegant, yet sort of uncomfortable way if you're using a mouse as a primary peripheral; however, if you're using a keyboard it is actually innovative and comfortable: on the left you have the equivalent of the main ribbon in skins like Confluence and Aeon Nox, but vertically oriented, and on the right, you would have the equivalent of submenus, if the menu item you're browsing has them. [Read: Kodi Aeon Nox Skin Review: a modern look for your HTPC]
Menus in the Kodi Metropolis skin have few visualizations, but there's one that looks really neat: the Low List visualization combines an appropriate image and icons with the ease of browsing that the List visualization offers. Other menus offer the Gallery Square visualization, such as the menus inside Genesis Kodi addon. When it comes to media, visualizations increase exponentially, with most of them focused on presenting a wealth of information to the viewer in a beautiful way. You can check out some of those visualizations below, and see if there's any that you might like for your HTPC.
Kodi Metropolis Skin: do you recommend it?
The fact that there's Kodi skins and background plugin such as the Kodi Metropolis skin, focused not only on delivering excellent visuals, but also a great wealth of information at a glance, is very rewarding and also ideal for people who want to see things like what studios produced the movie, or what rating has it gotten from its viewers. The Kodi Metropolis skin also boasts touch support, in case you have your Kodi install in a tablet or touchscreen device. Because of the features and great wealth of visualizations it packs, and because it is completely free to use, I actually would like to encourage you to try it out. Who knows? Perhaps you get a new favorite interface after you install it!